Week 7:

Dalton Rd took down DYR, 7-3 as LF Mitch Cotto went 3-3 with 2 RBI.  P Dave Birmingham pitched well in the win and helped himself defensively late in this one.  Your humble correspondent led off the 6^th with a blast to right that went over the head of RF Chris Munroe and the race was on.  I was thinking 3 but felt the urge to try and score when I saw the relay throw sail over the 2^nd baseman.  Birmingham played the role of Derek Jeter in the 2000 series against the A’s and backed up the throw, turned, and for the first time all year, threw the ball overhand, a laser to C Bob Cotting and nailed me at the plate by a step.  Apparently, I ran through the stop sign at 3^rd… never saw it (because I was hallucinating having to run that far and ‘fast’) but the picture below confirms the account:

Anthony’s beat Mudville, 21-14 behind P Chris Landers’ arm, bat, and physical toughness as he went the distance giving up 6 ER, had a bases clearing double in the 5^th to break it open, and withstood a potential assassination plot in warmups.   Mudville entered the game on a 3-gm losing streak so the thought in the Anthony’s dugout was that volatile Mudville skipper, Eric Kuharich sent OF Josh Burke up to take pre-game BP with 1 job in mind: attempt to injure starting P Chris Landers.  Well, it almost worked as Burke did line a ball off Landers’ shin but, the former Navy Seal/Special opps veteran Andover native put the pain aside and went out and dominated at the plate an in the circle.  The league will investigate these ‘bounty’ allegations and if proven, Kuharich could face suspension. So, if things weren’t chippy enough in this one, Anthony’s manager Mike DelPrete decided he’d throw kerosene on this smoldering fire in the 5^th up 10 runs and accuse Mudville P Eric Higgins (former US Marine and current MA State Trooper) of ‘quick pitching’ which did not sit well with the Mudville hurler.  Higgins then asked DelPrete if he’d like to come to the mound and discuss in a more ‘hands-on’ approach but thanks to 10x Lady Bing winner, Anthony’s SS D-Rob, and his famous saying from his days as a baton twirler (see below), cooler heads prevailed.

South tamed Lions (see what I did there?), 24-15 as LF Sean Jacquet had 4 hits and 6 RBI including a HR and bases loaded triple in the 6^th to break it open while P Greg Copeland stayed hot at the plate and collected 3 hits and drove in 4.  And for the first time in 15 years, Bryan Sweeney played outfield.  No one asked him to, he just decided to do so on his own. 

In a shocker, The Hood clipped Johnson North, 10-8 thanks to back-to-back HRs by SS Greg Andreola and OF Tony Porcello in the 5^th to extend the lead to 4.  Johnson was led by LF Jarrad Jordan who went 3-4 w a HR and stellar outfield defense. Dave ‘Big Tree’ Lyskowski continued his assault on the single season HR record with another blast in the 4^th.  If this keeps up, expect a random PED test, Big Tree.  Despite the 2 HRs mentioned, Hood P Shawn Peters kept the rest of Johnson North off-balance all night giving up just 4 ER in the win. 

Kampersal clobbered Downtown, 20-9 with their usual formula (solid D and a relentless line up).  Downtown jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead but then gave up 20 unanswered over the next 5 innings.  Their demise was their outfield play and baserunning as they had 3 guys thrown out on the bases (2 by OF Bill ‘Cannon Arm’ Sticka and 1 by OF Tom Kampersal).  Up 20-3 in the later innings, Kampersal players switched positions to give others a shot at positions that their manager would never let them play in a close game.  1B Bryn ‘Buckner’ Smith did have the play of the night in the first inning when he allowed a slow roller to sneak past him.

Downtown RF Todd Kiley did his best Jay Miller impersonation (CF, DYR) and ran approximately 11 miles as Kampy’s shot the outfield gaps all night.  The running took its toll on Kiley, who had to remove himself from the game in the 6^th with a strained hamstring.

Interesting night on the bases for Downtown SS John Drohan.  In the 2^nd, he attempted to stretch a single into a double and was called out by his 3B coach on the play, but the Kampersal bench quickly reversed the call.  Then in the 7^h, Drohan called himself safe at second even though the other 23 guys at the field and 3B coach called him out.  Bold move, Cotton….

Jasper Rock smacked Brentwood, 16-5 as OF Kevin ‘Fire Marshall’ Hastings went 4-4 as did 2B Stephen Peters.  P Derek Cordon was helped by his defense who turned 2 double plays to prevent any kind of Brentwood rally.   

Braggville edged KingZ, 22-2, behind OF Darren Fells’ 4-5 5 RBI night and OF Chad Engel’s 3 hits and 4 RBI.  P Chris Connors was sharp in the circle with a 3-hit complete game effort while also contributing offensively with 3 hits. 

GAME OF THE WEEK for WK # 7 (6/4/23)

Dalton Rd (4-1) vs Jasper Rock (3-2) at Damagella 7:30pm

• Big ‘A’ matchup between the #4 & # 5 teams
• If Dalton wins this, they pretty much lock up that 4^th seed in ‘A’ while a Jasper win creates a tie for that last playoff spot.
• I will have complete coverage of this one next week.

 

*Prediction: Dalton Rd 15 Jasper 10 

*Prediction Record (5-0)