8/24/2007 - They win they lose. They're too far out to be contenders. Looks like it's El Paso and Ft. Worth again. Skippy's leading the league in stolen bases, but he's 4 shy of the record. Two games left? Can he make it? We'll see.
8/13/2007 - The Sports finally swept a 3-game series against the Aviators. Skippy had a 2 for 4 night, with a game-deciding double. He's also leading the league in stolen bases with 38. We suspect he's trying to break the record of 40-something. Alvarez is also doing well with leads in Hits, Doubles and RBI's and second in Extra-Base Hits. Good job guys!
8/7/2007 - Guess that breath of life just kind of comes and goes! Don't think there's a chance for the playoffs, but maybe some of the teams in the running will pick up a fast player or two? We'll see...
8/1/2007 - Looks like life is being breathed back into those zany Sports. Let's see if they can catch up. Go guys!
7/23/2007 - Ouch!
7/22/2007 - Well boyfriend represented at the All Star Game: 2 for 4, with a stolen base. Nicely done. Congrats on your performance! He's coming back from a low from before the break. Moving from 230 back up to 277. Plenty of time to move that average up. And now that he's not busy ignoring family, he can focus on his bat hitting the ball; on crossing home plate at least twice a game. Go for it!
7/15/2007 - Glad that JP is finding his swing. From 230, there's really no place to go but up. We'll miss him at the family reunion at Disneyland on Tuesdsay, but wish him well at the All-Star game at Sioux Falls. Hope he's able to represent.
7/8/2007 - Holly did a great job on the 4th: packed stadium, roving beer sellers, awesome fireworks & entertainment. The Diablos kicked the apathetic Sports' collective butts. The Sports missed routine plays, couldn't turn a double play, missed throws, couldn't get a bat on the ball, threw to home plate while runners advanced - a whole lot of mental and physical errors, most of which could not be cataloged on the stats. The same happened on the 5th, although they were focused enough to rally a bit. The Diablo fans on the 5th were brutal behind the dugout, screaming personal insults and thinking themselves clever. Unfortunately, it appears based on comments shouted by the girls to the players that much of the Sports team members on the sidelines had partied with these drunken revelers. Probably explains their on-field performances. Very disappointing for Sports fans. Those darned Diablos are sure showing everyone why they're in first place, playing solid baseball and letting their bats talk - Good Luck guys in the second half! Gotta admit, though, that JP still has Diablo fans in the stands. Hopefully, the Sports will start acting like a professional baseball team and not a bunch of traveling little leagers.
7/3/2007 - What a great game! Spoke with Holly McWatters and got great pictures of the Diablos and Sports. Will post some soon. Gotta download them now, but Holly's done a supreme job of marketing the diablos -- on tv, radio and with some awesome pre-4th of July fireworks. If the Diablos don't up her pay, somebody's gonna grab that girl and all her awesome-ness! Got great pics of Jorge, who came over and held my hand for a bit to say hi. Great kid & it's wonderful he's going to DH at the all-star game. Skippy also will be starting in Left Field at the All-Star game on July 17th. Finally! His hitting ain't the best, but he's ahead in the league steals, and he made some awesome catches tonight. He may be a butt-head, but dang if he's not an excellent player. I got a picture of the exact minute that Jorge told him we were in attendance, but he never acknowledged us even though we were sitting on the dugout. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings! btw, the Sports trounced the Diablos tonight but they were all glad to see each other. & Joff is back at second base for the Sports. What a team! Later kids!
6/28/2007 - Skippy had a good night yesterday, hitting 3 doubles (American Association still doesn't have the box scores up - booo!). All to no avail. Diablos walked 2 batters in the bottom of the 8th and then Juan Camacho hit a ball to deep right to score the7-4 winning lead. JP's ex-team is one game out of first place. Let's see if the Sports can hold those Diablos tonight! They're only 3 games out of 1st place! Go guys! Terri, Dave - Where the heck are the team pictures? I'm headed to El Paso for the 3rd to 5th Shreveport v. El Paso stand & I'll be taking pictures of all the guys. Will be posting after the 6th, or sooner if I feel motivated at the hotel! Looking forward to seeing the Diablos boosters again!
6/15/2007 - No pictures of any of the team yet. Hard to rally around an invisible team! Saw that Dusty Maddox was released for Brandon Hudson on Wednesday. Hudson is a combination pitcher/outfielder, a Louisiana native, and the third leading hitter at Louisiana Tech. Let's see how that pans out. On another note, picked up my truck in San Diego a couple weeks ago, left there by someone who shall remain nameless but who still suffers from karmic issues. Noticed right away that the radio/CD player and one of the tires & rims was missing off my baby. Didn't notice until the next day that the engine, brakes, & trans was shot and that someone-who-shall-remain-nameless had scraped the entire passenger side of the truck. Also then noticed that my poor F150 had been impounded at some point while in the lacking care of someone-who-shall-remain-nameless. Imagine, my sweet pampered, well cared for, truck in the clutches of some greasy impound center! Boggles the mind that this pristine honey is now a ravaged, abused, shivering pile of chickness -- seems to be a trend with a certain Kharma-challenged individual. However, like her owner (her true owner, not that poser that kidnapped her), this F150 is going from meek to tough and is being renamed to the Red Devil (She-Devil, that is!). Stay tuned for the makeover!
6/8/2007 - Well the Shreveport team is spunky, I'll give them that! They're still in second place, but they could pull ahead. Skippy is doing pretty well, although his home run yesterday was not a deciding factor in their loss to El Paso. He is leading the league in stole bases at this time, so congrats on that, big guy. I think he's also got a great OBP. Get him on base and he'll give the pitchers a run for their money. Too bad Shreveport is so far away. I'd like to see their field. I'd also like to take their team pictures and keep up their website. I know they're in transition, but their marketing needs some serious juice. Call me Terri or Dave & I'd be happy to work your team in!
5/23/2007 - Been too busy to write here, but am back. Looks like Shreveport is doing really well this year. They're in second place in the Southern Division, behind (ironically!) El Paso. Fort Worth, even with a stacked team, is in 4th place, but there's plenty of time to catch up. Shreveport is leading the Southern Division in team pitching. It's good to see that Jorge Alvarez is leading the league again in hitting and the Diablos are leading the league in team batting. So far, Skippy hasn't set himself apart from the pack, but, as I've said before, there's plenty of baseball left. Keeping our fingers crossed. Have to drive to San Diego to pick up my truck that was left on the doorstep of a very nice person by someone with karmic issues. At least it'll give me a chance to visit the beach. Been almost 10 years since I've been to any beach. Weird how life takes you down different paths. Later kids.
5/08/2007 - Diablos won their exhibition game 14-4, but not sure what skippy did. Big news is JP got traded yesterday to the Shreveport Sports. Makes those darned road trips a little tough, but I'm sure that Skippy will enjoy the sultry, humid climate. Nothing like humidity to whip a young 'un into shape! But he's back playing with Burt Snow and his old manager Bob Flori. Home opener is Monday, May 14, 2007 at Fair Grounds Field in Shreveport, Louisiana.
El Paso has picked up Jon-Paul again, but the contract is still here waiting for him to sign and return. Will he or won't he play there, or anywhere, in 2007? Ahhh, the suspense! Wondering if he's gonna bring the truck back before it's reported stolen. Ahh, the drama. Don't you just love baseball season?
2006
9/11/2006 - August 23, 24, and 25 Games - doubleheaders on the 24th and 25th - are now available for viewing and purchase here! Order a sport bottle or snow globe for your favorite fan or player! I'll be adding some digital artwork in the next couple weeks, in various mediums, so stay tuned! Thanks for those who've already viewed and purchased photos. You totally rock!
9/8/2006 - The first batch of pictures are here! The August 23, 2006 Game pictures are available here for viewing and purchase ! I'll update each game day for the last six games as often as practical. Let me know what you think of the photography service called orderpicture.com. If you have a special picture you like, I can make it digital artwork. Please contact me here with your requests.
8/28/2006 - What a heck of an end to the Diablos' homestand series! Happily I was there to witness it. I've got tons of pictures that I'll put up in the next week. I want to give a big shout out to the Diablos Stadium personnel. Especially, Steve Martinez, Ticket Manager, for such wonderful seats (specially situated so I could get the best pictures) and Holly McWatters, Director of Promotions. Holly's an old friend from JP's San Angelo Colts' days. I'll have more insight to the games during the next week, but I've got to get unpacked from a 14 hour drive. Congrats to the Diablos for a strong and entertaining season finale!
8/19/2006 - The boys of summer continue to struggle. Probably all those dreams of what to do after the season ends. Some may have burned essential bridges and have no place to go. Some maybe are just tired. Life goes on. JP was in a slump and came out of it yesterday with a 4 for 5 game, 3 runs and an RBI. One has to ask, though, what's he doing in Right Field? Inquiring minds want to know... Anyway, boys and girls, soon there will be pictures on this site of the "team that struggled". Can't wait & hope it doesn't get rained out!
8/7/2006 - Hard to say why the team's doing so badly: although the lack of batting and pitching could be a clue. Ya'll need to adjust and finish strong. Hell, the best you can do is mess up all the other teams' stats! Get on it!
8/5/2006 - Stats for the Diablos have been pretty hard to come by. Guess the Season's almost over, so everybody's slacking off. No articles on the Diablo's site & no box scores on the American Association site. Had to email the webmaster and ask whas up? Anyway, the stats are back, but the Diablos are still struggling. Did I mention that everyone's slacking — Except the Skipmeister! 2 for 4 the last two games. Awesome! Still, the team just can't pull off a win and lose it in the clutches. Sad, with all that talent. Oh well...
7/30/2006 - Didn't the bean nut headed kid have a great night last night? JP went 4 for 5, with a Run and an RBI, in an 11-inning game. Sadly, the Diablos lost.
7/29/2006 - Looks like the team is back to full time struggling. Although they split the doubleheader with Shreveport, the first loss was a 16-1 pitching let down. Additionally, only 3 guys got a hit with Alvarez bringing in the only run. Can't blame the lack of bats on the pitching. Sad. The second game had Haygood and Machado performing at top levels. What happened to the Diablos' bats? Wake up boys, the season's not over yet!
7/26/2006 - Skip's DH'ing at the moment, still problems with the quad? Regardless, he's still working the pitchers and the ball!
7/23/2006 -Well JP's back from his pulled/sore quad and making up for lost time. He went 2 for 3 with a walk and an insurance rbi. Glad he's back!
7/12/2006 - Skippy has a sore quad and is sitting out a couple of games. Get well gimpy!
7/10/2006 - Looks like the guys are on a winning streak, but what's up w/Skippy? Plays one inning yesterday and then nada? You hurt? Whassup dude?
7/7/2006 - Props to JP for his second homer of the season!
7/7/2006 - Ok, I apologize for the delay in updating this website, but I was just plain MAD! No offense or disrespect to Mr. Aguilar, but JP was clearly the better choice for the All Star team, with better numbers, more productivity, and far better range. When one interested individual contacted the Diablos front office (nah, it wasn't me, I never call when I'm p/o'd), she was told it was because JP had more errors. To coin a colloquialism, what a crock! To play the devil's advocate here, what if the Diablos had little or no pitching, and what if every ball off the opposing team's bat was a freaking rocket, and what if that freaking rocket was aimed directly at the third baseman, and what if that third baseman made the attempt to knock that ball down, but couldn't make the play? Hmm, doesn't that count as an error? And for the sake of argument, what if other unnamed player elected to not get a glove on the ball, letting it sail unhindered into the outfield? Hmm, that doesn't count as an error, does it. Who would you rather be your third baseman? Granted, Skippy has had his share of throwing the ball into the stands, but to exclude someone with better numbers because of errors is a dang waste of talent! Ok, that stated, what the heck is up with the disrespect shown to Jorge Alvarez? With his numbers he should have been the starting DH, not some back up reserve. Where the heck is the Diablos GM in all this? They're hosting the darned All Star Game and they have absolutely no representation! Oh yeah, a token reserve player, and (no disrespect to Mr. Henry) a newbie manager as Coach. I am SOOOO CONFUSED! Can anyone share some insight with me? Not to mention that I was in the process of making arrangements to go see the darned game after Skippy was passed over last year (and what a media fest that was - no one could understand the decision then either since he had much better numbers again than the closest competitor and the papers asked the same questions then that I'm asking this year). Guess I'm still MAD! I'll get over it by Monday -- for sure. In the meantime, I hope everyone had a great 4th of July, oh yeah, I guess Skippy and Jorge probably didn't with all that disrespect floating around in Texas! Man oh man...
7/4/2006 - They took the series against the Cats, but lost the first game against Shreveport. And still no announcement as to the players on the All-Star team. Hello! The game is 2 weeks away! How's anyone supposed to make plans? Another notable is the lack of notice on the Diablos own website of JP's and Jorge's batters of the month and week, respectively. Hard for a team when their own players don't seem to be acknowledged. Hmm.
7/2/2006 - This just in! JP Gets SLAM Baseball American Association Batter of the Month for the month of June! According to the article in American Association News Release: "El Paso Diablos INF J.P. Schmidt and St. Joe Blacksnakes RHP Mark Nussbeck have been selected as the SLAM Baseball American Association Batter and Pitcher of the Month, respectively, for the month of June. In 27 games, Schmidt hit .405 (45-for-111) with 21 runs scored, 26 RBI, 4 triples, and a slugging percentage of .523. For the season, the 26- year-old Palmdale, CA native currently is tied for second in the American Association with 63 hits and 4 triples, and fifth in on-base percentage with .427. " hmm, All-Star Material?
7/2/2006 - The guys are starting to win again and JP led the rally last night to put them over the top of the Cats. Only going 1 for 4, Skippy doubled to bring in Machado, although his only team website doesn't give him the credit. Alvarez went 1 for 1 with 2 sacrifice flys and a walk. Let's see if they can pull out of last place for the first half. Maybe Butch is having a good effect on these guys? Whatever they're doing, they need to keep it up, and JP needs to get his bat on more balls. The other teams are going to try to pitch around him, but he's gotta hit or walk. He'll do better once he cleans up his karma. Funny how things mesh together, huh? You'd think he'd get it by now! Oh well, everyone's got their own life lessons and some have to learn the hard way. Steep learning curve for some...
6/29/2006 - Maybe this is as bad as it gets for Manager Butch Henry? It can only get better from here? Let's hope so! On a bright note, Skippy went 3 for 5 with a run scored and an RBI, breaking the one game no-hitter he had. Back in rare form and back up over 350. Yaaaaay!
6/26/2006 - Welcome to Butch Henry. Today is his first day with the crew and we hope it's a productive one. Both Jorge and JP went hitless yesterday and the little devils lost yet another in a long line of games. Mr. Henry, you've got your work cut out for you. Can you take this disparate group of talented individuals and whip them into shape? I certainly hope so! Again, what's with the lack of support by the community? No pictures, no interviews, no nada that can be seen online. Maybe the problem is a little more far reaching than just the team? Wake up El Paso and support these guys that work out and play in inhuman weather, whether hurt or well, tired or rested. When I come down, I'm taking a slew of pics of these guys and posting them here. I may even sell some back to the Diablos to decorate their sparse site!
6/24/2006 - Well, they're sucking again. Not sure why, there's lots of talent on that team. But even Parris lost his 4th straight. Alvarez went 0 for 3 and JP went only 1 for 4. Maybe some batting practice and attitude adjustments might be in order? Maybe the new Field Manager, Butch Henry, might make a difference and bring out the potential of this struggling team. Since pitching is such an issue, Butch was a left-handed pitcher for the Cincinatti Reds and spent 7 years in the major league before his early retirement for arm troubles. Welcome aboard Butch. Let's get cracking!
6/21/2006 - Congrats to Jorge Alvarez for taking home the "Batter of the Week" honors for the week of June 12th. Well-deserved and Well-earned! Keep it up big guy! Not such a good night for the two sluggers last night, though. Both JP and Jorge went 0 for 4, although the Diablos did win. C'mon guys, you gotta keep up that momentum and take it to them!
6/19/2006 - Those little devils finally won one! And what a night. JP went 4 for 5 with 1 run and 4 RBI's! It's all good! Alvarez and Machado had great nights, too. Keep up the pressure guys!
6/18/2006 - And speaking of on fire, Look at Jorge Alvarez! He's tearing up the league! Batting .367, he's leading the league in RBI's and hits, coming in the top 10 for average, in the top 5 for doubles, in the top 5 for extra base hits, and in the top 2 for runs scored, just ahead of JP. Skippy is no slouch either. He's in the top 5 for hits, in the top 5 for triples, in the top 5 for OBP, and in the top 2, with Jorge, for runs scored. Not too shabby guys! Keep up challenging each other!
6/17/2006 - Oh what a night the Skip-meister had yesterday! 3 for 3 and those three were TRIPLES! He got on base all 5 at bats, scored three times, and batted in 2 runs. This boy is "en fuego!" Certainly an All Star pick, no? Alvarez went 3 for 5 and batted in 2 runs. Despite these heroic performances, the little devils still lost 10 to 8. What the heck is up with these guys?
6/14/2006 - JP's starting to come into his own. He's been batting lead off since Mike Marshall was released and coming into his own. Nice job Skippy. Keep up the good work! But what the heck's up with all those errors? Dude, soft hands!
6/10/2006 - Well, Skippy's hitting much better, and he got the lead off position yesterday and did a pretty darned good job. But... What the heck is up with all those errors? Unless the batters are t-ing off the pitchers. But only those that are there know the whole story! Keep those bats working guys & snaps to Jorge on yet another beeyootiful home run!
6/8/2006 - Finally! Signs of life! Keep hammering away at it!
6/7/2006 - Don't know what to say. They're kinda sucking. The last game produced only 4 hits, 1 run. Maybe Matt held the game to only 2 runs, but the bats should be talking loud and clear. Get moving guys!
6/5/2006 - Well, they got stopped in their tracks. Besides pitching (how does a team get 14 runs anyway?) those errors are killing them. Sloppy work guys. Maybe you should start working on the basics again coach? Yeah, yeah, I know, they're adults and should be honing their respective skills, but then again, what's leadership all about? Supplying a need to your team and reminding them of the right direction every now and again. But then this is just one outsider's take on the sitch and the Diablos' fearless leader may very well be doing just that. Hang in there and tighten up!
6/4/2006 - Whoo ya! the boy's on fuego! Keep up the momentum! Now, let's get the rest of the team together and start winning some games! Still looks like the pitching needs a hand. It'll all come together guys. Hang in there!
6/3/2006 - Finally! The start of winning streak! Yaaaaa! This is their third in row, with JP finally breaking his challenging streak driving in 5 runs on three singles, and scoring three times. He also walked and stole a base. Just like the JP of old! Let's go big guy! Hey Diablos, where's your pictures? I'm available to shoot!
5/31/2006 - Well, they're still having issues. The pitching was way below par, new addition Matt Parris has helped to break a damaging losing streak. So what's up with the bats? Or the lack thereof? No worries guys, you can pull it out of the fire if you focus and put your collective noses to the grindstone.
5/29/2006 - Still on a non-winning streak. It'll break soon! Hang in there guys!
5/28/2006 - Way too many errors and not enough performance to warrant the mishaps. Perhaps the Diablos should go back to basics.
5/27/2006 - Hard times for the Diablos. Will they be scrappy enough to pick themselves up by the boot straps? Yo, Skippy, what's with all the errors?
5/25/2006 - What the heck is going on with these guys? Camacho gets the call to the White Sox, but that don't explain the lack of bats. Maybe it's someone's karma affecting the team? Maybe someone should do the right thing? Yo skippy, when you take care of business it'll all work out.
The Diablos lost the first and third of this series, and were unable to take down the Aviators in the fourth game. Opening Day saw rain, thunder, lightening, and a sick loss to the Ft. Worth Cats 10-0. No bats? Pitching Slump? Whas up guys? The Diablos couldn't make it work in the second game, but came back in the third and fourth game to split the series. They crushed the Aviators in the first of the series at home. A grand slam by Aviators' Gallardo in the 5th stalls the Diablos winning streak. The Diablos came through in the clutch to win in extra innings Sunday. Way to hang tough guys!
JP had an awesome season last year with the San Angelo Colts and here's a great, big SHOUT OUT to his 2005 host peeps, Francis and Louine, for taking such good care of him. Also, a big shout out to the San Angelo Fans -- they took really good care of us during the play-offs.
Opening day in El Paso, Texas, for the Diablos is May 15th. Here's wishing the Diablos (and especially JP) the best of luck for the coming season! Kick some butt, guys!