West Allis NATIONALS Baseball

The Nationals won't have an opportunity to atone for Wednesday's difficult 7-6 loss to Sheboygan in the opening game of the Wisconsin Class A State Baseball Championship Tournament.   Rain in West Bend and Sheboygan forced the postponement all four games scheduled for Friday, including the Nats game scheduled for 9pm vs West Bend.

With only Saturday and Sunday remaining to complete the tournament at Sheboygan, it was decided that the double elimination tournament be compressed, knocking out the four teams that lost Wednesday night and proceeding forward with the four teams that won.

The revised schedule has Sheboygan playing Kenosha at 1130 on Sat and Pewaukee playing Sussex at 2pm.   The losers of those games play at 430pm.  Loser is eliminated.  The winners of early Sat games play at 7pm.

On Sunday the winner of the 430pm Sat game plays the loser of the 7pm Sat game at noon.  Loser of that game is eliminated.    The two remaining teams then play for the championship at 230pm.   A second game will be played at 5pm, if necessary.

The Nationals will conclude the 2017 season with a team get together on Sunday August 6 and begin looking toward their 43rd season in 2018.

Congratulations to the following Nationals on being nominated for All Wisconsin State League Honors:

Pitcher - Nick McLees

Catcher - Adam Cibulka 

2B - Brian Huntzinger

Utility - Chase Scharnek 

Outfield - Jonah Meidl

Newcomer/Rookie of the Year- Evan Spry 

Please see attached ballot for all nominees.

Statements uttered after DePere's dismantling of the Nats Saturday afternoon at Westwood Park in DePere.

"I am horrible." - Huntz

"I slept two hours, drove two hours, waited two hours, batted two times, and made 2 outs and we lost twice.  It was a day for the #2's."  - CPC/CP14/not 206.

"We blew.  But we showed up.  Can that guy play short?"  - anonymous confidence sandwich.

"My parents will be here and they don't want to see a bunch of losers."  (Editor's note - like the Nationals, they weren't able to find the location of the field or witness any activities normally associated with baseball.)

"I was laughing.  Then, I was asleep."  - Drew

"I took two curve ball strikes then swung at a third out of the zone.  That usually doesn't work well" - Noah/Carp  

"Stop looking at me and go back to the B position."   KKK just prior to his ejection.

"Where's Johnny?  He's had three innings to pack up after being pulled."   Mr. Uninveral   (Editor's note - It's unclear if Johnny was running poles out of penance, to eliminate lactic acid, or to burn off the brats he wolfed down moments before his start on the bump.) 

"Do we play tomorrow?"  D1, the younger.   (Editor's note - mercifully, no.  Kewaskum made sure of that against Neosho) 

"There are only 6 beers left; we need to make a stop at the next exit." Tom (name has been changed to protect the innocent.)

Haiku-

We drove to DePere/The Dodgers played great baseball/High Life heals all wounds.

On Friday night in Hartford, Johnny Keane doubled with one out in the 5th inning to break up an 8 strikeout, perfect game performance by the Rockets starting pitcher and spark the to-that-point challenged offense. Reports that the lineup was broken were debunked, despite a lineup card covered with Pulera dirt on the dugout floor.

Down 3-1 after some self-inflicted wounds, the squad headed to the bottom of the sixth with hopes of building on their breakthru fifth.   With one out, Jonah Meidl singled to hole at short and promptly stole second.   He advanced to third on a wild pitch.   With two down, Brian Huntzinger drew a walk leading to some drama from Evan Spry.   Spry drove a ball to deep left center that was narrowly missed by the left fielder.   When the dust settled, two runs had been plated and Spry was at third with a two out triple.   The Tentoni-quiet Spry was later overhead mumbling, "not having D3 Johnny Keane vulture my RBI's again."    

With Keane up next and an opportunity to put the Nats ahead, Spry gutted him by scoring from third on a passed ball, putting the Nats up 4-3.     In true Nattie fashion, though, Keane followed with a double down the left field line to keep the inning alive.   Also in true Nattie fashion, he was left stranded to end the inning.

Headed back out in the top of the seventh, starter Nick McLees reminded his skipper that players make the lineup (now fixed) and told him he wasn't coming out.   McLees made good on his word, retiring the Rockets on 5 pitches (with some defensive magic from teammate, not friend, Dan Scallon who had gutted McLees earlier in the game on a "double" to left that went on to score.) 

The Nats await their tournament destiny today.   Neosho plays twice and the Nats need them to win both games and put some runs on the board to create a three way tie in Pool D.   That scenario would leave Kewaskum, Neosho, and the Natties with 2-1 records and invoke tie breaker C - total runs allowed.   The Nats allowed only 4 runs in their three tournament games.   Kewaskum, thus far, has allowed 0 runs in two games.

The Nats won't be sitting on their hands and watching that action, however.   They are back on the road today for a 3pm Wisconsin State League DH vs the DePere Dodgers in DePere, Wi.  Early Vegas odds are that they'll be banished to the tunnels for BP, but the skipper has some insider information that could change that.  

Those with feelings, sensitivies or a weak heart should probably sit near the Dodgers' dugout. 

Johnny Keane's bases clearing triple broke open a scoreless game in the sixth and the Nationals went on to beat the Milwaukee Beavers 5-0.   Chase Scharnek vultured his third win of the season in relief, striking out 4 in 2 innings.

Fate wasn't so kind in game two.  Kewaskum scored the game's only run on a seventh inning double play ball and held on to defeat the Nats 1-0.   The Nats had runners on in every inning but the second but could get timely hits.

The Nats stand at 1-1 in pool play.   Tonight the squad plays Neosho in Hartford.  A victory keeps hopes alive for advancing to the Final Four on Sunday in West Bend.