ND Gold Squeezes the Orange, 21-11

Due to players out of town for tournaments, Orange had trouble fielding a team, and the Gold took advanage in drubbing them 21-11. 

It was a hollow revenge game for Gold after taking our worst loss of the season last time we played each other. Orange requested shortening the game to seven innings even though they did rally late to get to double digits.

Gold built a 21-5 lead in the first five innings with the long ball. Hugh Vasquez set the tone with a solo home run leading off the game. Three batters later Rob Katzer hit another gapper that rolled between the outfielders for a two run homer to finish off the scoring in the first at three so we didn't give ourselves the curse of the first.

In the second the bottom of the order put up five and it was off to the races. Singles by Jeff Kravin, Doug Carlson, Mike Nichols, Anthony Puccio, and Steve Bedrick set the table for Joy Dardin, in her inaugural at bat after sitting our six weeks or so with a broken wrist, who crushed a ball to the left field fence that was only not a home run because the fifth run scored in front of her.

In the mean time, Bedrick in his second start held Orange to just four runs in his three innings, helped out by three good catches in left field by Steve Mastronarde and one in right by Nichols.

In the third it was more of the same. Gary Namanny ht a three run bomb after Vasquez and Bob Fulgham singled. After a single and an out, Tom Gonzales sent a blast, his first of two, into the far reaches of turf. In the fourth, Carlson got into the act with a three run job, and in the fifth, Gonzales' second bomb produced runs 3-4-5 that inning.

After failing to score for the first time in the top of the sixth, Gold reverted to form and tried to give Orange hope by allowing five runs with some suspect defense in the bottom half. But pitcher Gonzales saved the day on a shot up the middle that he cut off and fired to rover Fulgham at second who whipped it to first for a double play to end the rally.

In the seventh, Gold was held scoreless but Kravin dug one ball out of the dirt (turf?) and caught a pop up to squelch any hope for an Orange comeback.

Katzer (HR), Gonzales (2 HR), and Carlson (HR) were 3-3. Vasquez (HR) and Fulgham were 3-4. Namanny, Steve Alvarez, Kravin, Nichols, and Bedrick were 2-3, and Dardin had the triple. Everyone had at least one hit. Curt Wade had a double but came up lame reinjuring his groin and we hope he will come back healthy next week.

Another Day, Another Walk Off, ND Gold over Purple 11-10

Gold tried something radical today, to try to avoid our usual get a lead, give up a lead, and hopefully get it back by the end of the game.

We swapped our starting pitcher Tom Gonzales and our middle innings pitcher Steve Bedrick. It was going really well, we held the fearsome top of the Pirple lineup in the first to one run and we scored the max five runs in the first and third. Bedrock was dealing and throwing strikes. It was going oh so well. And then, sure enough we stopped hitting, and they scored six runs in the fifth and sixth, and they tied it up 10-10. So the more things change the more they remain the same.

But it's ok we had the top of the lineup in the bottom of the sixth (well, 2-3-4). We would score five again and they would cry uncle. Then BOOM, as great as they have been all season, 1-2-3 and out.

It came down to the seventh and final and open inning (shortened ahead of time because of the heat). They had their top and we had our middle. They got a couple on but Gonzales induced a couple of easy outs, and we at least had a tie.

Gonzales started the bottom half with a single, and we put in all world sprinter Gary Namanny to run for him. Batman Steve Alvarez finished a perfect day at the plate (3-3) with a single to right center, and Namanny was off to the races. Purple got it in quickly so he stopped at third. Curt Wade came up and played the hero with a slicing off field line drive to left field and we had our fourth one run and second walk off win, 11-10.

On defense, Gonzales had one strikeout looking and made a nice play on a comebacker and a shoestring catch on a little pop up that never got over six feet tall in front of the mound. Hugh Vasquez was a vacuum cleaner at SS, he must have had 10 putouts.

The heat really took it out of the hitters on both teams. We didn't even make it through the lineup three times. Alvarez and Wade had three hits, Vasquez, Namanny (2B and 3B, our only extra base hits), Gonzales, and Steve Mastronarde were 2-2, and yours truly had one and a walk in two trips to the plate (undoubtably Howard Davis was afraid to throw me a strike).

One thing about Gold, we will give you an entertaining close game more often than not!

Diablos Tease Cardinal Again, 22-17

The TC Diablos took a page out of the notebook of this author's Creaker team, and pulled out a convincing 22-17 victory. Get an early lead (12-4), put them on the ropes (17-8 after seven), then give it all back at once (17-17), but in the end rally to put them away (five run eighth).

Of course it helps to have hitters like Jim Krochka in your lineup. All he did was hit two home runs and a triple in a 4-4 day at the plate. His first hit, a mere single, put us ahead in the first after Ed Hendrickson and our defense shut down the Cardinal in the first without a run. His second hit, a two run homer, made it 11-4 in the third. His third hit was a triple leading off a three run sixth, and his last hit was a three run bomb that came in the eighth when they had tied us at 17. Game over.

The defense played great. The weekly highlight reel featured Mark Childress making a tumbling catch in left center in the first that preserved the no run start to the game. Unfortunately, the note taker failed to get any other highlights, but I seem to remember Bill Hoffman making a nice grab on a hot shot liner to third base. And I think we turned one double play.

But it was the hitting this game. The middle bottom of the order, Jeff Kravin, Jeff Mertens, Howard Davis, and Bill Hoffman were a combined 9-10. You know what I say, if the middle bottom of the order hits, we win!

And the top did their usual, Krochka with his near cycle and six RBIs, Mark Childress playing set up following him with three hits, Tom Caldwell 3-4 with a double, Brian Goldufsky 3-4 with a triple and five RBIs, and Greg Lagomarsino 2-3 with a double.

And in the middle of all that, in his Diablo TC debut, Alan Vargo smashed a two run bomb to right in his very first at bat to finish the five run first inning. Earning him the Game Ball.

Another great day at the office for the Diablos, winners of five of the last six, and six of eight.

Diablos Clipped 23-18

In a game we started amazingly well, the Diablos ultimately succumbed to the dreaded Clippers, 23-18.

It's hard to write about this type of loss, because we had the opposition on the ropes - early on, and then late in the game. But we let it slip away.

We started with some fabulous defense. In the first Mark Childress made a diving catch on a sinking line drive headed to the gap. Brian Goldufsky followed that up with two putouts, one of which was quite athletic to shut down the powerful top of the Clipper lineup. In the second, it was more of the same. This time it was Mike Daley making a one out running catch in right field with runner on first and second. The runner on first tagged up but the lead runner took off. There was a lot of confusion but Goldufsky made sure he was heard and we easily doubled off the errant runner going from second. Inning over.

In the third, Jim Krotchka made a fabulous backhaded stab in the 5-6 hole and whirled to throw a strike to first to get the Hall of Famer Gary Tryhorn. And Childress followed that with another running catch. Finally in the fifth, Tom Caldwell got in on the action in left field on a deep fly for the first out. That was just a prelude to a grounder to first baseman Greg Lagomarsino, who perfected a 3-11-3 double play by hustlng back to first to catch Goldufsky's relay.

In the meantime, we built a 10-0 lead after three. Dan Roach led us off with a triple to the right center gap. After Ed Hendrickson brought him home with a sacrifice fly, with two outs, Caldwell hit a two run blast and Lagomarsino and Don Devencenzi sandwiched a single by Goldufsky to produce the rest of our five runs. In the second the bottom half produced two runs and in the third Krochka's two run bomb highlighted a three run add on inning.

In the fourth, the Clippers showed why they are nearly undefeated the last couple of years as they put up eight to close the gap, and added six more in the next two innings to take their first lead at 14-12. Give us credit, though, there is no quit, and the middle and bottom of the order, Bob Vitro, Jeff Mertens, Heffe, Bill Hoffman, Willie Hollis, and Steve Shapiro all singled and when leadoff hitter Roach stroked a two run single we had our own five to re-take the lead at 17-14.

We shut them down in the seventh, and added one in our half on a Lagomarsino double, but then the offense and defense kind of went to sleep - and they poured on nine runs in the last two innings to win going away.

However, we proved to them and to ourselves that we will not be a pushover to the Clippers or anyone else, and we will put them away one of these times.

Mertens led the way with a 4-4 day. Clocking in with three hits were Hendrickson, Krotchka, Caldwell, Lagomarsino, Devencenzi, Hoffman, Hollis, and Shapiro. Everyione else had at least one knock and all but two (or their proxy) scored a run.