‘Money ball’ pays off for Man Amigos

Thanks to “money ball,” Man Amigos clinched their first championship in seven years after ruling last month’s 2nd Chamolinian Softball Association/Budweiser Slow-Pitch Softball League.

“Money ball” is a coined phrase for Man Amigos’ practice sessions, which are held once a week during softball season at the American Memorial Park.

During “money ball,” every player gets to hit between 10 to 15 softballs. The last pitch is referred to as the “money ball” and the batter must run it out to first base. If the fielders force out the batter then that player has to donate a 12-pack of beer for next week’s session.

By custom, players also relax with some cold brews at the beach after practices. After all, the name Man Amigos simply means a group of friends, in this case, softball warrior friends.

Joey Dela Cruz, Vinnie Sablan, Jeff Cabrera, and James Fleeming have been Man Amigos for all seven years and besides the money ball practices, they credited their victory this season to a lot of roster experimentation and team dedication.

“We have been looking for the right mix of guys and this year worked out to be the right combination,” Dela Cruz said.

Man Amigos won the Chamolinian championship against Natibu, topped the NMI Crimes Stoppers Softball Tournament, and fared well in most local weekend events.

“Coming into that game we had a momentum after knocking down Phat Boyz and we carried that to our next game. We also knew Natibu was an offensive powerhouse and that defense alone wouldn’t win. Our mind set was to match them with our bats, and we did,” Dela Cruz said.

“We matched everybody run for run and knew it would come down to who made the least mistakes. I am proud of the guys because they showed up in the clutch,” he added.

Man Amigos advanced first to the finals after sweeping their playoff matches. Natibu followed suit and forced a deciding Game 2 when it won Game 1 of the finals, 29-25.

“After that game people thought the momentum shifted to their side and we knew we had to get it back as soon as possible. So we got really pumped up before the game and started early with an 8-0 lead. Being the visitors actually favored us because we wanted to score first and make them play catch up,” Dela Cruz said.

Man Amigos strategy worked and they went on to take a title-clinching win in Game 2, 22-21. “When the first out came early, we started to taste it (championship). We caught some sweat as it took a while to squeeze that last out, but we knew we could do it,” said Dela Cruz.

“It was a great run. All our recent successes were worth the wait. We played against a lot of good teams this year,” he added.