I can never be happy unless I feel that I am serving the cause and the philosophy that inspired me to play and coach baseball in the first instance. Indeed, my coaching philosophy is a simple one and yet I believe to be an effective one, and this is it: “Self-discipline and preparation are the keys to success”, and as I see it, by examining my personal impact and experiences as a player and coach, I have realised that the latter and absolute determination make all the difference in the world when it issues me with challenges as they define the line of progress towards my desire objective as it guides me to find me what it is, where I can find it, how to use it and what it means. 

Pedro Figueroa

Croydon Pirates Head Coach

Game Report:

Croydon Pirates  8  Herts Falcons  2

Croydon Pirates  8  Herts Falcons  11

08/08/2010

We were hacking at Team Hearts Falcons the whole time in the first game of Sunday’s double-header for we went in with a plan to be aggressive against the visitors, and we stuck to it. Indeed, we hung eight runs on Falcons’ starter Brandon Deal in seven innings in Sunday’s opener to defeat the Falcons as the Birds only managed to score two runs. Croydon Pirates Short stop Jose Sousa’s first British National League grand slam was certainly a big blow in the outburst that saw the Birds go down in this first game.  The outcome of this encounter was very important for us as this win keeps us two games ahead of the Falcons in the race for the playoffs. I must be said that my playing in the first game was due to the low number of players that were available on Sunday as we had only eight players to start with, which would have not been enough to start the first game. 

The second game was a very different story even though for five innings, the game had every indication of being another victory for us since we were leading 5 runs to 3 going into the sixth inning of a seven-inning game. Certainly, our opening hurler, Jose Sousa, was doing a grand job on the mound as he kept the Birds flying low; however, as often has been the case in this season, we were once more the architects of our own debacle as errors crept into our defensive play and we allowed the visitors to score eight runs which in the end made the Birds’ advantage almost insurmountable. Nevertheless, it must be said that Jason Greenberg must have said something good or excellent that prompted the Falcons to react in the way they did as they came out aggressive in the top of the sixth and took well their chances, which eventually won them the game.  It was frustrating for me as coach, to say the least, as we had chances to score lots of runs, even without a hit but our base running became chaotic. This is something that I must put right on the training field on Thursday evening as the players need to pay more attention while running the bases.

P.Figueroa