There was something in the air last night. Not sure if it was the possibility of 2 perfect games in the same night or that Crupi smelled a tad ripe when I picked him up from work, but something was out there.The Sons of Sully had a late night tilt at ol Tufts Park against the red-headed stepchild of On the Hill Tavern. The comedic duo of Billy and Philly (might as well be Danny DeVito and Ahnold) were calling the game, which always leads to random outbursts and war stories of 17 years behind the dish.
Little did we know, 1500 miles away, two men would take the mound with a chance at history. One a journeyman trying to stick in the big leagues, and the other a journeyman trying to stick in the big leagues. One man lost his oerfect game with 2 outs in the bottom of the ninth on a bad call, one man lost his with no down in the first on 4 balls. Both men had their chance at history, and both men came up just a bit short.
(Circus music) Lets take it to the top of 1 where we had one of those innings that NOTHING goes right. 3 walks, some ground ball errors, a no-squeeze at first, falling fly balls, ground balls to the outfield on a slip and slide, etc etc. We've had those innings before. The true test of a team is how they come back when they are down. Well the Ringers passed the test.
We started slappin the ball around, that 3rd basemen may not want to show his face on that field for awhile. McGrath peppered the Right Center fielder with some moon shots, at the last minute he would always fall, reminded me of the icy patch from the Muppets. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LonzFUbMlY
They weren't very good fielders at all, usually you have a staple at SS or in the OF that makes plays, they had none. I can't imagine what they did in the B League...
We made them make plays they couldn't. Timely hits, and errors allowed us back into it. Unlike the skunk game, we stayed in it mentally and that made a huge difference.
Mr June showed up because...well...it's June, and that's what he does. Using his speed, getting on base, doin' the bull dance...all part of Mr June's game.
There are only a few players in the history of the game that get the green light on 3-0, one was Chipper in his hey-day, one was the Mick, and the other is obviously Noyes. A great 3-0 quote puts things into perspective.
"Wow, time flies. It was seven years ago yesterday that Chucky Carr uttered those immortal words, after what would be his final appearance with the Milwaukee Brewers.Chucky was quite amazing. He would hit 4 home runs a year, but he would roll up the short sleeves on his shirt as high as they would go, to show off his guns.On the day in question, Chucky was hitting .130, with an OPS of under .400, and needless to say he was given the "take" on a 3 and 0 count, promptly popping up to kill a rally. Asked about it by reporters after the game (i.e. about not taking the 3 and 0), Chucky replied "That ain't Chucky's game. Chucky hacks on 3 and 0".Well that ain't Noyesies game and Noyesie hacks on 3-0, hacked it right into left field for a key hit.
Lefty battled though, never seen a guy walk 7 and get so many big outs. TC with a huge 3rd to Catcher double play with a nice block by Connors, big forceouts by Sweet, Sully, and TC. Great toss by McGrath to nail a guy at third, nicest throw from the OF I have seen in awhile. Tip of the cap
We have a chance to win in the bottom of the 7th. Noyes looked like CC out there throwing long into the game. "Richards, thanks for not taking me out in the 4th". That was your game my friend, you were either going to bare down and silence the critics or implode on a level that we have never seen before...I am glad you picked the first choice.
Bases full for the DiStefano in the last of the 7th. The kid had as much luck at the plate that day as Jim Joyce will have getting out of Detroit alive. Boonton grounds out to the pitcher and they get the force out. 2 down. The man needs some time alone...I will let Axl take it from here...
Sometimes I need some time...On my own
Sometimes I need some time....All alone
Everybody needs some time....On their own
Don't you know you need some time........All alone
Kid either called a ghost runner or tried out the dreaded Reverse GT but we wandered off somewhere and was alone with his thoughts...good thing time was called. Wow. Self admitted bonehead play, life goes on.Lefty held them in the top of the 8th. Sully led off the bottom with a bomb that held up in the humid skies, dropped between the outfielders, winning run on third. Intentional Walks to TC and Josh brought up Danny, who I would have bet money was going to fly out to left to win the game. Popped up infield fly rule. That brought up LaserShow. McGrath was quoted earlier in the Medford newspaper...
"Josh is fine, He’s one of our teammates. It could have been me that hit into a double play. It happens to everybody, man. He’s had 60 at-bats. A couple years ago I had 60 at-bats, I was hitting .170, everyone was ready to kill me too. What happened? Laser show. Relax."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPvMOVFshyI
LaserShow always hits the ball hard and couldn't go opposite field to save his life. LaserShow casually walks up to the plate, takes one pitch, and belts the next into Right field.
Game.Set.Match
4-2 on the season. Relax.
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