Chappaqua Clippers

   Some victories become legendary. The Clippers miracle comeback to defeat the Greenwich Dodgers in 12 innings became an instant classic. The shorthanded Clips overcame brutal heat and controversial calls during the rollercoaster 10-9 victory on June 3, 2003, at Greenwich High School.

   Down to their last out, the Clips rallied to tie the score with two outs in the bottom of the 9th on a two-run single by Todd Matthias with the bases loaded. Then Todd completed the comeback with a homer to leadoff the 12th. Amazingly, Todd planned to bunt for a hit, but he was talked out it by Clips player-manager Tom Dixon.

   The Clips not only rallied three times with the 19-hit attack against the Dodgers pitching ace Sean Darling, they overcame three umpire rulings that cost them six runs on defense and at least one on offense. Yet the skeleton crew hung together and battled down to the final out after escaping major Dodgers threats in the 9th and 11th innings.

   “This was a total team victory,” Tom said. “Everyone contributed, and we stayed upbeat while picking each other up. We could have allowed the umpires to get us down. But all of the players showed their mental toughness and teamwork.”

   The disputes centered on the home plate ump’s decision to change the ground rules that both teams agreed upon before the game. The foul territory to the left of the first base dugout and 10 feet in front of the fence down the right field line was considered in play.

   But a popup caught by Clips first baseman Howard Parks in that location was ruled a dead ball by Miguel the ump in the bottom of the 3rd. Instead of the third out, the Dodgers batter doubled in a run to cut the Clips lead to 2-1. Miguel the home plate ump decided that the dead ball territory now would be determined by an invisible line extending from the edge of the dugout down to the outfield fence.

   After a scoreless first two innings, the Clips put up a two spot in the top of the 3rd. Erik Anderson drove in the first run on a single that also brought home Mike McGivney after an error by the Dodgers center fielder. While the Dodgers notched two in the 5th to take a 3-2 lead, the Clips countered with two in the top of the 6th thanks to a two-run double by Darren Adler.

   The ump struck again in the bottom of the 6th, however. With the Clips leading 4-3, the Dodgers capitalized thanks to an extra out. So after Parks caught another pop up that should have been an out, six runs were able to cross before the frame mercifully ended.

   The Clips now faced a 9-4 deficit with three innings to go. Yet they scored five runs in those final frames despite some setbacks while starting pitcher Mark Allegra shut down the Dodgers. After notching one run in the 7th on a run-scoring single by Tony Carione to bring home Larry McGivney who had walked, the rally ended when a line-out to first resulted in a double play with runners on first and second.

   A two-out rally produced two runs in the 8th to trim the gap to 9-7. Jerry Ronaghan doubled home Tom, who had singled, and Jerry scored following Mike’s third single of the game. But the Clips lost another run because the inning ended due to another bizarre call by the home plate ump. With runners on first and third and two outs, Mike was called for runner’s interference while standing on second base, even though he is allowed to stand there. Mike’s ejection left the Clips with nine players, some of whom coped with injuries. 

   Undaunted, the Clips managed to tie the game after almost blowing a bases-loaded opportunity with none out. Two consecutive batters struck out before Todd smacked the opposite field single to left field to drive in the two runs and knot the score at 9-9.

   The extra innings provided extra drama as the heat worsened the players' fatigue. Mark pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the 9th thanks to two strike outs. Jerry came out of the bullpen to prevent the Dodgers from pushing across the winning run in the 11th. With runners at the corners and one out, the Dodgers hot a shot to third. Howard made a nice play to throw out the runner at home before the next batter flew out. Howard had moved from first base during the pitching change and was playing the hot corner for the first time in five seasons.

   The tension extended down to the final pitch of the game. With the Clips clinging to the 10-9 lead, the Dodgers put runners on first and second with two outs. But Jerry induced the next batter to hit a high chopper to shortstop. Once Darren's throw settled safely into Tom’s glove and he stepped on second base to end the wild contest, all of the Clippers celebrated their achievement.

   While Mark struggled at times, his 10-inning gutty performance gave the Clips the chance to rally. Mark struck out 11 and only allowed 10 hits. Jerry picked up the win with the two innings of scoreless relief. Jerry also smacked three hits and drove in a run with the double.

   Erik, Mike, and Tony each garnered three hits, while Darren ended up with two base knocks, including the double, and two RBI. Erik and Tony also walked twice, and Larry singled and walked twice.