In his first game in over ten months, Will played some great baseball, though his Sandy Plains Prowlers dropped both games to the East Cobb Dodgers Saturday night.
The first four Prowlers scored to open the bottom of the first. Audie doubled in Durham, then Will lined a 3-2 single up the middle. With runners on the corners Will stole second, sliding in headfirst. The catcher’s throw bounded into centerfield, allowing Audie to score and Will a second headfirst slide on one play…this time into third. Mitch’s double down the leftfield line plated Will, and Ryan later singled home Mitch.
After former teammate TK reached first, the Prowlers pulled a sweet double play in the third. First-baseman Mitch fielder a chopper down the line, stepped on the bag, and wheeled and threw to shortstop Will covering the bag. With the runner in the baseline, the throw was high. Will reached up and caught the ball, and quickly swiped a tag down on the sliding TK for the double play. After a walk the runner was picked off. Pitcher Michael threw to Will, who chased the runner back to first. Mitch was able to apply the tag.
Will almost made another nifty play in the fourth. The batter chopped a pitch just over the pitcher’s head. Will charged and scooped it up. Had he been able to quickly get off the throw he could’ve nailed the runner, but he had a slight problem getting the ball out of his glove. After reloading, he just missed throwing the batter out at first. Had he made the play, the out would’ve saved three runs…and the game.
Audie, Will, and Mitch all walked to lead off the bottom of the fourth. AJ chopped a ball in front of the plate, and pitcher Jarrod couldn’t pick it up, so Audie scored. Ryan Tamucci lofted a short fly the centerfielder charged and caught. I cringed as Will tagged and took off from third. The centerfielder had all his momentum to put into his throw. But the throw didn’t have much on it, and Will scored relatively easy. Later Michael’s single to center drove home Mitch and Parker.
The Prowlers staked leads of 5-0 and 9-3 in game one, fueled by starting pitcher Michael’s six strikeouts in the first four innings. Michael also had a 2-RBI single, as well as a double and run scored in the nightcap.
East Cobb quietly increased their lead in every inning, and coasted to the win in game two. The Prowlers almost turned a triple play in the first. With the bases loaded second-baseman Parker caught a line drive, but his throw to double off the runner at first was off the mark. Still, Mitch had plenty of time to chase the ball down and throw out East Cobb’s Jarrod trying to score from third.
Will almost turned a double play in the third. The infield was playing in, and Will snared a line drive hit right at him. He flipped to third to double off the runner, who barely avoided the tag. In the 5th Durham caught a deep fly in center. The runner on first had been stealing on the pitch and kept running, thinking the ball would’ve never been caught. Durham threw in to Will, who had all the time in the world to double the runner off first.
Durham and Will let the hit parade, both going 2-3 in game two. In the first Will smashed a sure ground ball single up the middle, but second-sacker TK was playing almost behind the bag. Later Ryan Greenwell was similarly robbed. In Will’s next at bat hit the ball through the hole where TK should’ve been playing. Will had hit the ball hard, and the path the rightfielder was taking made it look like the ball would get through to the fence. Will was thinking triple, but at the last second the rightfielder slid and cut it off, holding Will to a single. Will stole second, but was stranded at third.
In the 5th three straight hits by Michael, Durham, and Audie loaded the bases for Will. Audie’s bat actually broke in two on his single. The barrel of the bat followed the ball out toward short. Next Will worked the count full before lining an RBI single to left center. Mitch’s sacrifice fly to right plated Durham.
Despite having just one previous practice, the Prowler defense was able to successfully execute all the rundowns they found themselves in. One runner was retired 9-1-5-4, and another 1-6 -5-4-1 (I think!). Ryan T pitched well as the game two starter, but tired in the fourth. Having not pitched in over a year, Audie came on in relief, and preformed admirably.
The Prowlers play a single Mother’s Day game at 4 pm, at Harrison Park.
Durham: 3 hits & runs, SB, 13 total bases.
Audie: 2 hits & runs, RBI, SB, BB, 10 TB
Will: 3 hits, 2 runs & SB, RBI, BB, 12 TB
Mitch: 2 hits, runs, & RBI…3 BB, HBP (6-6 OB), sacrifice, 13 TB
AJ: run, RBI, 4 TB
Ryan T: RBI, HBP, sacrifice
Ryan G: 2 hits, BB, 6 TB
Parker: 2 hits, BB, 6 TB
Michael: single, double, run, 2 RBI, 5 TB
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