- Wed. morning update: Thanks to videographer David Key, video highlights of Tuesday's big first inning are now available.
Coach Andrew has consistently said the outcome of the game doesn't determine his perception of how his team played. Tonight, he proved it.
The Bees continued an early-season hot streak by running their record to 3-0 with a 13-5 victory over the Mudcats (1-2). Despite the loss, however, the postgame team meeting was upbeat. "I thought you guys played exceptionally well," Coach Andrew said. "I'm looking for you to get the outs you can get, and tonight you did that. Today was one of our better games, and everyone gets a sticker."
The majority of the Mudcat scoring came early, as a first-inning explosion provided a quick 4-0 lead. From there, however, a balanced Bees offense generated 21 hits (three of them for extra bases) and at least one run in every inning, plating seven of their 13 runs with two outs. The Mudcats tried to start several rallies, but the Bee defense was too stingy. A great play in the fourth inning robbed Gabe of potential extra bases, and the night was summed up by Big Ben rocketing a shot up the middle in the sixth inning...only to have the Bee shortstop snare the ball out of the air and step on second for a game-ending unassisted double play. "They made a lot of sensational plays," Coach Andrew said of a Bee team that returned a healthy majority of players from the spring season. "When that happens, all you can do is shake their hand."
Points of emphasis moving forward include a continued focus on baserunning, as the Mudcats ran out of a couple potential scoring opportunities on the bases. One of the baserunning highlights came from Hayes, who aggressively turned a line drive into a triple in the fourth and earned a helmet sticker for his effort.
On defense, the coaches will continue to stress focus. "We can't throw the ball around," Coach Andrew said. "We gave up about three runs throwing when we didn't need to throw. That's one of the most difficult things to learn, and we're going to work on it."
Tuesday's Mudcat scoring plays
First inning
Charley led off with one of his three singles on a 3-for-3 day for the Mudcat leadoff man. Smiley followed with a line-drive single, and Drew drove them both in with a double--his third extra-base hit in his last four at-bats. After a fielder's choice, Christopher picked up an RBI with an opposite-field single, and Hayes completed the scoring with an RBI in the middle of the diamond.
Score after one-half inning: Mudcats 4, Bees 0
Third inning
Charley led off with another single. Smiley was robbed on a hard line drive by the center fielder, and Drew picked up an infield single. After a fielder's choice, Christopher drove in his second run of the day with a single to right.
Score after two and a half innings: Bees 7, Mudcats 5.
Tuesday's Web Gems
- On the very first offensive play for the Bees, Drew made a nice play in the hole at shortstop and threw to first to easily get the out. He picked up a helmet sticker for the play.
- Brenner backed up third base and saved a run while playing left field. He earned a helmet sticker for his effort and hustle.
| Tuesday's line score | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | R | H |
| Mudcats | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 13 |
| Bees | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | X | 13 | 21 |
No comments:
Post a Comment