2013 Preseason Update

Preseason Update

Puzzlers rebuild, ready to defend 2012 crown

 

 

 LAKEWOOD, CO (TP) - Eschewing standard practice, good judgment, and fiscal responsibility, the Conundrums are attempting to defend their 2012 Leisure League Championship by rebuilding. 

Gone is long time team manager, owner, treasurer, videographer, weekly TWIX procurer and TWICS producer, Bob Tomey who decided his physical health is more important than weak weekly banter.  

Gone is team stalwart, official trophy guy, and ironman Timmy Doherty who retires after something like 50 years on the diamond. 

Gone is Gil “We Barely Knew Ya” Solano who moseyed on back to Texas ya’ll. 

Team speedster, new dad, and night owl Eric Swanson is moving to Part-Time status in order to attend to a well regulated nap/diaper schedule. 

And finally, the on-again, off-again romance with Dave Brubaker will end (again) in mid May due to “work” related issues. 

Undeterred, the Conundrums picked up five, undrafted free agents, most of whom are vaguely familiar with the sport.  New GM Sean Butcher said that the team is excited to see what the new guys bring to the team. 

“I’m expecting at least one of them to bring Bud Light, which will please me immensely”, said Butcher.  “I’m pretty sure at least three of them have softball gloves”. 

First Pitch: The Conundrums will open the season on Monday April 15 at 9:15p.  Kids (under 12) admitted free.  The Conundrums will also host their traditional “Beer Under the Stars” event on Monday night.  This is a great opportunity for you to rub elbows over a couple barely pops, with your favorite players after the umpires turn out the lights.    



The Year of the Puzzler - The 2010 Conundrums Championship

In April 2010 the Conundrums embarked upon their 13th year in the Lakewood Leisure Softball League.  But as the team entered training camp, questions remained unanswered. The team's crushing loss in the 2009 tournament left the players devastated.  And after yet another second place finish to arch rival Rusty Machine, the club's future remained uncertain.  Free agent Brandon Casey was expected to help bolster the infield, yet he was an unproven commodity.  The club was aging.  Would player/coach Bob Tomey's decrepit back hold up to the rigors of the new year.  Would the middle lineup of Aubin/Emmot/Ries/Wilcoxen provide clutch hitting at crucial moments?  What about the pitching?  Sean Butcher had been the workhorse (really?) for years but upstart Dale St. Aubin was knocking at the ace's door (or mound).  The Year of the Puzzler examines these issues as the film chronicles the Conundrums' 2010 season, the quest for the championship that has alluded them since 2004.  But the film is more than just a highlight reel - it's a critical documentary into the many nuances of the many players throughout that glorious season.  Paul Ries' amazing hit streak, Jason Emmot's scruffy beard in need of a serious shave, Bob Tomey's penny folly.  At times funny, occasionally incomprehensible, yet always informative, the film provides a window into the lives of the players and their fans.  There's even a surprise interview with former Conundrum Mark "Comrade" Satriano.  Two years behind schedule, The Year of the Puzzle was fraught with many post production problems - filmmaker Bob "Spongpants" Tomey nearly abandoned the project after falling asleep in his studio, awakening to find dried up saliva on his laptop keyboard.  But with many of life's endless challenges, Mrs. Tomey's Son found inner strength after receiving a vision he claimed was delivered from Martin Scorcese's key grip, prodding the troubled soul to press on, and on and...

Though no awards have been handed out for the film (nor are any expected), The Year of the Puzzler is must-see for any connoisseur of low budget amateurish beer league softball entertainment.  (This film has not been rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGx-zbRWj6A