The win was especially impressive because the Mudcats were playing without Coach Sean and Gavin. Coach Sean made up for his absence by sending copious texts to the scorekeeper, with the result that the scorebook may or may not resemble ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.
Coach Sean's absence put Coach Tom on the mound, who was virtually unhittable until Donovan finally put a little fear into him by smoking a line drive off the crafty righty in the third. Coach Tom, alertly realizing the ball would only be a single, threw up his glove and knocked it down. That meant the ball was ruled foul, giving Donovan another chance--and he promptly smacked a double to left. Coach Tom's heads-up self-defense actually gave the 'Cats an extra base.
Donovan's great at-bat changed the tone of the game. After being shut out through three innings, the offense awoke in the fourth, and after collecting just four hits in the first three innings, the Mudcats exploded for 14 hits over the final three innings. Of the team's 31 runs this season, 17 have been scored with two outs, including 10 of Tuesday night's 15 runs.
The All Blacks paired that potent offense with solid defense, as they held a big-hitting Bats team that was averaging 13 runs per game to a scant seven runs, including just four runs over the final five innings. It was the second time this season that the 'Cats have come back from at least a two-run deficit midway through the game.
The only downside to the win was that it meant the very stingy Coach Mike was in charge of the stickers. The Mudcats celebrated the win with a slightly off-key rendition of Happy Birthday for Chris, plus cupcakes and a celebratory speakerphone call to Coach Sean, who unwisely appears not to screen Coach Mike's calls. The win takes the season into the Easter break, which is almost certain to be the last seven-day stretch without a practice or game that you'll see until June. The 'Cats don't hit the field again until practice next Wednesday at 5:30.
Tuesday's Mudcat scoring plays
Fourth inning
Coach Tom shut out the All Blacks the first time through the order, but the bats (not the Bats) finally woke up in the fourth. Getting his second look at the wicked slider of Coach Tom, Brady sliced it into right-center for a leadoff double. Charley singled to left, putting runners on the corners, and with one out, Gabe ripped a single up the middle to plate the first Mudcat run. Colin drove in Charley with a hard liner to left, and Asher picked up an RBI with a fielder's choice. That put the 'Cats in their ideal situation: two outs. As they have throughout the season, they continued to score, with Brenner roping an RBI single the opposite way and Noah going straight back up the middle to complete the five-run inning.
Score after three and a half innings: Mudcats 5, Bats 4
Fifth inning
The suddenly red-hot offense continued to put the ball in play and force the Bats to make plays. With one out, Chris, Channing and Will reached consecutively. That enabled Brady to pick up an RBI with a fielder's choice, and then (as usual), the 'Cats came through with two outs. This time, it was Charley lining a single to left-center to score Channing and provide a three-run lead.
Score after four and a half innings: Mudcats 7, Bulls 4
Sixth inning
The biggest Mudcat inning of the season so far began with Gabe's third hit of the night, a single back up the middle. He moved to second on a fielder's choice, then raced to third on Asher's single. That set the stage for one of the biggest plays of the game. With one out, Brenner grounded to shortstop and immediately hustled to first. The Bats retired Asher at second and then tried to double up Double B. But Brenner's hustle prevented them from turning the double play, as the first baseman had to stretch off the bag to try and secure the throw. After a quick deliberation and some expert lawyering by Coach Tom, the umpires agreed that Double B was much too fast to be doubled up, and the inning continued, with Gabe's run counting and two outs. As it turned out, that was just the beginning: the 'Cats pushed across seven two-out runs, with nine straight batters reaching base and the inning only coming to an end because of the two-run rule. The additional RBI in the inning came from Donovan (who blasted his second double of the game to drive in a pair), Chris (who also picked up a 2-RBI line drive), Will, Brady and Charley.
Score after five and a half innings: Mudcats 15, Bats 5
Tuesday's Web Gems
- With a man on first, the second Bats batter of the game lined a hard shot up the middle. Charley made a diving attempt for it at shortstop and nearly snagged it, causing the runner to hesitate to make sure he wasn't going to make a terrific play in the air. The ball continued into the outfield, where Ben scooped it up and fired into Brady, who was alertly covering second, for the force.
- With two on in the fifth, just one out, and the meat of the Bats order due up, Donovan drifted back and made a one-handed catch of a towering fly ball in left center.
- With the Bats attempting to mount a rally in the bottom of the last inning, Bryce knocked down a hard grounder to first and had the presence of mind to stay with it while stretching to tag the bag and get the force.
| Tuesday's line score | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | R | H |
| Mudcats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 15 | 18 |
| Bats | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 15 |
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