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A Dying Dynasty? Not Quite Yet
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4/24/2012
By Dan Flaherty
All great dynastic runs must come to an end eventually. So the history books teach us. After all, the House of Savoy ruled Italy for over a hundred years and into the 20th century before a popular referendum led to its demise after World War II. England was governed by the House of Tudor and the infamous Henry VIII for a century-plus before the lack of an heir spelled its doom. Closer to home, the Bush-Clinton rule of American politics when Barack upended Hillary in the 2008 Democratic primaries. Given that, can't we expect that the Five-O's dynasty-or as it's known in historical parlance, the House of Bender, Schlosser & Rhoads-should also finally gaveway to new blood.
The end of the 2011 regular season looked to be that time. Oconomowoc was 7-9 and needed to sweep its final two games, plus get some help in order to make the playoffs. They pulled it off and even though a first-round exit at the hands of Lannon awaited, the claim for a continuing dynastic run still exists.
Nonetheless, the rebels have smelled blood and now the O's will have to prove themselves again in 2012. To that end, Rob Becker, a key part of the 2007 Grand Championship team, has been summoned from retirement and is ready to pitch again. This past weekend in Ixonia, Becker took the mound, and with his breaking stuff moving and his location sound, the hurler looked ready to step right into regular season action against Land O'Lakes competition.
Steve Rhoads followed Becker on the mound. There are critics who say that the game has passed Rhoads, who turns 42 in June, by. There are those who say he's not in top condition. There are those who say that his growing family has him distracted... you know I could swear I had some overarching point when I began this paragraph. Oh, yes-what the critics didn't count on was him tossing a couple innings of scoreless ball himself with a ball dancing so thoroughly that Gaylord Perry had to have been smiling.
Then it was Luke Nelson's turn on the mound and there was nothing subtle about the approach here. Straight gas and nasty breaking stuff left Ixonia's hitter looking helpless and put the finishing touches on a 6-0 win that helped get everyone feeling good about the impending season. Offensively, the Five-O's bats gained steam on the second time through the batting order, with several balls hit hard in the latter frames of the seven-inning game, including a line shot by Nelson that was positively crushed, until a great defensive play turned it into an out. Between Luke Nelson, player-manager Jeff Rhoads, Derek Nelson, there will be punch in the offense. It's going to be up to the pitching to see if Oconomowoc can not only ward off the up-and-comers nipping at their heels, but to again provide a credible challenge to traditional power Lannon, as well as Brookfield, the team who won the West and then the Grand Championship a year ago.
The LOL season begins anew at Roosevelt Field on Sunday. Those that say all dynasties come to an end eventually might be reminded of a few other historical examples. Harry Truman, heir to the FDR dynasty, beat back a too-cocky Thomas Dewey in the 1948 presidential election. Josef Stalin derisively said "How many divisions does the pope have?", at the height of the Cold War, only to see his successors watch John Paul II march triumphantly through a free Eastern Europe. And who can forget Moe Green in The Godfather proclaiming to Michael Corleone "You're all done. The Corleone Family doesn't have that kind of muscle anymore." Dewey lost an election. Stalin lost an empire. Greene took a bullet in the eye. That's what happens when you call an end to a dynasty prematurely. The end of last year showed the Five-O's aren't ready to go quietly into the night just yet, and with returning reinforcements, optimism abounds for 2012.
Dan Flaherty runs The Sports Notebook - a website devoted to sports commentary
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