2009 Season Review: Las Vegas Doggs

The defending champs didn't even get the chance to defend their title in 2009, failing to make the playoffs for the first time in team history. The season was more than just a disappointment to their fans, it was also a wake up call to team management. As fans grieve over the lost season, management now need to figure out where the team is going next.





Wasn't Meant To Be (The Story of the 2009 Las Vegas Doggs)
By: Max Power

On that opening day, no one could quiet any piece of the crowd. The Vegas fans cheered louder with every anticipating moment. They've been here before but it never gets old. The crowd never sat down as each ring was awarded to the 2008 championship squad. Some say it was the highlight of the 2009 season. Others agree. The fact remains, the team has never won back to back championships, and 2009 would be no different. This scene was ultimately the beginning of the end of the Las Vegas Doggs' 2009 season.

The 2009 season for the Doggs can easily be broken up into the 5 stages of grief. The first 5 weeks the team was in denial that fate had knocked them out of contention for the 2009 championship. They went on to to dominate their opponents, receiving stellar outings from the likes of Chris Young, David Wright, and Aramis Ramirez. They felt they still had a shot, that they could break fate's will.

The next few weeks showed a side of the Doggs no fan wanted to see. They were angry with themselves after losing to Weymouth in Week 6 and ended up losing the next two weeks. They should have been undefeated going into their match up against the Piglets in Week 9. It should have been the match up of the season.

Over the course of the next 8 weeks the team, and its fans bounced around, winning a majority of their games and feeling as though they could elongate the season, just a little bit. If they could just win the next match up, things would be better and they'd be OK, They went on to win 7 out of their next 8 match ups.

Then the inevitable happened. The Doggs went on to the lose their next 5 match ups, slowly but surely dropping closer and closer to the rest of the Eastern Conference. It was depressing. Players didn't even seem to care anymore. Even powerhouse Albert Pujols seemed lifeless at the plate at times. It was a sad time as a Vegas fan.

By the time the final week came the Doggs had already been knocked out of the playoff contention as they faced off against the Rockets of Rakeville. They held their heads up high as they had finally accepted their fate. It would be their first time looking upon the EHCC playoffs from the outside. A bitter pill to swallow, but one they had been anticipating all season, whether they knew it or not.