Andre Chiefs

Medford, MA- With all due respect to Reds righty Karl Alexander, who threw a tidy five hit shutout gem, the Chiefs turned in another anemic offensive performance that led to a 2-0 defeat at Huskins Field on Saturday afternoon. It was the third time the locals were shutout in their last five games as they have only scored three times over that same five game time frame.

The lineup shuffling continued as the once potent Chiefs attack struggles to find some offensive support for its still powerful pitching staff. They are minus no less than six starters from the opening day lineup and no less than eight regulars from last season’s championship finalists.

Currently out of the lineup are Mike Baillargeon, who signed professionally with the Can-Am League, Jeff Bercume who signed with the Oakland A’s, Dario Pizzano who signed with the North Shore Shore Navigators, Hal Landers who signed with Front Royal Cardinals, Brendan Pyburn who has been out with injuries for six weeks, Peter Copa who is done for the season after undergoing surgery last Monday and Brain Macrina who is still out with a nagging hamstring problem. Although still strong, the pitching staff has not avoided the injury bug or the defection scenario with Dan Lozeau (elbow), Mike DiCato (shoulder) and Isaac Oakley (hamstring) out with injuries to go along with Eric Perrault (signed with North Adams Steeplecats) and Ryan O’Rourke (signed with the Minnesota Twins) gone from the opening day roster.

Overcoming two, three, four or even five injuries or defections certainly seemed possible with the depth and talent of this edition of the Chiefs over the first half of the 2010 season. But when the numbers start to approach the ten, eleven and twelve level, the odds of overcoming that scenario becomes increasingly insurmountable.

It was the same old story on Saturday, just as every other game over the last two weeks, when the Chiefs got another outstanding pitching performance, this time from Jared Freni, but just could not muster any offensive support. Alexander (2-3) allowed just five hits and cruised to a complete game shutout win. The Reds won the game in the top of the seventh when pinch-hitter Brain Casey led off with a single. Leadoff man Sam Sager followed with another single to left. Veteran Luke Begley then attempted a sacrifice bunt which first baseman Matt Anderson fielded and threw Casey out at third. Lefty Tim Dunphy then replaced Freni, who had thrown 102 pitches, he and got Chris Burke to pop out. Begley stole second and with the count 2-2, Sean Callahan delivered a check swing single to left, scoring both Sager and Begley, giving the Reds the win.

Alexander (2-3) from Bates College, struck out five and did not issue a walk. Freni (3-2), allowed six hits and struck out seven in his 6.1 innings of work.

"Obviously we are struggling to find some consisent offense", said Chiefs manager Chuck Andre. "Despite the injuries and the signings, which by the way, we are pleased because its shows the caliber of player this franchise attracts, we still have some serious veteran bats in this lineup that we need to step up and carry us into the playoffs", he added.

The Chiefs will attempt to rebound on Sunday when they send staff ace Dylan Ellis (6-1) to the hill against the Merchants at Walsh Field in Wakefield in a 5:30 PM start. -B.Tilman

East Boston, MA- Southpaw Kevin Gilchrist of Tufts University turned in a lights out, four inning, one hit relief performance as the undermanned Chiefs shutout the Testa Corp. Bombers 2-0 at East Boston Stadium on Tuesday night.

Gilchrist came on to begin the fourth inning for Chiefs starter Jared Freni with the game tied at 0-0 and came up huge, allowing only an infield single, as he retired 12 of the 13 batters he faced.  

Freni and Bombers hard luck loser Glen Misho traded zeros over the first three frames. Freni struck out six batters but was not at his sharpest as he walked two, allowed four singles and hit two batters.

The Chiefs threatened to score in the top of the first inning. After Misho struck out Bob McCarthy and got Paul Yanakopulos to ground out, Tim Dempsey reached on an infield error and stole second. Rookie Justin Sencabaugh then hit an infield single to deep shortstop to put runners on the corners with two out. With Mike Andre at the plate, Misho uncorked a wild pitch and Dempsey tried to score but was tagged out on a nice recovery by catcher Derek Sturkel.

Freni struck out Mark O’Flynn and Pete John to open the bottom of the first before allowing consecutive singles to Josh Klimkiewicz and the red hot Mike Addesa. The count went full on Stan DeMartinis and, with the runners in motion a tad early, Freni stepped off the rubber and caught Klimkiewicz going to third with Andre applying the tag.

Misho got the Chiefs 1-2-3 in the second (Andre flyout, Anderson and Boleski groundouts).

The Bombers missed a huge scoring opportunity in the bottom of the second inning when Freni pitched out of a bases loaded, nobody out fix. DeMartinis got things started when he led off the inning with a single. Freni hit Anthony Serino with a pitch and walked Lamarre Rey to fill the bases. Freni reached back and came up big, striking out Chris Smart and Sturkel for the first two outs, before escaping the jam when he got O’Flynn to fly to Sencabaugh in shallow left.

Misho stayed tough in the top of the third, striking out Eric Rosenberg and getting Mike Barbati on a groundout to Klimkiewicz at first, before walking McCarthy. The game moved to the bottom of the third when Misho got Yanakopulos to ground sharply to Addesa at third.

The Bombers kept the pressure on in the bottom of the third but Freni again denied them, pitching out of another bases loaded predicament. Freni hit John with a fastball and Klimkiewicz followed with a single. He then recorded another huge strikeout, getting the dangerous Addesa swinging. DeMartinis followed and drew a base on balls to load the bases with one out. Freni got the second large strikeout of the inning, and his sixth of the night, when he K’d Serino. Still not out of the inning, he kept it a scoreless game when he got Rey to ground to Barbati at second.

Misho again got the Chiefs in order in the fourth when Dempsey grounded out, Sencabaugh struck out and Andre flew out.

Gilchrist came out of the bullpen to start the bottom of the fourth and immediately seized control of the game retiring the Bombers in order, including a strikeout of Sturkel.

The Chiefs took advantage of a little Misho wildness and played some small ball to score the game’s only runs in the top of the fifth. Anderson drew a full count walk and Boleski was hit by a pitch while attempting to sacrifice, putting runners at first and second with no outs. Rosenberg then laid down a text book sacrifice bunt, moving the runners to second and third with one away. Barbati followed and hit a sharp grounder to the drawn in Klimkiewicz at first for the second out with the runners forced to hold. McCarthy was next and he just beat out an infield single on a bang-bang play at first, allowing Anderson to score the game’s first run. Yanakopulos followed with a line RBI single to center scoring Boleski with the second run. Misho averted further trouble when he struck out Dempsey swinging to end the inning.

In the bottom of the fifth, Gilchrist got John to ground to Yanakopulos at shortstop, struck out Klimkiewicz, and got Addesa to fly to Sencabaugh, as he worked his second straight 1-2-3 frame.  Misho returned the favor and set the Chiefs down in order in the top of the sixth.

Gilchrist stayed poised and perfect in the sixth, striking out DeMartinis and Serino both looking for the first two outs before Rey flew out to left, the ninth consecutive batter he retired.

With two outs in the top of the seventh, the Chiefs got a runner in scoring position when Barbati drew a walk and went to second on a wild pitch. Misho sent the game into the home half of the seventh at 2-0 when McCarthy grounded out to end the inning.

The Bombers got their first hit off Gilchrist to open the seventh. Smart hit a hard grounder over the third base bag which Andre dove and came up with, but the throw from his knees was half a step late. Unfazed, Gilchrist bore down and got Sturkel on fly to Boleski in right, O’Flynn on a grounder to Yanakopulos at short and ended things when he got John to fly to Dempsey in center.

Gilchrist (2-0) of Medford, MA, picked up the win and combined with Freni, his fellow Malden Cathoilc alum, to strikeout ten batters.

Misho (3-1) of Cathoilc Memorial and UMass-Amherst, allowed just three hits, struck out five and walked three, while suffering his first ICL defeat.

Medford, MA- The mastery of Matt Karis combined with some pretty lousy defense led to a 5-1 win for the Lexington Blue Sox at Tufts University on Thursday night.

Chiefs starter Tim Dunphy was the principal victim of the non-support, as his mates made a season high four errors behind him. The miscues led to all four runs charged to him being unearned.

After a scoreless first inning the Chiefs handed the Blue Sox a 2-0 lead in the second. Dan Graham led off and reached on an error by Peter Copa at second. Former Suffolk star Nick Martinho drew a full count walk and Matt McEvoy moved both runners up to second and third with a sacrifice bunt. With the Chiefs infield drawn in, Dunphy got Eric Poling to line out to Tony Deshler at shortstop for the second out. Deshler then kicked Ryan Duff’s apparent inning ending grounder allowing Graham to score the first run. Eckerd’s Dan Capra followed with a single to right scoring Martinho with run number two. Dunphy ended the inning when he got Pete Frates to ground to Copa.

Mike Gedman started the Chiefs second with a single but was quickly erased when Justin Crisafulli hit into a 6-4-3 doubleplay.

The only baserunner either Dunphy or Karis would allow over the next two innings would be a Copa two out single in the bottom of the fourth.

The Blue Sox took advantage of more sloppy defense and doubled their lead to 4-0 in the top of the fifth inning. After Duff grounded out trouble began when Deshler threw Capra’s routine grounder wide of first. Frates followed with a single that sent Capra to third. Ross Curley was next and he hit a RBI sacrifice fly to rightfield, that Gedman misplayed for an error. The lead went to 4-0 on Graham’s fielder’s choice.

Matt Anderson drew a two out walk in the bottom of the fifth but Karis sent the game into the sixth when he got rookie pinch-hitter Paul Yanakopulos, who was hitting for Deshler, to line out to Duff at shortstop.

Jeff DeCarlo (photo left) came on for Dunphy and worked a scoreless sixth and the Chiefs wasted a double from Tim Dempsey in the bottom of the inning.

The Sox got their fifth run in the seventh off Pat O’Donnell. After striking out Frates to start the inning, Curley doubled and Hewett singled. Tufts teammate Kevin Gilchrist came on to face Graham. Curley scored when the Chiefs did not convert the back end of a 6-4-3 doubleplay.

The Chiefs averted the shutout in the bottom of the seventh when Mike Andre doubled home Gedman who had singled.

Dunphy worked five innings and allowed just two hits while striking out a couple.Karis, now 5-0, scattered six hits and struck out four. The righty has allowed just two runs in 35.0 innings this season.

Both the Chiefs and Blue Sox are back in action on Friday. The Chiefs travel to Ferullo Field in Woburn to meet the Mooney Tanners and the Sox host the Testa Corp. Bombers in Lexington. Both games start at 8:00 PM.

Watertown, MA- Hits and runs were at a premium as the Chiefs and Watertown Reds played a to a scoreless nine inning tie at Victory Field on Wednesday night.

Reds right-hander Brendan Casey and Chiefs lefty Dylan Ellis hooked up in an old fashioned pitcher’s duel with neither allowing a run. Casey worked the first 7.1 innings before giving way to reliever Charlie DeFrancesco. Ellis went the nine inning route for the Chiefs.Casey allowed five hits and struck out seven batters. DeFrancesco did not allow a hit and struck out a batter in his 1.2 innings. Ellis scattered four hits, walked two, hit a batter, and struck out eight.

Both teams had opportunities to score but could not break through. For the Reds, they got two men on in the second inning (Steve Busby single, Nate Izzo walk) but Ellis escaped when Jay Olson hit into a 6-4-3 doubleplay. The Reds got Izzo to third with one out in the fifth when he singled, stole second, and went to third when catcher Bob McCarthy’s throw went into centerfield. Ellis struck out both Olson and Sean Callahan to end the threat. Izzo was at the center of another Reds threat in the bottom of the eighth when he singled and was sacrificed to second by Olson. The Chiefs intentionally walked Callahan before Elllis struck out Dan Chaisson. Sam Sager then lined a bullet to Matt Boleski in left to end the inning.

The Chiefs also had some scoring opportunities. In the fourth inning, Justin Crisafulli drew a leadoff walk and Mike Andre sacrificed him to second. Tony Deshler then singled to center with Crisafulli stopping at third. Matt Boleski hit a grounder to third and the throw home was low, allowing Crisafulli to scamper back to third to load the bases. Casey then struck out Mike Barbati and McCarthy in succession to keep the game scoreless. In the fifth, Copa singled and went to second on Mike Gedman’s (pictured left) infield grounder. Bryan Evans made a nice diving catch of a Crisafulli liner to right that ended the inning and kept it at 0-0. An inning later in the sixth, pinch-hitter Justin Sencabaugh hit the best ball of the night, a long fly to left, that was grabbed on a nice running catch by Chris Burke. In the eighth, Gedman lined out to short, Crisafulli singled and Andre drew a walk. DeFrancesco got Deshler to bounce into a 6-4-3 doubleplay to end that chance. In the ninth, Sencabaugh reached on an error but DeFrancesco got McCarthy to bounce into the second consecutive inning ending doubleplay.

The Chiefs are back in action on Thursday when they host the Lexington Blue Sox at Tufts University at 6:00 PM. The Reds host the Medford Americans on Friday at Victory Field at 8:00 PM.   

Medford, MA- Bryant University right-hander Sean McNiff spun a complete game five-hit shutout as the Americans blanked the Chiefs 5-0 at Playstead Park on Sunday. The victory was the Americans fifth straight, the longest current winning streak in the ICL.

The first two and one half innings of the game were rapidly played as the Chiefs Mike DiCato and McNiff were both cruising right along. A leadoff single by Bob McCarthy, who was promptly erased on a 4-6-3 off the bat of Tim Dempsey, and a second inning walk to Justin Crisafulli were the only base runners that McNiff allowed in the first three frames.

DiCato was perfect through the first two innings before running into trouble in the bottom of the third. Joe Sheehan got things going in the Americans’ third with a leadoff single up the middle. P.J. Fulton sacrificed him to second and Mike Burgoyne followed with a double into the left field corner scoring Sheehan and giving the Americans their first run. Mark Addesa was next and he dropped a perfect bunt between first and the mound for to put runners on the corners. K.C. McCarthy then singled to right scoring Burgoyne to make it 2-0. Charlie Pagliarulo followed with a single to right-center scoring Adessa and jumping the lead to 3-0. DiCato kept the Chiefs in the ballgame and got out of further trouble when he got Mike DelPonte to ground into a 3-6-1 doubleplay.

Paul Yanakopulos led off the fourth with his first career ICL hit but he was erased when Dempsey hit into his second consecutive 4-6-3 doubleplay. Peter Copa then dropped a bloop single into rightfield but McNiff ended the inning when he got Mike Gedman to fly to Burgoyne in center.

DiCato escaped a two on, nobody out, jam in the bottom of the fourth and the Chiefs got a base runner in the top of the fifth when Mike Andre reached on an infield error.

The Americans increased their lead to 4-0 in the bottom of the fifth. Addesa drew a leadoff walk and went to second on a fielder’s choice. Pagliarulo was intentionally walked and DelPonte grounded out to Yankakopulos at short who threw to third forcing Addesa for out number two. Mike Kalfopoulos then singled to left-center scoring Pagliarulo from second, making it a 4-0 game.

The Chiefs wasted a leadoff double from McCarthy in the sixth when McNiff got Yanakopulos on a grounder, struck out Dempsey and got Copa on a fly to right.

Tufts right-hander Pat O’Donnell replaced DiCato on the mound for the Chiefs to begin the bottom of the sixth and Sheehan greeted him \with a solo bomb to center, giving the Americans a 5-0 lead.

The Chiefs loaded the bases in the seventh but could not break into the scoring column. Gedman led off with a single, Crisafulli flew out, Andre was hit by a pitch, Anderson grounded out and Justin Sencabaugh reached on an error. McNiff ended things, and preserved his shutout, when he got McCarthy to ground to Addesa at short.

McNiff (3-3), scattered five hits, struck out three, walked one and hit a batter. DiCato (4-1) suffered his first loss of the season. The righty surrendered six hits (five in the three run third inning) struck out two and walked three in his five innings of work.

With the loss the Chiefs fall to 15-6-2 on the year while the Americans climb over the .500 mark to 11-10-1.

The Chiefs are off until Wednesday when they travel to Watertown’s Victory Field to meet the Reds in an early 6:00 PM start. The Americans are back in action on Tuesday when they head to East Boston Stadium, in search of their sixth straight win, against the Testa Corp. Bombers at 8:00 PM.