Andre Chiefs

By Bruce Tillman
Malden, MA- Mike Gedman drilled a three-run homer, and Juan Portes added a solo blast ,when the Chiefs came up with a four run sixth inning to rally past the Mooney Dental Tanners 5-3 on Monday night at Maplewood. For the Chiefs, it was their seventh straight win and the ninth in ten games.

Mother Nature cooperated and provided just enough of a window between torrential downpours for the Tanners and Chiefs to get the game in on the artificial surface. Heavy showers hit the area just prior to game time and again shortly after the last pitch was thrown.

Left-handers Dave Maestri and Tim Dunphy both threw shutout ball over the first three innings.

Dunphy continued the scoreless streak into the top of the fourth and the Chiefs finally broke through and took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the inning.  Peter Copa drove home Johnny Welch, who had doubled, with a line single to left.

The Tanners came right back and took a 2-1 lead in the top of the fifth. Bobby Campbell led off with a single up the middle and Mike Fernandes bunted him to second. Ryson Porter then singled to right putting runners on the corners with one out. Corey O’Neil then hit a grounder that Welch had to range to his left on, looked home, but then fired wide of Copa at first, allowing Campbell to score the tying run. When Chris Brown lifted a sacrifice fly to right, the Tanners had a 2-1 lead.

The Chiefs threatened to tie the game in the bottom of the fifth. Barbati dropped a one out bunt single and Nate Witkowski flew to deep right-center for the second out. Mike Burgoyne then singled, sending Barbati to second. Tanners’ shortstop Chris Ruocco then turned in the defensive play of the night when he made a diving stop of Paul Yanakopoulos’ grounder and tossed to second in time to force Burgoyne.

In the top of the sixth, Jake Cintolo singled with one out but was gunned out by Yanakopoulos trying to steal second.

Portes led off the bottom of the sixth and hit his third homer of the season to centerfield tying the game up at 2-2. Welch followed with a single. Paul Pollano came out of the bullpen and pinch-hitter Tony Serino’s attempted sacrifice bunt was too strong, forcing Welch at second. With Copa at the plate, Pollano uncorked a wild pitch that sent Serino to second. With first base open, the Tanners chose to intentionally walk Copa. Gedman was next and he drilled a Pollano pitch deep over the right-centerfield wall giving the Chiefs a 5-2 lead.

The Tanners didn’t go quietly in the top of the seventh. Will rain falling again, Campbell lined a double into the left-centerfield gap and scored on Alec Leblanc’s single to account for the 5-3 final.

With the win, Dunphy raised his record to 5-1 on the year. The veteran scattered ten hits, struck out one, and didn’t walk a batter. He needed 99 pitches in the complete game effort.

Maestri took the loss and fell to 0-4.

The Chiefs are off on Tuesday and hit the road on Wednesday to meet the Watertown Reds at Victory Field in a 7:45 PM start.