Announcement
SPR 2010---CHAMOS SNARES 4TH, BLADES WIN THEIR FIRST
CHAMOS ARE CHAMPS AGAIN
When their opponents make mistakes, good teams pounce on them. That’s what happened in the 18AAA title game at Santaluces Sunday, August 29. The Miller Lite Chamos scored four unearned runs in the last two innings to turn back the regular season champion, top seeded South Florida Thunder 6-2.
With the score tied at 2-2 in the top of the 8th and after a short rain delay, second baseman Carlos Dominguez reached safely on an overthrow by third baseman Eric Morales. Shadi Disla laid down a sacrifice bunt and pitcher Manny Olivera fired it over the head of first baseman Billy Brescia, putting two runners on. Catcher Harving Lejarazo blooped a single to right to score Dominguez, and second baseman Louie Napoleon’s relay went past third to score Disla. Manager Dave Machado’s suicide squeeze scored courtesy runner Willie Martinez.
Chamos got it’s final run in the 9th. A throwing error by Morales allowed Victor Prieto to reach second base. Carlos Pupo’s single scored Prieto to make it 6-2. Chamos took a 1-0 lead in the first when Santos Adames drew a walk, went to third on Prieto’s single and scored on a wild pitch by Manny Olivera.
The Thunder tied it on Rob Wiley’s bases loaded sacrifice fly, scoring Max Johnson, who had opened the inning with a single. A sacrifice fly by Willie Martinez with the bases full in the fourth inning had scored Prieto to make it 2-1 in favor of Chamos. The Thunder came right back in the bottom of the inning with an unearned run off Chamos’ starter Ronal (Cuba) Diaz. After Wiley reached on an error by second baseman Dominguez to load ’em up, Chamos failed to turn a double play on a grounder to short by Ryan McDonald, scoring Morales who has singled, followed by a single by Donnie Fitzgerald.
Prieto, who pitched hitless ball with four strikeouts over the last 2 2/3 innings to get the victory, was named the game’s Most Valuable Player. He was a major part of the offense as well, getting two hits and scoring twice. The loss went to Olivera who left with a run in and two men on in the 9th in fsvor of Chasse, who got the last three outs, two on a double play line drive to third base and throw to second. Prieto, Eric Sabido and Lejarazo all had two hits each and Pupo had one. Johnson had two of the Thunder’s seven hits. Wiley had a double, with Brescia, Brian Fitzsimmons, Donnie Fitzgerald and Morales all getting singles.
It was the fourth 18AAA championship and second straight for Chamos, whose roster is loaded with players of Venezuelan descent.
FIRST YEAR BLADES TAKE AA TITLE MARATHON OVER SUGAR KINGS
The scene could have been a Cuban League game in Havana. In the wildest, longest and noisiest championship game in the league’s 19-year history, the first year Blades Barber Shop outlasted the two time league champion Sugar Kings in 13 innings in a four hour, five minute marathon.
Some of the Blades’ players had formerly played with the Sugar Kings and clearly there was some animosity between the two. There was some taunting, trash talking and finger pointing by some of the players. Yet the Cuban and Latin music from the sound system set up by the teams, and a thunderstorm that enveloped the ball fields, yet never arrived, created a festive atmosphere. . In addition to the driving, pulsating music, the constant clanging of cowbells and blaring of air horns, banging and stomping on the steel stands created a cacaphony pierced the quietitude of most Sunday mornings in Lantana.
Despite the din, it turned out to be quite a ball game. With the contest tied at 12-12, the Blades finally won it by collecting three runs in the top of the 13th inning. Run scoring singles by Yasmany Gimenez and player-manager Yordany Martinez, and Jesus Ferrer’s third sacrifice fly of the game finally won it for the Blades against their archrivals. It shouldn’t have gone that far.
The Blades led 12-7 going to the 8th inning, but the Sugar Kings scored three times off reliever Angel Gonzalez on Jordan Gazquez’ two run double and a single by catcher Joe Perez, then tied it in the 9th. Nestor Sanjurjo, playing essentially on one leg, the result of an ankle injury during a rundown, bounced a two run single off Blades’ closer Mario Perez, one of his five hits, to send the game into extra innings.
The Sugar Kings got three in the first on an RBI hit by Sanjurjo and a two-run triple by Yandri Cabrera. The Blades tied it in the third on Gonzalez’ two run triple and a single by Mario Perez. In the bottom of the third, Cabrera doubled in two more, only to have the Blades tie it on a two run blast to left by Yosdel Rodriguez. The Blades took a 6-5 lead in the next inning on sacrifice fly by Ferrer, but the Sugar Kings regained the lead at 7-6 on a double by pinch hitter Junior Gazquez.
The Blades scored five in the 7th to on a 2-run double by Rodriguez, two run single by Martinez and another sac.fly by Ferrer. They added one more in the 8th. Rodriguez’ three hits, four RBIs earned him the game’s MVP award. Sanjurjo led all hitters with five hits, three RBIs. Mario Perez, got the win over Luis Santana Jr, both in relief. Perez pitched five, Santana Jr. went six and one third.
