Indians

GO INDIANS!!!
~ 2006 ~ A GREAT YEAR!

The 2006 Alameda, CA AAA Indians had a really fun season of baseball, playing hard and strengthening our overall game knowledge and playing skills.  Batting performance particularly really came alive at season's end and our defense saw significant improvement.  Too bad we don't have another 18 games to play - the season is just too short!
Here's looking forward to next year . . .  
All the best in future seasons to all players, coaches and participants!
GO INDIANS!!!

Final Score Game 18:  Indians 15, Marlins 14

Monday, June 10, 2006, 4:00 p.m., Minor Field

The Alameda AAA Indians won their rematch with the Marlins in a very close contest, splitting the season series and ending their season on a high note.

Nick Stevens took the mound for the Indians against lead-off batter Sam Kuttner of the Marlins to open the game.  Kuttner grounded short in the infield and Stevens made the throw to Wyatt Arens at first base for one away.  Next, Erik Morris struck out swinging and Grant Kopps hit a fly ball to second that was caught by Isaac Maximov to hold the Marlins scoreless in the first.

The Indians jumped out to a big lead in the bottom of the first on the strength of aggressive base running and timely hitting.  Stevens led off against the Marlins' pitcher Cameron Beene, singling on a hard grounder to left field.  A mishandled pitch to Jackson Tracy opened the way for Stevens to steal second, and then to get the better of the Marlins in a rundown and steal third.  Another pitch in the dirt allowed Stevens to steal home for the Indians first run and Tracy took a base on balls.  Tracy stole second on a mishandled pitch to Micah Rothenbuhler and advanced to third on Rothenbuhler's fly ball double to deep center.  Tracy stole home on a wild pitch to Isaac Maximov and Rothenbuhler advanced to third.  Maximov walked and then stole second before Trevor Greenley hit a fly ball single to shallow center scoring Rothenbuhler and advancing Maximov to third.  The runners advanced on a wild pitch to Derek Snediker, Greenley to third and Maximov stealing home.  Snediker passed on a full count pitch and took a base on balls giving the Indians runners on first and third.  A mishandled pitch to Arens made way for Snediker to steal second and then score along with Greenley on Arens' bouncing ground ball single to right field.  Arens stole second on a mishandled pitch to Billy Hommert before Hommert walked to put runners on first and second.  The runners advanced to second and third and Snediker stole home before Casey Thiering struck out swinging on a full count pitch for one away.  Evan Park singled on a fly to left and then stole second before Joe Hausner struck out.  Hommert stole home on a pitch in the dirt to Liam Bergstrom and Park advanced to third.  Bergstrom took a base on balls, but was forced out and Park stranded when Stevens grounded to second.  The score at the end of the first inning was Marlins zero, Indians nine.

The Marlins got on the scoreboard and made up some ground in the second inning. Stevens continued on the mound for the Indians.  Gabe Ross grounded between first and second and beat the throw from Rothenbuhler to Thiering backing him up at first.  Damen Shaw dropped a fly in the gap between the infield and the outfielders for a single and then the runners advanced on a wild pitch to Cameron Beene.  Beene's fly ball single to right scored Ross and Shaw, and then he stole second with Ian Long at the plate.  A ground ball to first was good for a single when Rothenbuhler was pulled off the bag and the Marlins had runners on first and third.  Long stole second with Gabriel Verm batting and a mishandled pitch allowed Beene to steal home and Long to advance to third.  Verm struck out for one away and Long attempted to steal home and was tagged out by Tracy for two.  Alexander Wilson-Leech took Stevens to a full count and a base on balls.  A pair of stolen bases with Nolan Takeshita at bat moved Wilson-Leech to third and then Takeshita walked on a full count pitch, giving the Marlins runners on first and third.  Takeshita stole second with Miguel Nunez at the plate, and then Wilson-Leech stole home and Takeshita advanced to third before Nunez walked.  Nunez stole second but Emma Sullivan struck out to end the inning with Takeshita and Nunez stranded.  Play moved to the bottom of the second with the Indians leading the Marlins by a score of nine to four.

The Indians extended their lead in the bottom of the second.  Tracy took Beene, again pitching for the Marlins, to a full count before striking out.  Rothenbuhler singled on a line drive to center, and then stole second with Maximov at the plate, and proceeded to third on a missed pick-off throw.  Maximov grounded to short for a single, scoring Rothenbuhler, and then advanced to second when Greenley was hit by a pitch and walked.  Maximov and Greenley advanced to second and third and Snediker singled on a low fly to center, scoring Maximov and advancing Greenley to third.  Snediker stole second and Arens singled on a grounder to short and scored Greenley.  Arens  and Snediker advanced on a wild pitch to Hommert and then Snediker stole home and Arens third before Hommert was called out on strikes for two away.  Thiering flied to left but the ball was caught, stranding Arens and closing the second with the Indians leading thirteen to four.

The Marlins narrowed the scoring gap in the third inning.  Billy Hommert took the mound for the Indians with the Marlins at the top their order.  Kuttner walked, and Morris hit a line drive into center for a single, advancing Kuttner to second.  Kopps flied to center, but the runners were held when Stevens made the catch for one away.  Ross stretched a single to a double on a drive to center, scoring Kuttner and advancing Morris to third.  Shaw flied to center, scoring Morris and Ross and gaining second.  A pitch in the dirt to Beene allowed Shaw to steal third and Beene took a base on balls to give the Marlins runners on first and third.  Beene stole second, and then a bouncing grounder by Long brought Beene and Shaw home and Long advanced to second on the throw to the plate.  Verm hit a home run, scoring himself and Long.  Wilson-Leech walked and then was forced out at second when Takeshita hit a grounder to Maximov at second and threw the ball to Snediker on the bag for two away.  Takeshita was stranded when Nunez was called out on strikes. 

Miguel Nunez took over pitching for the Marlins in the bottom of the third.  Park led off grounding back to Nunez and was thrown out at first.  Hausner grounded to third and was also thrown out at first and Bergstrom struck out.  The Indians were held scoreless in the third and took the field for the fourth leading the game 13-11.

Micah Rothenbuhler came in to pitch for the Indians and Emma Sullivan led off for the Marlins in the top of the fourth.  Sullivan passed on a full count pitch and took her base on balls and advanced to second when Kuttner grounded to first and Park fielded the ball and tagged the bag for one away.  Sullivan stole third before Morris struck out swinging, and then scored when Kopps lined towards third and beat the throw to first.  Ross flied to shallow right center for a double and the Marlins had runners on second and third.  A pitch in the dirt to Shaw made room for the runners to advance as Kopps scored and Ross moved to third.  Shaw grounded back to Rothenbuhler and was thrown out at first and play moved to the bottom of the fourth with the score tied at thirteen all.

Nunez returned to the mound for the Marlins facing the top of the Indians batting order.  Stevens took a base on balls and the stole second with Tracy at the plate.  Stevens stole third and then Tracy walked, giving the Indians runners on first and third.  Rothenbuhler grounded to second, scoring Stevens, but was thrown out at first and the Marlins made it a double play with a force out of Tracy at second.  Maximov flied foul and the catch was made to retire the Indians with one run scored and a one run lead at 14-13.

Beene led off for the Marlins against Rothenbuhler pitching for the Indians, singling on a grounder to right field and putting the tying run on base.  Beene stole second with Long at bat, and then stole third before scoring on Long's ground ball to Park at first.  Park made the play for one away and took the throw from Rothenbuhler when Verm grounded back to the mound for the second out.  Wilson-Leech struck out swinging and the game was again tied at 14-14.

The Marlins held the Indians scoreless in the bottom of the fifth.  Gabriel Verm came in to pitch and Greenley grounded to second and was thrown out at first.  Snediker grounded to second and was thrown out at first, Arens did the same and the Indians were retired in order and quickly returned to the field.

The Indians defense held firm in the top of the sixth.  Rothenbuhler returned to the mound and struck out Takeshita for one away.  Nunez singled on a slow grounder down the third base line and then stole second before Sullivan walked.  Kuttner hit a bouncing grounder to Rothenbuhler who made the throw to third to force out Nunez, the possible winning run.  Morris and Rothenbuhler dueled to a full count, and then the Marlins were retired scoreless when Morris was called out on strikes, the score still tied.

The Indians came up to bat in the bottom of the sixth needing only to score to win the game.  Verm continued pitching for the Marlins and Hommert led off with a full count line drive single to center putting the potential winning run on base.  Thiering popped up to the pitcher and Verm made the catch for one away.  Park doubled on a fly ball to center, advancing Hommert to scoring position on third.  Hausner walked, loading the bases with one out, and Bergstrom came up to bat.  On an errant pitch that got by the catcher, Billy Hommert stole home, just avoiding the tag at the plate and the Indians pulled out a victory, 15-14 over the Marlins.

This was a well played game by both teams and was very exciting to watch.  Credit goes to both teams for taking it to the wire and putting in great efforts.

Game recap written by J. Michael Bergstrom.  All rights reserved.

Final Score Game 14:  Indians 5, Braves 24

Monday, May 29, 2006, 5:30 p.m., Major Field

The Alameda AAA Indians were decisively defeated by the Braves in their rematch as the Braves unleashed consistent offense throughout the game.

Joe Ruck led off for the Braves against Micah Rothenbuhler pitching for the Indians.  A grounder to first was handled by Evan Park for one away.  Mark Otenbriet hit a grounder towards the mound that deflected off Rothenbuhler to Isaac Maximov, who connected with Park to make the force play at first.  Jim Ruck flied into center for a single, and then stole second on a wild pitch with John Huntoon at the plate.  The Braves were retired scoreless when Jim Ruck was tagged out attempting to steal third.

The Braves sent lefty Jim Ruck to the mound in the bottom of the first and Nick Stevens led off for the Indians with a grounder down the third base line for a double.  Stevens stole third with Jackson Tracy at bat, and then a missed pick-off throw allowed him to steal home and put the Indians on the scoreboard.   Tracy walked, and then stole second on a mishandled pitch to Rothenbuhler, who struck out.  Maximov scored Tracy with a long fly triple to left field, and Trevor Greenley was called out on strikes for two away.  Derek Snediker took Ruck to a full count before dropping a fly ball into the gap in center field to score Maximov.  Snediker stole second on a mishandled pitch to Wyatt Arens, but was stranded there when Arens struck out swinging to close the first inning, the score three to one, Indians. 

The Braves made up some lost ground in the top of the second inning.  John Huntoon, facing Rothenbuhler pitching for the Indians, led off with a grounder to Snediker at short stop and was thrown out at first.  Sean Kelly beat the throw to first for a single and gave the Braves a base runner.  Arnel Dedusic grounded into the outfield for a double, scoring Kelly.  Keoni Otenbriet grounded to the mound, hitting the pitcher and sending the ball towards third.  The play scored Dedusic and was good for a single.  K. Otenbriet stole second before David Walters took a base on balls, giving the Braves runners on first and second.  They were stranded on their respective bases when Jaydon Tobler struck out and Jaime Ramos-Esparza was retired as well.  Heading into the bottom of the second the Braves had narrowed the Indians lead to one run, Indians three, Braves two.

Jim Ruck continued to pitch for the Braves as Evan Park led off for the Indians.  Park struck out swinging, bringing up Billy Hommert, who singled on a line drive to right center.  A mishandled pitch to Casey Thiering made room for Hommert to steal second before Thiering was called out on strikes.  Hommert ended up stranded on second when Liam Bergstrom struck out swinging and the Indians were retired without being able to extend their lead.

The Braves pulled to even score with the Indians in the top of the third as Joe Ruck led off for the Braves against Rothenbuhler on the mound for the Indians.  Ruck grounded through the gap to left field, tying the score as a missed throw allowed him to turn a base hit into a home run.  The Indians tightened up their defense, and Mark Otenbriet's ground ball to Maximov at second led to him being thrown out at first.  Jim Ruck flied to left for a single, but he was forced out when Huntoon hit a ground ball to Maximov and the second baseman made the play.  Kelly was hit by a pitch, advancing Huntoon to second and giving the Braves runners on first and second.  A wild pitch to Dedusic allowed the runners to advance, but a grounder to second was handled by Maximov and the throw to Park at first was good for the force out, stranding the runners.

The bottom of the third inning saw the Indians at the top of the batting order and Jim Ruck again pitching for the Braves.  Stevens took Ruck to a full count before taking a base on balls and then stole second with Tracy batting.  A wild pitch to Tracy allowed Stevens to steal third, and a pitch in the dirt made room for Stevens to steal home for the second time in the game.  A full count pitch was outside the strike zone and Tracy took first base.  Rothenbuhler walked, and Maximov connected on a full count pitch to fly out to third, but the Indians were retired when Rothenbuhler failed to tag up and was called out.  The play headed into the fourth with the Indians having regained their slim one run lead, four to three.

Wyatt Arens took the mound for the Indians in the fourth, facing Keoni Otenbriet batting first for the Braves.  Otenbriet's single grounder to left field was followed by Walters' fly ball double to center.  Tobler and Arens dueled to a full count before Tobler was called out on strikes for one away.  Ramos-Esparza singled to right field, scoring Otenbriet and advanced Walters to third.  Ramos-Esparza stole second with Joe Ruck at the plate, and then Ruck doubled with a ground ball through the gap at short to score Walters and Ramos-Esparza.  Mark Otenbriet scored Ruck with a fly to center for a triple, and was held at third when Jim Ruck flied out to Snediker at short.  Huntoon grounded to Maximov and was thrown out when Park made the catch for the force play at first, sending the Braves to the field up by three heading into the bottom of the fourth.

The Braves, behind righty Joe Ruck. retired the Indians one, two, three in the bottom of the fourth.  Greenley struck out swinging, and Snediker followed, called out on strikes.  The inning ended with Arens striking out swinging and the score Braves seven, Indians four.

Kelly led off for the Braves in the fifth against Arens returning to pitch for the Indians.  Kelly went down swinging, and Dedusic followed him beating the throw to first on a grounder to second.  A pitch in the dirt to K. Otenbriet allowed Dedusic to steal second, and then he was advanced to third when Otenbriet singled.  A mishandled pitch allowed Otenbriet to steal second, and the he was batted in with Dedusic when Walters tripled with a fly ball to center.  Tobler struck out swinging for two away, and then Ramos-Esparza's bouncing grounder down the third base line scored Walters.  Ramos-Esparza advanced to third on Joe Ruck's double and then he and Ruck scored on Mark Otenbriet's ground ball to third, but the inning ended for the Braves as Otenbriet was thrown out trying to get back to first base.

The Indians had little success in the bottom of the fifth.  Park led off against Joe Ruck with a grounder to second and was thrown out at first.  Hommert flied to center for a double, but was held at second when Thiering's full count pop-up to third was caught for two away.  Liam Bergstrom struck out swinging and the Indians returned to the field trailing twelve runs to four.

Isaac Maximov came in to pitch the sixth for the Indians with Jim Ruck leading off for the Braves.  Ruck flied to left field for a single, and beat Maximov's throw to second when Huntoon grounded back to the mound.  The runners advanced on a pitch to Kelly before he walked to load the bases.  Dedusic singled to second and scored Ruck.  Keoni Otenbriet flied to second for a single, scoring two and Dedusic advanced to third.  Walters flied to center for a single, scoring Dedusic, and Tobler followed with a single on a grounder to third base.  Ramos-Esparza grounded to third, scoring Otenbriet, and Joe Ruck flied deep down the first base line scoring three but being tagged out trying to score himself.  Mark Otenbriet hit a grounder to first off Rothenbuhler's leg and beat the back-up throw for a single.  Jim Ruck singled on a grounder to short, and with runners on first and second Huntoon flied down the first base line for a triple, scoring two.  Kelly was hit by a pitch and went to first, then stole second on a pitch to Dedusic, who then flied to right and Bergstrom made the catch to retire the Braves. 

The Indians went to bat in the bottom of the sixth with a deficit of seventeen runs, needing a big inning to avoid a loss.  With Joe Ruck returning to the mound for the Braves, Stevens flied to center for a single.  Tracy flied out to first base, but not before Stevens stole second.  Stevens then stole third before Rothenbuhler popped up to the pitcher and the catch was made for two away.  Maximov grounded hard to center scoring Stevens, but any hope of a rally was squashed when Greenley popped up to the pitcher and the Indians were defeated twenty-four to five.

Fielding mistakes and well-placed hits really helped the Braves to run away with this game after a much closer five to four victory for the Indians in a game played early in the season.

Final Score Game 3:  Indians 3, Tigers 7

Sunday, April 9, 2006, 8:30 a.m., Minor Field

The visiting Alameda AAA Indians, playing shorthanded for the second time in as many games, were defeated by the AAA Tigers.

The Indians got off to a good start in the first inning, but were only able to bring in one run.  Trevor Greenley, batting first, struck out and was followed at the plate by Jackson Tracy, who was walked.  Micah Rothenbuhler went down swinging, bringing up Michael Copple.  Tracy stole second on a wild pitch before scoring on a double by Copple.  Evan Park closed out the Indians at bat when he struck out, leaving Copple stranded.

The Indians defense held well in the bottom of the first, supporting Isaac Maximov on the mound.  The Tigers lead off batter struck out on a called third strike.  Fong, next up for the opposition, singled, but was not advanced when Hausner struck out.  The clean-up batter, Robinson, grounded to second and was thrown out at first to end the inning with the Indians up by one.

The second inning went by quickly for both teams on the strength of good pitching and fielding.  The Tiger's Johnson struck out the first two Indians batters, Maximov and Casey Thiering, and walked Liam Bergstrom.  Greenley hit a ground ball back to the pitcher and was thrown out at first, and the Indians stranded one and weren't able to extend their lead.

Maximov continued on the mound for the Indians in the bottom of the second, striking out the Tiger's first batter.  Opperud got on base for the Tigers with a double, but was stranded when Klenovits grounded to Maximov and was thrown out at first, and then Johnson struck out to end the inning.  The score remained Indians one, Tigers zero.

The Indians had little more success in the third inning, scoring no runs and leaving two on base.  Jackson Tracy led off with a grounder to third but was thrown out at first.  Rothenbuhler got on base with a single to shallow left field and was advanced to third when Copple hit a double.  Park connected for a grounder but was thrown out at first, and Maximov struck out swinging to retire the side.

McGrath led off for the Tiger's against Maximov pitching for the Indians.  McGrath was able to connect for a single, but was held at first when Kayaian popped up to Greenley for the Tiger's first out.  McGrath was then thrown out trying to steal second before Gardner singled.  With Gilbert at bat, Gardner stole second, but a subsequent steal attempt found him thrown out at home and the Indians protected their lead.  At the end of three it was Indians one, Tigers none.

In the fourth inning the Indians generated a little more offensive pressure.  The Tiger's pitcher, Hausner, walked Thiering to start the inning.  Bergstrom was called out on strikes before Hausner walked Greenley to put two men on for the Indians.  Tracy was called out on strikes, but Rothenbuhler singled to put Thiering into scoring position and load the bases.  Copple grounded to short, however, and the Tigers made the force play at third to hold the Indians scoreless.

Greenley took the mound for the Indians in the bottom of the fourth.  The Tiger's lead off batter, Gilbert, was good for a double.  Fong followed him with a single and Gilbert advanced to third.  A wild pitch to Hausner allowed Gilbert to steal home, tying the game at one all.  Hausner gained a base on balls, and was thrown out in a well played rundown trying to steal, but Fong stole home from third to give the Tigers the lead.  Robinson walked, then stole second base and eventually third and the Tiger's Taylor was walked as well.  Taylor stole second during Opperud's at bat, but was held on base with Robinson when Opperud flied out to Greenley.  The next batter, Klenovits, walked to load the bases and the Tigers added to their score when Johnson's walk brought Robinson home. Greenley struck out McGrath to end the inning with the Tigers taking the lead three runs to one.

Hausner continued pitching for the Tigers in the fifth, and the Indians were held scoreless.  Park went down swinging to start the inning and Maximov took first on balls.  Maximov stole second and then advanced to third when Thiering grounded out to first.  Bergstrom went down swinging; leaving Maximov stranded and the side was retired without scoring.

The Indians troubles continued in the bottom of the fifth.  Greenley pitched for the Indians and Kayaian led off with a single.  Gardner walked, but not before Kayaian advanced to third on a pair of steals.  With Gilbert at bat Gardner stole second, and Kayaian scored when Gilbert grounded out to first.  Gardner then stole third and scored when Fong singled.  Hausner came to the plate, and Fong stole second, then on a missed throw stole third and home.  Hausner walked and the Tigers were up six to one with one man on.  The Indians elected to make a pitching change and Tracy came in to relieve Greenley.  Hausner stole home on a wild pitch to Robinson, who then struck out for two away.  Taylor walked and then stole second, but was stranded when Opperud flied out to Tracy .  The inning was over with the Tigers up seven to one.

The Tigers brought a fresh arm in Gilbert to pitch the sixth.  Greenley led off for the Indians and gained a base on balls.  Tracy struck out but Greenley stole second and advanced to third when Rothenbuhler singled.  Copple came to the plate for the Indians and Rothenbuhler stole second and then third when Greenley stole home on a wild pitch.  Copple walked to make it a runner on first and third.  Park was thrown out at first for the Indians second out but scored Rothenbuhler from third.  Copple stole third to gain scoring position but Maximov went down swinging and the Indians rally fell short.

Three games into the season the Indians record stands at one win and two losses.  A couple rough innings put this one where a late rally couldn't save it, but the Indians made a good effort throughout and never gave up.

Game recap written by J. Michael Bergstrom.  All rights reserved.