Diamondbacks go from worst to first

At the end of the last Major League Baseball season, the Arizona Diamondbacks had won only 65 games and finished in last place in its division. But in 2011, the Diamondbacks made a remarkable turnaround to finish in first place in the National League West division.

The Diamondbacks’ final record this season was 94 wins and 68 losses — a 29-win turnaround from 2010! The team also found itself in the playoffs, where they have been facing the Milawuakee Brewers, the team that won the National League Central division.

Game 3 of the Diamondbacks’ first-round series against the Brewers is tonight, and Arizona down 0 game to 2. If the Diamondbacks lose tonight, its season is over. But the team is playing at home, which it hopes gives the players an advantage. If Arizona wins, Game 4 will also be played in Phoenix. And if the D’backs win Game 4, the final game of the series will be played in Milwuakee. The winner will then take on the winner of the Philadelphia Phillies - St. Louis Cardinals series in the National League Championship Series.

But however things turn out, this has been a great season for the Arizona Diamondbacks!

 

Zipping Through the Rain Forest

From sick to fear to a final laugh (once on the ground!)

On a recent trip to Costa Rica to visit family, I experienced the sensation of zipping through a rain forest high up in the trees on a zip line.

To ride a zip line, you have to first get into a harness. You also have to wear a helmet. Next, they put you on a blue truck and drive you up to the top of a mountain. It is a bumpy ride.

After you get to the top, a guide tells you all the instructions you will need to know to ride the zip line safely. That’s where I began to feel sick and regret I even agreed to come here.

"Are you ready?” asked the guide.

"No," I replied.

They hooked me up to the cable and off I went!

Surprisingly, I didn't scream. At least not the first time. The second time was different.

On my second zip through the trees, I started spinning around in circles. My helmet scraped against the wire making a bone-chilling sound. That’s when the screaming started.

When I finally reached the destination tree, I asked the guide how many more zip lines I had to go on. When he replied NINE, I looked at him like he was crazy! Now, I really started to feel sick!

One other scary time was when we came to a tree and it started swaying and creaking. I desperately hung on to my mom for support.

Then, someone spotted two Scarlet Macaws, which are birds that live in Costa Rica. We all stopped and stared, forgetting about the zip line. Soon, the swaying and creaking snapped me back to reality.

  When I finally got on the zip line to get to the last tree, I had never been so happy to leave one place in my entire life! After we got to the bottom again we took off our helmets and harnesses and looked at the pictures a photographer took while we were zipping.

Everyone’s pictures looked fine except for mine. Mine looked like I was about to cry. That’s when we all had a good laugh—including me!

—Abby Gerber

PHOTOS: (TOP) Abby takes off! (BOTTOM) Kid Reporter Abby Gerber in between zips! (Photos Courtesy Abby Gerber)