In what is certain to be one of the most thrilling games of the season, the Mudcats scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth to get a walk-off win, 11-10, over the Scrappers.
The victory turned Coach Sean into a prophet, as he had
gathered the team in the middle of the sixth and asked, “What are we about to do?”
“Get four runs!!!” they shouted back, eager to tie the score
and go into extra innings.
“No,” Coach Sean said. “Let’s get five runs and go ahead and
win the game.” That, folks, is a coaching genius, made even more incredible by
the fact that he was working with an inept third base coach who took a
scorebook out to the third-base coaching box to write down such helpful notes
as, “Call Coach Jamie and make sure he gets back from Disney World in time for
Saturday’s game.”
The Mudcat offense was keyed by production up and down the
order, as ten of the 11 hitters reached base and eight different players drove
in at least one run. Aware that they were dealing with some questionable
third-base coaching, the once-tentative Mudcat baserunners ran very
aggressively in the final two innings, making some big hustle plays that
contributed to the rally.
A very happy All Black postgame huddle included stickers for
everyone, plus a rally-starting sticker for Jackson, a game-winning hit sticker
for Colin and a defensive sticker for Gavin.
The Mudcats were almost certainly propelled to the win by
the vast amount of All Black alumni in the stands at various points during the
game, including Brady’s family and even Coach Andy, who did what he does best
in starting the mojo—by leaving the stands.
The 'Cats will practice Wednesday night at Kentwood, and play again in the Saturday morning 9 a.m. special against the Bats.
First inning
Keep in mind that all of these scoring recaps were written
while standing in the third-base coaching box and my attention may not have
been completely devoted to the scorebook. From what I can tell, Luke lined a leadoff single and moved to second on Asher’s single. Quenten singled, and then
Channing picked up a clutch two-run single.
Score after one
inning: Scrappers 3, Mudcats 2
Second inning
The bottom of the order set up the rally, as Will and
Brayden reached with two outs. Luke loaded the bases with a shot to the right
side, and then Asher singled in the game-tying run.
Score after two
innings: Mudcats 3, Scrappers 3
Third inning
Colin and Quenten reached to start the inning, and then
Channing moved the runners to second and third with a fielder’s choice. Cameron
gave the ‘Cats their first lead of the day with a grounder to the right side
that scored Colin.
Score after three
innings: Mudcats 4, Scrappers 3
Fifth inning
With one out, Gavin blasted a double to deep right. Colin
immediately drove Gavin home and advanced all the way to third, putting him in
perfect position to score on Quenten’s single.
Score after three
innings: Scrappers 9, Mudcats 6
Sixth inning
For some reason, all I have written down for this inning is,
“Just get out of their way and keep waving them home!!!” I have no idea what
that means.
Jackson led off with a single that seemed to ignite the
Mudcat dugout. Will reached on a grounder to short. With two on and none out,
Hayden grounded it to right and legged it out, while Jackson raced all the way
around to score, drawing the Mudcats within 10-7. Brayden singled Will home,
making it 10-8 and turning the batting order over. Luke singled back through
the middle, scoring Brayden and bringing up Asher. I think I blacked out at
that point because suddenly Asher was standing at third and Luke had scored to
make it 10-10. After the Scrappers shortstop made a great play on Gavin’s line
drive, leaving Asher at third with two outs, Colin rapped it back through the
middle and hustled down the line to beat the throw and allow the winning run to
score.
And then we all started breathing again.
Score after six
heart-pounding innings: Mudcats 11, Scrappers 10
Monday’s Web Gems
- With two on and two out in the first, the Mudcats executed a textbook rundown…by not throwing the ball at all. Gavin caught a throw at second, then ran down the runner between first and second to end the threat.
- Gavin’s play started a string of seven straight outs by the Mudcat defense. Several players made plays during that stretch, including Colin snagging a pop fly and fielding a grounder, Will scooping up a pair of grounders and Asher and Gavin each grabbing a grounder.
- In what seemed like an inconsequential play at the time but ended up being big, Gavin ranged back into the edge of the outfield to spear a sinking liner in the top of the sixth. That play limited what could have been a potentially big Scrapper inning to just one run .
| Monday's line score | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | R | H |
| Scrappers | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 10 |
| Mudcats | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 11 | 15 |
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