Six Innings

Six Innings

Often throughout the season, though not as often as we’d like, we’ll sit down with a player and ask 6 questions in 6 innings. While Pulitzer winning journalists we are not, we enjoy these and think you will too.

Select a player’s name from the pull down to see their profile.

6 Innings with Joel Brunk

Written by - Posted 2013-05-18 12:55 in Six Innings

Fresh off a Player of the Week win, we sit down with our second rookie this season, Joel Brunk. Brunk has brought some much needed offense to 7th Linning Stretch and seems to have settled into the starting pitching role as well.

He’s on the leader boards for pitching (ERA/OBA/HIP) and batting (RBI/TB), and is fighting neck and neck with Alex Cohn for the best numbers this season for a rookie. Though, sometimes the numbers get overshadowed in the popularity contest of the year end voting. Brunk’s role on a possible playoff team, and Cohn’s recent injury, could become factors in voters’ minds.


Joel Brunk
[ player profile page ]


Nickname: Jake – yeah I don’t get it. Only my dad uses it, somehow it’s easier to say than Joel?
Age: 30
Hometown: Bridgewater, VA
Resides: Alexandria, VA
Employer: U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
How did you find the PWL: Nick West – I invited myself onto his team after he mentioned it to others during a fantasy baseball draft, although he’ll tell you he recruited me.

Seasons: .79
Career Batting Avg: .409
Awards: Player of the Week (Sp13 – Week 5)

TWIF: What is your favorite baseball team and who is your favorite baseball player of all time?
JB: St. Louis Cardinals. My favorite color was green at age 4 in the late 80’s, which naturally meant my favorite team was the A’s and my favorite player was Mark McGwire. When Tony La Russa and McGwire went to St. Louis, I followed and have been a fan since. No, I don’t juice like my former idol.

TWIF: What is your favorite thing about wiffleball?
JB: The fact that I can hit a homer. I was the definition of warning track power growing up playing baseball.

TWIF: Name your least favorite West.
JB: Nick. His hitting prowess and reputation are overshadowing my campaign for ROY. We also have an ugly history on the basketball court that rivals Bird and Lambier. I’m just getting to know Matt, but he’s by far the nicer West.

TWIF: Have you ever used a wiffleball bat for other than its intended purpose?
JB: Growing up my siblings and I used our wiffleball bat as a microphone, shield, crutch, light saber, spoon, torch, etc. But most often it was used as a club to beat the winner of whatever game we were playing.

TWIF: If you could drown one player in the Potomac river, who would it be and why?
JB: Alex Cohn. Seems like a nice guy, hope that thumb feels better, but somehow his flashy web gems have earned him the frontrunner position for ROY. I guess I make it look too easy, or all my plays don’t count (see Brunk falls on Trunk video, which doesn’t clearly show that it was a Willie Mays style over the shoulder catch as I fell over the fence) or are off camera (I swear, they happened). Anyway, pretty sure he’s Harper and I’m Trout in this situation.

TWIF: You seem to be the only guy keeping 7th Linning alive. Early on, the Commissioner predicted a quick and quiet fall for your team. This was done using stats, past results, and a gut feeling about all possibly likelihood of your season. You seem to have picked them up on your shoulders, and drug them being over .500. Driving in runs when needed, keeping the opposing offense in check. My question is, don’t you think your team name is kind of lame?
JB: Being a rookie, I’ve been coached extensively on how to respond to questions like this, else my spot in the lineup could be in jeopardy. Despite the obvious truths you point out, this is a team game and it has been a true team effort to get over .500 and into the playoff picture. We’re only going to get better as we gel together as a team and learn how to throw strikes consistently. And yeah, I honestly didn’t get the name until Nick explained it in Week 3. I thought it was some inside joke, and I was just trying to fit in so I kept my mouth shut. Hopefully I’ve earned my keep enough to publicly call it lame now without getting fined.

6 Innings with Alex Cohn

Written by - Posted 2013-05-16 16:06 in Six Innings

You know this rookie for his one handed diving catches in the web gems. The only standout on an otherwise forgettable Besley Bashers team, Cohn can bat, pitch, and field, a triple threat. It wasn’t a diving catch that may have sidelined Cohn for the season though. While trying to stretch a single into a double he dislocated his thumb, and may have eliminated the need for Besley to even show up the next couple of weeks to try and add on to their three wins. (“How did we even win three?” manager Colton Turner says as he shakes his head in disgust.)

The number of at bats needed to qualify for the year end awards varies based on the number of forfeits. But, if we don’t have any more forfeits, it will take 42 at bats to qualify. Cohn is sitting at 38 right now. So, if his season is over, he won’t even be on the ballot for Rookie of the Year. But, if he can take a few more hacks, even one-handed, (allowed only in case of disability) even if he goes 0-for-3, he’s in the discussion.


Alex Cohn
[ player profile page ]


Nickname: Big Al. This was never really a nickname but someone was yelling it from the bench in Week 1.
Age: 24
Hometown: Tampa, FL
Resides: Arlington, VA
Employer: Student. I’m going back to school so I can wear my hat backwards again.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right, If my hand doesn’t heal maybe Left.
How did you find the PWL: My girlfriend and fellow Basher (not Colton), her brother and his buddies were signing up and knew I played. I was living in Wisconsin at the time so I quit my job and moved to DC to be on the team.

Seasons: .79
Career Batting Avg: .500
Awards: 1 Player of the Week Nomination, 3 Web Gem Nominations, 2 Wins (though 1 was a tie)

TWIF: What is your favorite baseball team and who is your favorite baseball player of all time?
AC: The Rays. Andy Sonnanstine was the man. He was a very mediocre pitcher, losing his starting spot in the rotation, then losing a spot in the pen. I think he’s in the Cubs’ farm system now. But he seemed like the kind of guy I would be good friends with. He would vandalize the ballpark and was usually the one putting seeds on guys’ heads during in-game interviews. I think there’s a lot to be said for keeping the clubhouse light.

TWIF: What is your favorite thing about wiffleball?
AC: I think my favorite thing about wiffle is that there is absolutely no age limit. You play as a kid, you play with your drunk friends in college, you join a highly managed rule-stickling league in your 20s, and then you have a kid of your own and have an excuse to pick up that banana-yellow bat again. I feel confident my kid won’t get a hit off me until he’s a grown-ass man.

TWIF: Old logo or new logo?
AC: New. I’m not sure what the old logo was. It looked like a bunch of bugs crawling around. I think they were supposed to be syringes or crushed beer cans or something. Presumably to advertise and encourage how many drugs our team uses? We’re clean, just horrendous artists.

TWIF: Have you ever used a wiffleball bat for other than its intended purpose?
AC: My last year of college I lived in a decrepit old house (RIP The Rock) with no locks on the doors. In fact, there was no front door for a brief period. It wasn’t in a terrible neighborhood, but it was right on the edge of where the rough area of town began. After a summer of vacancy we returned to school in the Fall to find a homeless man asleep in the bathtub. Anyway, I kept my wiffleball bat by my bed for self-defense. Only had to use it once.

TWIF: If you could drown one player in the Potomac river, who would it be and why?
AC: Since it’s my first season I don’t have any grudges yet. I also don’t want to start any because of a 6 innings profile. That said, Chris Smyth for robbing me of sole possession of a week three web gem. I suppose drowning my manager would also work for blocking the camera on the play.

TWIF: Before your thumb injury, you were off to a strong individual rookie season. Like all new teams, it’s taking you guys a while to figure things out as a group, but you seem to have all the tools to be a solid hitter, pitcher and fielder, the stats and the awards show that. What makes you the best Besley Basher, and are you going to be a Basher for life?
AC: I think it’s obvious what makes me the best Besley Basher: strongest beard in the lineup. Although Neil is giving me a run for my money. Shannon’s beard sucks. No contracts have been signed and I was waiting for an ESPN exclusive to make an announcement but…I will be keeping my talents on Besley Road.

6 Innings with Jack Shannon

Written by - Posted 2013-05-14 21:52 in Six Innings

In addition to being really behind on doing any Six Innings profiles this season, we’re way overdue to sit down with Jack Shannon. It’s been over two years since we talked to his older, slightly more talented, twin brother, Jim Shannon.

The original manager of the four time World Champion Blandsford Barnburners, Jack also won Rookie of the Year in his debut season. He hasn’t played bad since then, in fact, he’s been very solid, but he hasn’t been quite as much of a standout. On any other team, or in any other family, he’s no doubt the star. On the Barnburners, and as a Shannon, he’s fighting it out, literally and physically, every week to grab the top spot.


Jack Shannon
[ player profile page]


Nickname: “Twin”…I get called “asshole” a lot, too. Is that a nickname?
Age: 23
Hometown: Born in Chicago, moved to Manassas as a youngster
Resides: Arlington, VA
Employer: The Hilltop Companies- consulting for financial sector
Bats: Right
Throws: Fast as shit
How did you find the PWL: A google search in late 2008 for DC area leagues. The goal was to prove we were the best in the area. Turns out we were wrong; we’re the best in the world.

Seasons: 6
Career Batting Avg: .486
Records: T-3rd in Career HR (52), 5th in Career SLG (1.143)
Awards: 3 Player of the Week Wins, 7 Nominations, Rookie of the Year (Sp09), National 3rd Team Hitters 2011 and 2012

TWIF: What is your favorite baseball team and who is your favorite baseball player of all time?
JS: Favorite baseball team is the White Sox. Though I must admit that baseball carries me through from the end of college basketball to the beginning of college football. After August, I don’t care about any baseball. My favorite player is probably Jack Parkman.

TWIF: What is your favorite thing about wiffleball?
JS: My favorite thing about wiffleball is the fights that erupt in backyard games. The PWL needs to try to cultivate the same atmosphere. If you don’t want to whip the bat at the pitcher after striking out, then you shouldn’t be playing.

TWIF: Older twin or younger twin?
JS: I am the younger twin.

TWIF: Have you ever used a wiffleball bat for other than its intended purpose?
JS: I have used the bat for unintended purposes – which goes back to my last answer; it’s usually as a weapon against my brother

TWIF: If you could drown one player in the Potomac river, who would it be and why?
JS: I would drown the entire Oedipus team. For one, they want to bang their moms. I’m not down with incest (despite the easy Manassas joke you can make). And I’ll be honest- a couple of them look like they might’ve dipped their pen in the family ink. They also don’t show up to games anyway, so permanently ridding the league of them wouldn’t be so horrible.

TWIF: You started out your PWL career strong, winning Rookie of the Year and taking home the World Series trophy. But, since then, your brother has been in the spotlight, winning two Triple Crowns and a couple of Gold Gloves. Describe, in detail, all the ways in which he is better than you, both on and off the field.
JS: There is a horrible misconception about the relative abilities of the Shannon twins. He has 2 more career HRs than me. TWO. And he’ll get passed before this season ends and I’ll claim #2 on the all-time list. He also blows in the playoffs. His pitching is almost as bad as Nick DiCrosta’s. Off the field, he is an intellectual lightweight who had to follow his little brother to JMU.

6 Innings with Matt Gagnon

Written by - Posted 2012-09-27 19:23 in Six Innings

Our last six innings of the season is going to surprise some of you, nauseate others, and cause five of you to hoot, holler and high five. We sit down with Matt Gagnon the manager of the Moose Knuckles, the current #1 seeds heading into the postseason.

As most of you know who have eyes, ears, a twitter account, or have talked to anyone who’s played, the Moose Knuckles and their manager are a little “intense” and have earned a little bit of a reputation in the league for being disliked. No matter, they’re not playing to win friends, they’re playing to in hopes that getting grass and dirt stains will dim the neon yellow color of those obnoxious jerseys.


Matt Gagnon
[ player profile page]


Nickname: THE
Age: 25
Hometown: Born in Methuen Massachusetts. Grew up in Leesburg, Va
Resides: Gaithersburg, MD
Employer: Global Facility Solutions
Bats: Barely
Throws: Junk
How did you find the PWL: The Moose Knuckles were actually first formed in college when we played in a tournament that the Wiffleball Club of Virginia Tech put on every semester. After I graduated and wiffleball was no longer a part of my life, I battled some pretty serious withdrawals. I was giving handies behind bars in DC in exchange for throwing me a few soft tosses. My life was spinning out of control until a friend of mine sent me a link to this league. We were so excited about playing again, I think we signed up our team the day Chris opened up registration for Spring 2012, and the rest is history.

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6 Innings with Jeffrey Nitto

Written by - Posted 2012-09-14 09:58 in Six Innings

Finally a profile of someone with some fresh blood who might be younger than 40.

The rookie Gumballers are owning the Eastern Division this season and Nitto’s pitching is a major factor for them. He leads the league in shutouts, is tied for Wins (though we all agree that’s a meaningless pitching stat, right?) and tops the leader board in most pitching categories. He also had a perfect game, but those are given out like candy this season thanks to the Have Fun Out Theres.

The first season is traditionally tough on rookie teams, but it looks like the Gumballers are playoff bound and with weak rosters on traditional powerhouse teams might have a shot at playing for the title.


Jeffrey Nitto
[ player profile page ]


Nickname: Nitto, Nitro, Ankle Braces
Age: 27
Hometown: Albany, NY
Resides: Arlington, VA
Employer: Department of Energy
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
How did you find the PWL: Captain of our team Brennan Reif found it online and I knew I had to get in on the action.

Seasons: .75
Career Batting Avg: .469
Awards: Player of the Week SU 2012 WK4

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6 Innings with Zach Carter

Written by - Posted 2012-09-14 09:44 in Six Innings

Zach Carter continues our series of old, if not good, players in the PWL who have somehow escaped a 6 innings profile from us in the past.

The Master Batters haven’t been a good team since their ace pitcher moved away a few seasons ago. Carter himself isn’t that great at playing, but he excels at being a total stat-whore. For example, he might be the career leader in saves (we really need to get the old pitching stats into the database) because he basically only shows up each week hoping to get into the game in a save situation.

The guy has a knack for building up stats while watching all the other teams beat him. It’s also possible he’s never been pictured on the website with his eyes open.


Zach Carter
[ player profile page ]


Nickname: The Closer (because I am the closer)
Age: 29
Hometown: Omaha, NE and Kansas City, KS and St. Louis, MO and Detroit, MI…
Resides: Washington, DC
Employer: A DC area High School (But don’t tell anyone because I’m really embarassed by my team name)
Bats: Well
Throws: Slightly less well
How did you find the PWL: When I found myself with yet another jobless summer stretching out in front of me I was lucky enough to stumble across a Washington Post article on the beauty of PWL.

Seasons: 7
Career Batting Avg: .363
Awards: Player of the Week SP 2010 WK3, Gold Glove Award – Catcher SU 2010, Nominated for Rookie of the Year SU 2009

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6 Innings with Nicholas DiCrosta

Written by - Posted 2012-09-07 10:50 in Six Innings

Obviously we haven’t opened the PWL Hall of Fame yet, but despite the desires of most everyone who’s ever met him, Nicholas DiCrosta is an automatic, no questions asked, first ballot member. He’s as unlikable off the field as he is on, but you can’t argue with his success. He’ll beat you most of the game on the mound and the whole game in the batters box.

You’d almost feel sorry for a player of his caliber spending his entire career playing for a team that always comes so close, and yet never wins a championship. Take solace in the fact that DiCrosta does have a World Series ring though. The one season, out of his nine, that he left Scared Hitless and was a free agent he did win the World Series. Would probably have been the MVP of that series if we gave out such honors. Take even more solace in the that he was a Canvasser that one season when he did it, we know the Commissioner does.


Nicholas DiCrosta
[ player profile page ]


Nickname: Chirp Back (As in, when I chirp shorty…)
Age: Starting to get gray hairs but I’m not like, Ragano old yet
Hometown: Harrington Park, NJ
Resides: Hoodley Park, DC
Employer: National Institutes of Health
Bats: Right
Throws: Switch
How did you find the PWL: Facebook ad, of all places. I thought it was a joke. This marks the first and last time Facebook advertising worked.

Seasons: 9
Career Batting Avg: .452
PWL Career Leader: Games Played, Doubles, Sac Flies (tied)
Awards: 4 Player of the Week Wins, 18 Nominations, Most Valuable Player (Sp10), Nominated for MVP and Cy Young five times, Rookie of the Year once.

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6 Innings with Kris Garcia

Written by - Posted 2012-09-07 10:28 in Six Innings

We’re probably long past due to feature Kris Garcia for Six Questions for Six Innings. A PWL lifer, Garcia has been around for 12 of our 15 seasons. He caused a little bit of a stir this off season listing himself as a free agent (never hurts to hear offers) before returning to his third franchise the Canvassers.

He has also represented the PWL in London, Ohio, as part of the all star team travelling to the London Tournament. He missed this year’s tournament though because his wife wouldn’t let him go.


Kris Garcia
[ player profile page ]


Nickname: k-gar, circle k, special k, or anything with the word “little” in it.
Age: an achy and creaky 34
Hometown: Taft, the friendliest cotton pickin’ town in Texas!
Resides: Thug Town, VA
Employer: National Education Association
Bats: Left
Throws: Switch
How did you find the PWL: 6 years ago someone told me that a bunch of unathletic beltway insiders were getting together at the airport to play a kids game organized by a professional political organizer. I knew it had to be something special.

Seasons: 12
Career Batting Avg: .440
PWL Career Leader: Plate Appearances, Fly Outs
Awards: 4 Player of the Week Wins, 12 Nominations, Gold Glove Award – Pitcher (Su09), Nominated for MVP twice and Cy Young once.

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6 Innings with Alex Filides

Written by - Posted 2012-05-25 09:17 in Six Innings

It’s been ages since we profiled a player for 6 Innings. But the announcement this week of the pending retirement of the current record holder for consecutive games played, the Cal Ripken, if you will, of the PWL, caused us to return the fan favorite.

The Commissioner once said something to the effect of if you’re waiting for a 6 Innings profile of Alex Filides, don’t hold your breath. But today, that is exactly what’s happening.

Filides, who walked away from perennial playoff contender Clubber Lang a few seasons ago to form his own perennial playoff contender NWO, is well known, if not well liked, among the PWL faithful. More like Ty Cobb than Cal Ripken, his intensity on the field is seldom matched, and his persona driven by that intensity is often scary.

This is a guy who brings a tee to the field to practice hitting wiffleballs off it. This is a guy who once took over 60 pitches (before the K-board was added) to wait for a mistake pitch so he could homer to win a game, and he did. This a guy who has repeatedly stolen bases even though stealing is not legal. This is a guy who wore a glove while pitching and playing the field. This is a guy who pays players to be on his team.

No fewer than three PWL rules were created as a direct result of his actions. Of no one else in the league can that be said.

Hate him or only kinda hate him, you cannot say that Alex Filides has not been important in the brief history of the PWL. Will he be missed? That is another story entirely.

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6 Innings with Gregory Hudson

Written by - Posted 2011-09-16 09:40 in Six Innings

Greg Hudson is the manager of the DC Twits. A .500 team in their rookie season, they are a playoff bubble team this summer in large part due to Hudson’s bat. Like any “good” manager, Hudson leaves himself on the pitcher’s mound too long, and his batting orders sometimes baffle onlookers. If you’re not sure who the Twits are, think back to a game where it looked like a team of umpires were playing. The Twits uniforms, and we use that term loosely, are just plain powder blue shirts which sometimes cause confusion with the arbiters of the game.

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