I have a ten game winning streak. “They” say you shouldn’t talk about a streak while you’re in it because you might jinx it. Well “they” can bite me. I want to share this while it’s happening. I want people to know there’s some magic going on that I don’t understand but that’s great to watch. And if my streak ends tomorrow and I get a no-decision or a loss. Well, y’all had one day to appreciate it while it was still happening.

But good news always comes with bad news. My aunt Katy has breast cancer. This was confirmed by a biopsy. She got the results on Tuesday. Her doctor suggests that I get a mammogram and then do it annually because women who have relatives with breast cancer are more likely to develop breast cancer than women in the general population. Normally, women are not advised to get annual mammograms until they are 40. I’ll be 30 this month.

I talked to Aunt Katy yesterday and she said she discussed treatment options with her doctor. She’s opting for what they call “breast conserving” surgery and radiation therapy. After the surgery she’ll have chemotherapy and hormone replacement therapy.

This whole business sounds scary to me. Breast cancer would end my career. I’m not ready for that. Nobody’s ever ready for that. Aunt Katy is a chief librarian. She’ll still be able to return to work at some point.

I’m asking the league if I can have a pink ribbon on my cap to support her. I don’t have to ask to put a pink ribbon here.

So I wake up one morning to discover that I am tied for the league lead in wins with twenty. That’s nice and it gives me a feeling of satisfaction to know that I’m doing as well as anyone else on this staff.

But then I look a further into the stats and I see that I have more wins than the entire Elmira staff. That is just … breathtaking. I mean, I heard the joke. How the Elmira GM would trade his entire team for me. But I didn’t realize that they were struggling quite so much.

Oh and did you see that number? Twenty. Well, part of what it means to lead the league is that the other pitchers in the league aren’t doing as well as you are. Alex Williams only has fifteen wins. Fifteen. One, five. I don’t know how it happened. He strikes out more guys and his ERA is below 1.00. But there it is. I have more wins than Alex Williams.

And Jay is struggling. I’ve already struck out more than he’s projected to get all year. He hasn’t won since the All-Star break. I’m not going to lie and say I’d give him some of my wins. But I wish there was something I could do. It hurts to watch. Because it’s Jay. Were it any other pitcher in the league, I wouldn’t care. And he doesn’t say it, but I don’t think my being good is as hot as it used to be.

At the beginning of the year I had a couple of goals. Well, three goals. First, I’d have seventeen wins. Next, I’d have an ERA below three. And finally, I’d have more strikeouts than last year.

Well, it’s only three weeks past the All-Star break. And I’m getting it done. I have my seventeen wins, my ERA is under two and I’m projected to get over 300 strikeouts. This is a wonderful feeling. Like dancing on a cloud.

Skip says he’s proud of me. He also says he knew I could do it. He said I might win 25 if I keep this up. He’s very careful not to say that part of how I got it done was the 4-man rotation. I am aware of that, though. But I also have only two losses. So it’s not just that I’m getting all those extra starts. It’s also that I’m pitching better and the boys are backing me up with their bats.

And I cannot say how much I appreciate the run support. Neal has it really rough in Elmira right now. Not so long ago, he went eight innings and didn’t give up an earned run but got tagged with a loss. And that’s the sort of thing that happens when your boys aren’t hitting the ball.

I think seventeen is worth celebrating. This is the third year I’ve tried to achieve it. I think steaks are appropriate. Big ones. Like at Max. I’m taking the boys. Without them, I couldn’t've done it. Jay and i can have our own private celebration when Allentown gets here. And maybe I’ll have eighteen then.

Thursday night I got the win and I was all set to make the trip to Allentown. I was looking forward to spending time with Jay. And we knew neither of us was going to be pitching. I mean, I pitched on Thursday, right. So I’m not going to pitching in the All-Star game on Saturday on two days’ rest. So Jay and I proceeded to spend Friday night getting hammered. I knew I’d feel miserable on Saturday but since I wouldn’t be pitching, it wouldn’t matter.

And I was miserable. My head hurt, my body ached, my mouth felt like I’d eaten a pair of fuzzy bunny slippers. So I got up, drank some Gatorade and took some aspirin and went to the ballpark. Jay came too. He got to sit in the good seats cuz my parents couldn’t make it up from Texas.

So I’m getting dressed and Michael Thompson (the manager) comes up to me and says that I’m going to start. I thought it was a joke. Alex Williams was on five days rest and everyone knew he’d be starting. But no, it was no joke. He was completely serious. So I started warming up in the bullpen.

Then I went out and pitched three innings. I don’t know how I did it, really. But I gave up three runs on four hits and struck out three. The lights were blinding, the noise from the crowd was painful. Harper Field is a nice park to pitch in if you’re rested and ready. It is not so friendly if you are tired and hung over.

The Boy Scouts’ motto is “Be Prepared.” I wasn’t. And it showed. But next year, I’ll be ready.

Pass me a Corona.

It’s that time of year again. Time for the best and the brightest and a few more to round out the roster come together to play the All-Star game.

This year we have eleven from Hartford: Shannon Young (yes, I’m listed first), Casey Lane, Sauli Vanhanen, Ike Smith, Dirtball LaVillenuve, Hottie Vargas, Michael LeClair, The Doctor, Chris Davids, Grady Chalmers, and Brad Wilgus. Looking at the list, we don’t have any roster-rounders going.

It’ll be interesting to wear the same uniform as Alex Williams. We’ve both been all-stars before, but never in the same dugout. He’ll have plenty of rest so he’ll probably start. I, on the other hand, just pitched two days ago so I’ll be a spectator.

That may be best for all concerned. I had a great beginning to last season but I fell on my ass at the All-Star game. I totally blew chunks. Or as my Dad would say, I “hurled on the mound.” Everyone has games like that. I’m glad it happened in an exhibition game and not a game that counted.

I’m staying with Jay during the break. Being as the game is in Allentown. His place is small but it’s only for a few days. If he’ll let me. He’s starting to pitch better and he was kidding me and said that it’s the time apart that lets him clear his head. Bah. He doesn’t clear his head, he parties. Kinda like me.

No, it’s just a natural variation. I have a degree in statistics. If you look at any series of events, whether they be the result of luck or skill, you’ll see a variance. And if someone is not performing to their level of ability, then that will be reflected in their results. Now when that happens over a sustained period of time, it’s a statistical anomaly. And there’s usually a correction that occurs if there are sufficient events in the series. So whether it’s bad luck or bad pitching, Jay has not been succeeding at the level of his ability. And that should correct itself over time. The layman’s term for this is “slump” and slumps end and people achieve success commensurate with their skill. And Jay’s a better pitcher than his record and ERA show.

I’m a good pitcher. My career ERA is 3.11. I average ten complete games a season. Over four plus seasons, my WHIP is 1.02.

Alex Williams is a great pitcher. His career ERA is 1.77. His WHIP is 0.60. But he only has 11 complete games because he’s not as durable. He started in the bullpen before going to the rotation. But when he hit the rotation, he celebrated by pitching a perfect game. I was the loser in that game.

And while he hasn’t continued cranking out perfectos, he has been dominant. Since he’s been a starter, he’s only lost one game/year. Last year, he won 31 games. In 38 starts.

This year, I’ve faced him twice. And we both got no-decisions each time. That’s as good as a win against anyone else. Except that our bullpen lost to their bullpen both times. So I held my own but it wasn’t good enough.

My goal this year is to win 17 games and have an ERA below 3. My ancillary goal is to win a couple more PoW and PoM awards while Alex Williams is in the same conference. That will probably not happen again this year but the future is a pretty long time and it already happened once this year so I know it’s possible.

I’ve heard teammates wish an injury on Williams. The thing is, it’s bad luck to wish someone else will get hurt. And I don’t want him hurt. I wanna beat him while he’s healthy or it doesn’t count. And someday it will happen.

Ever had one of those days when nothing seems to go right? The guy ahead of you buys the last poppyseed bagel and the hot chocolate burns your tongue and it just goes downhill from there?

Shannon Young, meet April 25. I put my shoes on the wrong feet and it wasn’t till I was tying the second one that I realized it. And my whole day was like that. When I got to the ballpark I thought I had it under control. I was wrong.

I was only out there for 4.1 before Skip sent me to the showers. And I needed a shower at that point. Eight hits, of which seven went for extra bases. And that tallied up six runs, every one of which was earned. Now, prior to that, I had five starts and only given up five runs total. Then blam! six runs in less than five innings. My ERA went up by a full run. But it’s not about me, it’s about the boys. We lost because I made it impossible for us to win. I knew I’d lose at some point. But I didn’t expect it would be so spectacular.

But I recovered. Against Providence, I went the distance and gave up only one earnie. That was on a Josh Keyes solo shot in the seventh. Jose made an error so we gave up two runs total. But we scored ten.

Six down, eleven to go. I’m more that one-third of the way to seventeen. And even though my ERA jumped up after the game against the Drag-er-Celtics, I’m still under 3.

For the first time since I can remember, Halifax leads the conference. But it’s not all bad news. Jay won again. He gave up only two earnies in 8.2 innings. I kinda feel bad about complaining about my outing against Toronto. Jay’s had several days like that. But I guess it comes down to my being a better pitcher. I should expect more from myself. And most of the time, I’ve been getting it.

Last week I felt horrible. Oh, I had a good spring training and all but it was overshadowed by the media circus that Ben Thompson started. Now that people are getting on with their lives, I’m able to get on with mine, too.

And the season started. And Alex Williams started off by pitching a no-no. It was his first game in a Halifax Thunder uni and, well, Alex Williams has a unique way of celebrating firsts. He celebrated his first start by being perfect against me. But a win is win and that was a win for Halifax.

The cool news about the win (for me) was that it was on Opening Day and Opening Day was Saturday. So the first week of baseball started the next day. And for that week, I was named Player of the week because I went 2-0 and gave up only one run in 18 innings. The official news release says:

The Adams Conference’s best player of the week was Hartford’s Shannon Young, who wins the award for the 3rd time in her career. Shannon went 2-0 with an ERA of 0.50, while fanning 24 in 18 innings of work. She hurled a shutout as well.

I spent a lot of time working on my consistency so hopefully I’ll keep my pitching at a high level in the future. I don’t expect to win every game–you win and lose as a team and not even Alex Williams wins every start. But I hope to get to seventeen and I’m starting off on the right foot.

Okay, I’m angry. I’m willing to accept that label. I’m willing to identify myself as someone who has anger. And I think everyone here knows who I am angry with and why, but just in case you’re new here, I’m angry at Ben Thompson for saying that I’m carrying his child.

He wanted me to be angry. I cannot think of another plausible reason for him to intentionally provoke me. But I’m not reacting like he expected. I’m not dashing angry tears from my eyes as I look in for the sign. I’m not overthrowing my pitches. I’m not surly with umpires when i don’t get the call.

No, I am angry. I am deeply and profoundly angry. And I could let my anger loose in words and drain my will. Or I could keep the anger in. Grasp it firmly and focus it into my work. I can show Ben Thompson my anger in every pitch I throw to every hitter. And I can win games for my team at the same time. If his goal was to rile me and cause me to pitch sloppy, well, he did the opposite. I am focused and I am a pitching machine right now.

With every pitch, I’m a little calmer. With every strikeout I breathe a little easier. I know that the anger will fade. And I hope that my pitching doesn’t fade with it. That my pitches will remember their flight to the plate and continue on the same flight path even without the anger to guide them.

I am not pregnant. A pregnant woman couldn’t pitch like this. A normal woman couldn’t pitch like this. But I am angry. And my anger empowers me to do great things.

The Adams Conference’s best player of the week was Hartford’s Shannon Young, who wins the award for the 3rd time in her career. Shannon went 2-0 with an ERA of 0.50, while fanning 24 in 18 innings of work. She hurled a shutout as well.

Read it. It doesn’t matter what Ben Thompson says about me. I’m player of the week. One run in eighteen innings. I know I can’t continue at this pace–no one wins all of their starts, not even Alex Williams. But I have definitely gotten off on the right foot and I have only fifteen more wins to reach seventeen.

Speaking of Alex Williams, he did it again. A different it. When he does something new, he always pitches exceptionally well. When he became a starter, he celebrated by pitching a perfect game (against me). When he went to the mound in a Halifax Thunder uni for the first time, he celebrated with a no-no. That man is just unreal.

And Jay’s here! He came in a day early. We start a series against the Angels tomorrow and neither team had a game today. Mmmm, I love having him around. I missed him. I missed his strong arms holding me tight. E-mails and IMs are just not the same. He understands about the whole Ben Thompson thing. And he thinks it’s hot that I’m player of the week! And I think that is hot. It’s not about how you look; it’s about who you are. Gabriel Cadden may have been voted the sexiest man in the EPL by female fans, but Jay Feely has been voted the sexiest man in the EPL by female pitchers. And he’s mine.