Idle Capahas have tough foe: Mother Nature

The Plaza Tire Capahas have an 11-1 record, with many of their wins of the lopsided variety.

But there is one opponent the Capahas have not been able to beat much this season -- Mother Nature.

The Capahas have had 10 scheduled games rained out, including nine straight. Contests slated for both home and the road all have been casualties.

The recent cancellations mean the Capahas have not played an official game since beating Perryville on June 17.

"It's been really frustrating, for me and for the players," said Jess Bolen, in his 45th season as Capahas manager. "But there's nothing you can do about it."

The Capahas played 2 1/2 innings Saturday during the opener of a doubleheader at Springfield, Ill. The game was scoreless when heavy rain hit, wiping out the rest of that day's schedule. More rain later in the day cancelled Sunday's doubleheader, also in Springfield.

"We went all the way up there and barely got to play," Bolen said. "It seems like every time we suit up you can count on rain.

"But in the scheme of things, losing baseball games is minor. There has been so much devastation around the country because of the rain, with all the flooding. It's really sad."

Bolen is hopeful the Capahas will start catching a break from the weather, including today when they are scheduled to visit the St. Louis Raging Bulls for a 7:30 p.m. first pitch.

But Bolen said even if the weather is good there is a chance that contest might not be played because the Bulls have to make up several games in their league.

"Even if that game gets wiped out, we'll still make it up when they come back down here next weekend," Bolen said.

The Capahas are slated to compete in the Valmeyer (Ill.) tournament Saturday through Monday. Their next scheduled home action is July 9, although another game or two might be added.

"We've still got about 20 games left counting tournaments, so we've still got a chance to play a lot of baseball," Bolen said.

The Capahas' only loss was a 6-2 setback to the St. Louis Golden Spikes on June 11 in Cape Girardeau. Plaza Tire avenged that defeat June 15 with a 10-1 romp in St. Louis.

"We've played good baseball pretty much the whole season so far," Bolen said. "But now, we've been off so much, you worry about being rusty when you do play."