Beyond the Fence
Sunday, August, 17, 2008 Filed in: vs. Rochester
Hills
Carroll Park, Bay City, MI
Bay City 21, Rochester Hills 9
The sky was high, and the air was hot and thick as the Grangers of Rochester Hills unpacked their gear from the backs of their wagons and walked out along the ball grounds of our beloved Carroll Park. The Independents’ crowd of supporters took shelter in any shade they could find, and waited for the start of what they believed would be one of the best matches of the summer. They would not be disappointed.
The match began with a first pitch that was thrown out by none other than our sixteenth President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. After the ceremonial toss, and some fine words from our President the match was underway, with the Grangers winning the toss and striking first. Mr. Bob Grace, the mercurial left fielder for the Grangers, began the contest with a finely place ball to the long field, and then proceeded to take his second on a wildly thrown ball by the Bay Citys pitcher. Mr. Grace would move along to third on two consecutive ground ball outs, and would come home to tally on safety from the bat of Mr. Mike Johnson, the Granger third sacker. Those would be all the runs the Grangers would muster in their first innings, but it would see them take the lead in the contest 1-0, and they would hold it after they whitewashed the Bay Citys in their first innings.
The gentlemen from Rochester Hills would add to their lead after Mr. Patrick “Barnraiser” McKay scored in the midst of a two hands lost rally. His run would be the only scoring for the Grangers, and doubled their lead 2-0 over Bay City.
The first striker in the Bay City second innings would be the sure handed, first sacker, Justin “Doc” Garcia. In one wallop of the willow, Mr. Garcia cut the Independents’ deficit in two as he shot a sky ball over the tree tops, past the confines of the park, and sent the water fowl and the Granger fieldsmen scattering as he made his home run. The Independents would tally four more runs in the innings, and wrest control of the match from the Rochesters at 5-2.
The Grangers would not be put down in the third innings and placed two more tallies on their side of the ledger to make the game a tight scratch at 5-4. The Independents though would not relinquish their margin and tallied twice more themselves. An impressive stroke came from the bat of Scott “Umpy” Umphrey, the Bay City right fielder, as he drove a howitzer to the long field, which he quite easily made his second on. The contest now stood at 7-4.
The Bay Citys would skunk the Grangers in the fourth innings, and “Doc” Garcia would tally again for the Independents. After four innings the game was now Bay City 8, Rochester Hills 4.
The Grangers would take to striking again in the fifth innings and just as in the first they would be led by Mr. Grace who again placed a ball into the long field for a single. Mr. Grace then made his second by theft, and was driven home by a long stroke by “Slappy” Prasatek, the Granger first base man. Mr. Prasatek would also score after a long single by Mr. Anvil Wynne. The next three strikers would go down in order, and the score was now 8-6. Not to be outdone the Bay Citys tallied two runs of their own in the persons of “Shoeless Jeff” Dinauer, the Independents second sacker, and Brian “Butterfly” Beceril. It was now 10-6 Bay City.
Thanks to some fine plays in the field, and an especially sure-handed play by the short stop, Tanner LeRoux, the Bay Citys whitewashed the Grangers in the sixth innings and went right back to apple mashing. The Independents would send 15 strikers to the line in their sixth innings. The two most impressive shots of the innings came from the bats of Branden “The Rope” Revette and Al “Kid” Garcia, both of the gentlemen drove the balls into the long field, and easily made their seconds. The Bay Citys would score nine runs in the innings and put some distance between themselves and the gentlemen from Rochester Hills at 19-6.
The Bay Citys took to the field with full knowledge that no lead was safe where the Grangers were concerned, and their fears were nearly realized when the Rochesters tallied three more runs fueled again by the efforts of Mr. Grace, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Mallman. The score would now sit at 19-9, and thanks to some graceful gardening the defenders for both clubs would whitewash the other in their next two turns at striking. That would effectively end the competition, but in keeping with tradition the Bay Citys took their final at bats in their ninth innings and tallied twice more to bring the final of the match to rest at 21-9 for Bay City.
The two clubs would then enjoy a fine meal together, and displayed their mutual respect and admiration for one another. No doubt Bay City can look forward to future matches between these fine clubs. Thus would end the first unblemished home season for the Bay Citys at Carroll Park, and hopes are high for another next season.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 1 1
David 3rd 2 1
A. Garcia cf 3 1 *1 Double
J. Garcia 1st 2 2 *1 Home Run
McInerney lf 1 2
D. Dinauer 2nd 2 1
Revette c 2 2 *1 Double
Koch 1 3
J. Dinauer 0 3
Beceril 1 2
J. Johnson p 1 0
F. Brissette 1 0
Decuf 3 0
O’Laughlin 2 0
Umphrey rf 2 1 *1 Double
A. Johnson 1 1
Banister 2 1
Totals 27 21
Bay City 21, Rochester Hills 9
The sky was high, and the air was hot and thick as the Grangers of Rochester Hills unpacked their gear from the backs of their wagons and walked out along the ball grounds of our beloved Carroll Park. The Independents’ crowd of supporters took shelter in any shade they could find, and waited for the start of what they believed would be one of the best matches of the summer. They would not be disappointed.
The match began with a first pitch that was thrown out by none other than our sixteenth President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. After the ceremonial toss, and some fine words from our President the match was underway, with the Grangers winning the toss and striking first. Mr. Bob Grace, the mercurial left fielder for the Grangers, began the contest with a finely place ball to the long field, and then proceeded to take his second on a wildly thrown ball by the Bay Citys pitcher. Mr. Grace would move along to third on two consecutive ground ball outs, and would come home to tally on safety from the bat of Mr. Mike Johnson, the Granger third sacker. Those would be all the runs the Grangers would muster in their first innings, but it would see them take the lead in the contest 1-0, and they would hold it after they whitewashed the Bay Citys in their first innings.
The gentlemen from Rochester Hills would add to their lead after Mr. Patrick “Barnraiser” McKay scored in the midst of a two hands lost rally. His run would be the only scoring for the Grangers, and doubled their lead 2-0 over Bay City.
The first striker in the Bay City second innings would be the sure handed, first sacker, Justin “Doc” Garcia. In one wallop of the willow, Mr. Garcia cut the Independents’ deficit in two as he shot a sky ball over the tree tops, past the confines of the park, and sent the water fowl and the Granger fieldsmen scattering as he made his home run. The Independents would tally four more runs in the innings, and wrest control of the match from the Rochesters at 5-2.
The Grangers would not be put down in the third innings and placed two more tallies on their side of the ledger to make the game a tight scratch at 5-4. The Independents though would not relinquish their margin and tallied twice more themselves. An impressive stroke came from the bat of Scott “Umpy” Umphrey, the Bay City right fielder, as he drove a howitzer to the long field, which he quite easily made his second on. The contest now stood at 7-4.
The Bay Citys would skunk the Grangers in the fourth innings, and “Doc” Garcia would tally again for the Independents. After four innings the game was now Bay City 8, Rochester Hills 4.
The Grangers would take to striking again in the fifth innings and just as in the first they would be led by Mr. Grace who again placed a ball into the long field for a single. Mr. Grace then made his second by theft, and was driven home by a long stroke by “Slappy” Prasatek, the Granger first base man. Mr. Prasatek would also score after a long single by Mr. Anvil Wynne. The next three strikers would go down in order, and the score was now 8-6. Not to be outdone the Bay Citys tallied two runs of their own in the persons of “Shoeless Jeff” Dinauer, the Independents second sacker, and Brian “Butterfly” Beceril. It was now 10-6 Bay City.
Thanks to some fine plays in the field, and an especially sure-handed play by the short stop, Tanner LeRoux, the Bay Citys whitewashed the Grangers in the sixth innings and went right back to apple mashing. The Independents would send 15 strikers to the line in their sixth innings. The two most impressive shots of the innings came from the bats of Branden “The Rope” Revette and Al “Kid” Garcia, both of the gentlemen drove the balls into the long field, and easily made their seconds. The Bay Citys would score nine runs in the innings and put some distance between themselves and the gentlemen from Rochester Hills at 19-6.
The Bay Citys took to the field with full knowledge that no lead was safe where the Grangers were concerned, and their fears were nearly realized when the Rochesters tallied three more runs fueled again by the efforts of Mr. Grace, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Mallman. The score would now sit at 19-9, and thanks to some graceful gardening the defenders for both clubs would whitewash the other in their next two turns at striking. That would effectively end the competition, but in keeping with tradition the Bay Citys took their final at bats in their ninth innings and tallied twice more to bring the final of the match to rest at 21-9 for Bay City.
The two clubs would then enjoy a fine meal together, and displayed their mutual respect and admiration for one another. No doubt Bay City can look forward to future matches between these fine clubs. Thus would end the first unblemished home season for the Bay Citys at Carroll Park, and hopes are high for another next season.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 1 1
David 3rd 2 1
A. Garcia cf 3 1 *1 Double
J. Garcia 1st 2 2 *1 Home Run
McInerney lf 1 2
D. Dinauer 2nd 2 1
Revette c 2 2 *1 Double
Koch 1 3
J. Dinauer 0 3
Beceril 1 2
J. Johnson p 1 0
F. Brissette 1 0
Decuf 3 0
O’Laughlin 2 0
Umphrey rf 2 1 *1 Double
A. Johnson 1 1
Banister 2 1
Totals 27 21
World's Tournament of Historic Base Ball 2008
Saturday, August, 02, 2008 Filed in: at
Greenfield Village
World’s Tournament of Historic Base Ball 2008
Greenfield Village, Dearborn, MI
Match #1, Walnut Grove #2
Bay City 28, Bonneyville 3
Bay City’s third trip to the World’s Tournament was hoped to be a charm for the lads of our fair town, and as in any trip it begins with the first step forward. The first opponent for the Independents would hail from the great state of Indiana, the Bonneyville Millers Base Ball Club.
The early morning sunshine beat down upon the participants, but through the glare the Bay City captain could see that he had luckily won the coin toss to determine the order of striking on the day. As winners of the toss, Bay City would choose to strike first, and strike they did. In a succession of long drives that sailed over the neighboring railroad tracks, the Independents would see five runs tally before nary a hand was lost, and then plated four more before leaving the bases full when the 15th striker of the innings would see his hand lost for the third in the first. The Bay Citys would skunk the visitors from Indiana and the end of the first innings would see a tally of 9-0 in the Independent’s favor.
The whitewashing would continue for the next two innings for the gentlemen from Indiana, while the Bay Citys would add two runs in the second, and three runs in the third. The fourth innings would see an end to the symmetry for the Independents as the Millers returned some whitewash to the Bay Citys. The Millers must have sensed an opportunity to mount a comeback in the contest and plated three runs themselves to bring the tally of the match to 14-3 in favor of Bay City at the end of four innings.
In the fifth innings the Independents would kick up their heels again, and five Bay City strikers in succession, Mr. David, Mr. McInerney, Mr. Garcia, Mr. Dinauer, and Mr. Revette would drive howitzers to the long field that would allow them to make extra bases. In total there would be three two baggers, and two triples in the parade around the pillows. Seven runs would tally to bring the total to 21 for Bay City.
The Millers would not tally again in the contest, while Bay City would score two more in the sixth and five more in the seventh to bring the match to a close at 28-3 for Bay City. The total of the match certainly did not match the heart with which the Millers would play in the contest. More then one of the Bay City ballists was heard to say that they would hate to have to face the Millers in a bound contest, as they had a great propensity for tracking down the balls in the long field, and place hitting with great accuracy. No doubt this was why the Millers would take home the award for the best “Sportsmanship” of the tournament.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 0 4
David 3rd 0 3
McInerney lf 1 3
Garcia 1st 1 3
D. Dinauer 1 3
Revette 1 3
Koch 0 2
J. Dinauer 2nd 3 1
Beceril cf 2 1
J. Johnson c 2 1
Brissette p 3 1
Decuf 2 0
Banister 0 1
Freehling 0 0
Umphrey rf 2 0
A. Johnson 1 1
O’Laughlin 2 1
Total 21 28
Match #2
August 2nd, Walnut Grove #1
Bay City 7, Saginaw 8
The Independents next opponent was a familiar one, the Saginaw Old Golds fresh off of their early morning defeat of the Clodbusters of Ohio. The match would begin with a familiar situation, the Bay Citys winning the coin toss. Once again the Independents chose to strike first, but this time they failed to score thanks to the fine defensive efforts of the Old Golds. The Saginaws would put two tallies on the board for themselves, thanks in part to some fine striking by Nick “Brute” Hammond and John “Lumberjack” Piersall. At the end of one innings the Saginaws had the lead 2-0.
Each club would lay down the whitewash in the second innings, but the Bay Citys would finally crack the Old Golds defense when Ray “The Banker” Banister would be brought to tally on a home run by Brian “Hooks” Freehling. The Saginaws would answer in fine fashion as the aforementioned “Brute” Hammond would tally again due to a strike to the long field by their captain Adam “Squints” McCaully. After three innings the Saginaws would still hold the lead at 3-2.
In the fourth innings the Independents would grasp control of the contest when the bottom strikers in the order, Scott “Umpy” Umphrey and Adam “Little Train” Johnson, would score thanks to some well placed balls sent to the long field by Trevor “Big Wood” David and “Buttons” McInerney. Both David and McInerney would score in the innings before the third hand was lost. The Saginaws would be skunked in the order of their striking thanks to some fine pitching by Fred “Twinkle-Toes” Brissette. At the close of four innings the total of the contest was Bay City 6 and Saginaw 3.
In the fifth innings the Bay Citys would leave a runner stranded at third base for the second time in the contest thanks solely to the defensive efforts of the Saginaw second sacker, Branden “Baby Bull” Diag. Earlier in the contest with runners on second and third the Baby Bull collected the third out by making a leaping catch of a line drive that seemed destined to find the grass in the centerfield. Again with runners at second and first in the fifth innings Diag collected a daisy cutter that had already shot through the first base tender, “Slink” Spitz, and raced to the bag to kill the striker. The runners were able to advance, but had Diag not been there at least one more run would have tallied in each instance. The next striker in the Bay City order would lose his hand and no runs would be scored. The Bay Citys returned the favor in Saginaw’s fifth and the score would remain unchanged.
In the sixth innings Bay City would be skunked in order by Saginaw. The Old Golds however, would put their lead off striker, Ducky Mahan safely on first. The Saginaws tried to remove Mahan for a pinch runner, but as there was no apparent injury to the striker, the umpire refused the request. On the next pitch the Bay Citys would flash some scientific play when “Brute” Hammond crushed a ground ball that was deftly handled by the Bay City short stop, “Tanner” LeRoux, who then tossed the sphere to the second sacker, “Shoeless” Jeff Dinauer, for one out and Dinauer then fired to the first sacker, Dean “Sawmill” Koch, to retire the striker. The magnificent play seemed sure to dampen the Saginaw spirits but, it did not. The Old Golds had five straight safe hits capped off by a howitzer to the long field from the bat of Chris “Hollywood” Holly that would see Holly reach his second. In all, three runs would score and the contest was again a tight scratch at 6-6.
Each club would then whitewash the other in the seventh innings and the game would remain tied by the end of the hour and half deadline for the contest. An extra inning was deemed to be required.
In the eighth innings after laboring for nearly an hour in the hot sun, the Saginaw pitcher, “Black Jack” Tany, finally wore down and could not find the plate. After multiple warnings from the umpire Mr. Tany awarded two Bay City strikers free passage to the bases. One of them, Mr. David, would later score on a fly out to the left fielder. David would be the only striker to score in the innings and the score would now read Bay City 7, Saginaw 6.
It appeared as though the Bay City lead would hold up when Ducky Mahan grounded out, and “Brute” Hammond bounded a foul out to the third sacker, but with two hands down the next three strikers would reach base and the winning run would tally on a howitzer to right center field off of the bat of Dennis Konesciewski. It was not meant to be for Bay City this year, but they could take pride in the fact that the match was well played and was well applauded by the throng of spectators at Greenfield Village. The final score read Saginaw 8, Bay City 7.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 3 0
David 3rd 1 2
McInerney lf 0 1
Garcia 1st 1 0
D. Dinauer 3 0
Revette 2 0
Koch 2 0
J. Dinauer 2nd 1 0
Beceril cf 0 0
J. Johnson 2 0
Brissette 2 0
Decuf 2 0
Banister p 1 1
Freehling c 1 1
O’Laughlin 2 0
Umphrey 1 1
A. Johnson rf 1 1
Total 24 7
Match #3
August 2nd, Walnut Grove #2
Bay City 42, Port Huron 4
The third match of the World’s Tournament for the Independents was scheduled immediately after their frustrating defeat to the Old Golds of Saginaw. Their unfortunate opponent was the Welkin Club of Port Huron. Adding to the frustration was the fact that the schedule pointed the Bay Citys toward the wrong playing field, and so after making a near complete circuit of Greenfield Village they arrived at the garden, tired, hot, and just a little bit steamed. Misfortune again smiled on the Independents as they lost their first coin-toss of the day! The Welkins however, chose to take the field.
Winning the coin toss may have been the lone break that the Welkins’ received during the match, for although the Bay Citys found the club much improved from last season, nothing seemed to go their way, and unfortunately the Bay Citys gave little quarter. In the first innings the Independents would send twelve strikers to the plate, and tally six runs before a hand was lost. A procession of howitzers was led by Doc Garcia, whose shot went down the right field line and allowed him to make his third. Garcia’s shot was followed by two successive blows over the tracks in left field by Dennis Dinauer and “Rope” Revette, each would make their second on the long shots. The Bay Citys would tally eight in the innings. The scrappy Welkins also placed 3 runs on the board in their first so the total would read Bay City 8, Port Huron 3 after one.
The much improved Port Huron group would slap the whitewash on the Bay Citys in the second innings, and Bay City would return the favor to leave the score unchanged. The match was too close for Bay City, and they didn’t want to have their World Tournament trip ended on the first day, so something had to change.
Adam “Little Train” Johnson would lead off the crucial third innings for the Independents, and before it was over he would strike again and tally twice. In fact the Bay Citys would push 10 aces across the plate before the first hand was lost in the innings, and then after the second out was recorded they would tally 10 more. In all there were five strikes that allowed Independents to take extra bases, with Dennis Dinauer recording two in the inning that allowed him to make his second. The Welkins not willing to give in tallied one run in their third innings as well, and the total now read Bay City 28, Port Huron 4.
The Welkins would not score again in the contest, while the Bay Citys added two more runs in the fourth and then twelve more in the fifth innings, including a home run by “Butterfly” Beceril. Due to time limits in the match, only five innings would be completed in the contest with the final ledger firmly in the Independents favor at 42-4. This would end the Welkins’ tournament, but hopefully not dampen their spirits, as despite the score one could see that much improvement had taken place from just their first season of play. Bay City would now move on to play the winner of the Clodbusters versus Hoosiers contest on the afternoon next.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 0 4
David 3rd 0 4
McInerney lf 0 4
Garcia 0 4
D. Dinauer 2nd 0 4* *Four doubles
Revette 0 3
Koch 1st 1 2
J. Dinauer 1 2
Beceril cf 1 3* *1 double, 1 HR
Johnson J. 2 2
Brissette 1 2
Decuf 2 2
Banister p 2 1
Freehling c 2 1
Umphrey 2 1
A. Johnson rf 0 3
Total 15 42
Match #4
August 3rd, Walnut Grove #2
Bay City 11, Indianapolis 15
Sunday afternoon began for the Independents by discovering their opponents for the day would be none other than the defending 2007 World’s Tournament Reserve Champion, Indianapolis Hoosiers. The fact that such an opponent as this could be found in the Reserve Champion bracket, is a great testament as to the level of competition at the World’s Tournament.
The Bay Citys won the coin toss and elected to strike first. The Independents would pound home six tallies thanks in part to doubles by Doc Garcia and “Rope” Revette. The greatest drive of the innings would come from the bat of “Butterfly” Beceril. Beceril crushed a howitzer into the long field that allowed him to make his third. However, Beceril would not tally in the innings thanks to some fine play by the Hoosier fieldsmen. Not to be outdone, the gentlemen from Indianapolis would answer with six runs of their own, and after the first innings the score was knotted 6-6.
Each club would skunk the other with some fine scientific play in the second innings, and so the Bay Citys would take to the stripe with the score still tied. The Independents strikers would push five tallies across the plate in the third innings, but once again left a man standing on third base at its conclusion. Again the Hoosiers would match the Bay City effort with five runs of their own, and the match remained a tight scratch at 11-11.
The Independents appeared to run out of steam after the third innings, and despite threatening several times failed to score in the contest again. The Hoosiers however, would continue their fine striking and would score three runs in the fourth innings, and one run in the fifth to win the day with a score of 15-11.
Although the tournament did not end as the Bay Citys would have hoped, they did take solace in that the opponents they lost to Saginaw and Indianapolis, went on to finish runner-up in the Championship Class, and Reserve Champions respectively. In many aspects the tournament was a great success for the Independents. From a competitive aspect they totaled 88 runs in two days, and allowed only 30. From an educational standpoint, the Bay Citys passed out more than 300 of their base ball history papers to spectators, and spoke on the history of our great game with many people throughout the Village both during and in between their matches. The fact that so many spectators felt comfortable enough to approach the Bay City bench with questions while heated matches were ongoing says a great deal about the amiable and friendly way with which the Independent ballists conduct themselves. HURRAH for Bay City!
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 2 1
David 0 2
McInerney lf 1 1
Garcia 1st 2 1
Revette 3rd 0 2
Koch 1 2
J. Dinauer 2nd 0 1
Beceril cf 1 0
J. Johnson c 2 0
Brissette p 3 0
Decuf 1 0
Banister 1 0
Freehling 1 0
Umphrey rf 2 0
A. Johnson 1 1
Total 18 11
Tournament Totals
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 5 9
David 3rd 1 11
McInerney lf 2 9
Garcia 1st 4 8
D. Dinauer 2nd 4 7
Revette 3rd 3 8
Koch 1st 4 6
J. Dinauer 2nd 5 4
Beceril cf 4 4
J. Johnson c 8 3
Brissette p 9 3
Decuf cf 7 2
Banister p 4 3
Freehling c 4 2
O’Laughlin p 4 1
Umphrey rf 7 2
A. Johnson rf 3 6
Totals 78 88
Greenfield Village, Dearborn, MI
Match #1, Walnut Grove #2
Bay City 28, Bonneyville 3
Bay City’s third trip to the World’s Tournament was hoped to be a charm for the lads of our fair town, and as in any trip it begins with the first step forward. The first opponent for the Independents would hail from the great state of Indiana, the Bonneyville Millers Base Ball Club.
The early morning sunshine beat down upon the participants, but through the glare the Bay City captain could see that he had luckily won the coin toss to determine the order of striking on the day. As winners of the toss, Bay City would choose to strike first, and strike they did. In a succession of long drives that sailed over the neighboring railroad tracks, the Independents would see five runs tally before nary a hand was lost, and then plated four more before leaving the bases full when the 15th striker of the innings would see his hand lost for the third in the first. The Bay Citys would skunk the visitors from Indiana and the end of the first innings would see a tally of 9-0 in the Independent’s favor.
The whitewashing would continue for the next two innings for the gentlemen from Indiana, while the Bay Citys would add two runs in the second, and three runs in the third. The fourth innings would see an end to the symmetry for the Independents as the Millers returned some whitewash to the Bay Citys. The Millers must have sensed an opportunity to mount a comeback in the contest and plated three runs themselves to bring the tally of the match to 14-3 in favor of Bay City at the end of four innings.
In the fifth innings the Independents would kick up their heels again, and five Bay City strikers in succession, Mr. David, Mr. McInerney, Mr. Garcia, Mr. Dinauer, and Mr. Revette would drive howitzers to the long field that would allow them to make extra bases. In total there would be three two baggers, and two triples in the parade around the pillows. Seven runs would tally to bring the total to 21 for Bay City.
The Millers would not tally again in the contest, while Bay City would score two more in the sixth and five more in the seventh to bring the match to a close at 28-3 for Bay City. The total of the match certainly did not match the heart with which the Millers would play in the contest. More then one of the Bay City ballists was heard to say that they would hate to have to face the Millers in a bound contest, as they had a great propensity for tracking down the balls in the long field, and place hitting with great accuracy. No doubt this was why the Millers would take home the award for the best “Sportsmanship” of the tournament.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 0 4
David 3rd 0 3
McInerney lf 1 3
Garcia 1st 1 3
D. Dinauer 1 3
Revette 1 3
Koch 0 2
J. Dinauer 2nd 3 1
Beceril cf 2 1
J. Johnson c 2 1
Brissette p 3 1
Decuf 2 0
Banister 0 1
Freehling 0 0
Umphrey rf 2 0
A. Johnson 1 1
O’Laughlin 2 1
Total 21 28
Match #2
August 2nd, Walnut Grove #1
Bay City 7, Saginaw 8
The Independents next opponent was a familiar one, the Saginaw Old Golds fresh off of their early morning defeat of the Clodbusters of Ohio. The match would begin with a familiar situation, the Bay Citys winning the coin toss. Once again the Independents chose to strike first, but this time they failed to score thanks to the fine defensive efforts of the Old Golds. The Saginaws would put two tallies on the board for themselves, thanks in part to some fine striking by Nick “Brute” Hammond and John “Lumberjack” Piersall. At the end of one innings the Saginaws had the lead 2-0.
Each club would lay down the whitewash in the second innings, but the Bay Citys would finally crack the Old Golds defense when Ray “The Banker” Banister would be brought to tally on a home run by Brian “Hooks” Freehling. The Saginaws would answer in fine fashion as the aforementioned “Brute” Hammond would tally again due to a strike to the long field by their captain Adam “Squints” McCaully. After three innings the Saginaws would still hold the lead at 3-2.
In the fourth innings the Independents would grasp control of the contest when the bottom strikers in the order, Scott “Umpy” Umphrey and Adam “Little Train” Johnson, would score thanks to some well placed balls sent to the long field by Trevor “Big Wood” David and “Buttons” McInerney. Both David and McInerney would score in the innings before the third hand was lost. The Saginaws would be skunked in the order of their striking thanks to some fine pitching by Fred “Twinkle-Toes” Brissette. At the close of four innings the total of the contest was Bay City 6 and Saginaw 3.
In the fifth innings the Bay Citys would leave a runner stranded at third base for the second time in the contest thanks solely to the defensive efforts of the Saginaw second sacker, Branden “Baby Bull” Diag. Earlier in the contest with runners on second and third the Baby Bull collected the third out by making a leaping catch of a line drive that seemed destined to find the grass in the centerfield. Again with runners at second and first in the fifth innings Diag collected a daisy cutter that had already shot through the first base tender, “Slink” Spitz, and raced to the bag to kill the striker. The runners were able to advance, but had Diag not been there at least one more run would have tallied in each instance. The next striker in the Bay City order would lose his hand and no runs would be scored. The Bay Citys returned the favor in Saginaw’s fifth and the score would remain unchanged.
In the sixth innings Bay City would be skunked in order by Saginaw. The Old Golds however, would put their lead off striker, Ducky Mahan safely on first. The Saginaws tried to remove Mahan for a pinch runner, but as there was no apparent injury to the striker, the umpire refused the request. On the next pitch the Bay Citys would flash some scientific play when “Brute” Hammond crushed a ground ball that was deftly handled by the Bay City short stop, “Tanner” LeRoux, who then tossed the sphere to the second sacker, “Shoeless” Jeff Dinauer, for one out and Dinauer then fired to the first sacker, Dean “Sawmill” Koch, to retire the striker. The magnificent play seemed sure to dampen the Saginaw spirits but, it did not. The Old Golds had five straight safe hits capped off by a howitzer to the long field from the bat of Chris “Hollywood” Holly that would see Holly reach his second. In all, three runs would score and the contest was again a tight scratch at 6-6.
Each club would then whitewash the other in the seventh innings and the game would remain tied by the end of the hour and half deadline for the contest. An extra inning was deemed to be required.
In the eighth innings after laboring for nearly an hour in the hot sun, the Saginaw pitcher, “Black Jack” Tany, finally wore down and could not find the plate. After multiple warnings from the umpire Mr. Tany awarded two Bay City strikers free passage to the bases. One of them, Mr. David, would later score on a fly out to the left fielder. David would be the only striker to score in the innings and the score would now read Bay City 7, Saginaw 6.
It appeared as though the Bay City lead would hold up when Ducky Mahan grounded out, and “Brute” Hammond bounded a foul out to the third sacker, but with two hands down the next three strikers would reach base and the winning run would tally on a howitzer to right center field off of the bat of Dennis Konesciewski. It was not meant to be for Bay City this year, but they could take pride in the fact that the match was well played and was well applauded by the throng of spectators at Greenfield Village. The final score read Saginaw 8, Bay City 7.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 3 0
David 3rd 1 2
McInerney lf 0 1
Garcia 1st 1 0
D. Dinauer 3 0
Revette 2 0
Koch 2 0
J. Dinauer 2nd 1 0
Beceril cf 0 0
J. Johnson 2 0
Brissette 2 0
Decuf 2 0
Banister p 1 1
Freehling c 1 1
O’Laughlin 2 0
Umphrey 1 1
A. Johnson rf 1 1
Total 24 7
Match #3
August 2nd, Walnut Grove #2
Bay City 42, Port Huron 4
The third match of the World’s Tournament for the Independents was scheduled immediately after their frustrating defeat to the Old Golds of Saginaw. Their unfortunate opponent was the Welkin Club of Port Huron. Adding to the frustration was the fact that the schedule pointed the Bay Citys toward the wrong playing field, and so after making a near complete circuit of Greenfield Village they arrived at the garden, tired, hot, and just a little bit steamed. Misfortune again smiled on the Independents as they lost their first coin-toss of the day! The Welkins however, chose to take the field.
Winning the coin toss may have been the lone break that the Welkins’ received during the match, for although the Bay Citys found the club much improved from last season, nothing seemed to go their way, and unfortunately the Bay Citys gave little quarter. In the first innings the Independents would send twelve strikers to the plate, and tally six runs before a hand was lost. A procession of howitzers was led by Doc Garcia, whose shot went down the right field line and allowed him to make his third. Garcia’s shot was followed by two successive blows over the tracks in left field by Dennis Dinauer and “Rope” Revette, each would make their second on the long shots. The Bay Citys would tally eight in the innings. The scrappy Welkins also placed 3 runs on the board in their first so the total would read Bay City 8, Port Huron 3 after one.
The much improved Port Huron group would slap the whitewash on the Bay Citys in the second innings, and Bay City would return the favor to leave the score unchanged. The match was too close for Bay City, and they didn’t want to have their World Tournament trip ended on the first day, so something had to change.
Adam “Little Train” Johnson would lead off the crucial third innings for the Independents, and before it was over he would strike again and tally twice. In fact the Bay Citys would push 10 aces across the plate before the first hand was lost in the innings, and then after the second out was recorded they would tally 10 more. In all there were five strikes that allowed Independents to take extra bases, with Dennis Dinauer recording two in the inning that allowed him to make his second. The Welkins not willing to give in tallied one run in their third innings as well, and the total now read Bay City 28, Port Huron 4.
The Welkins would not score again in the contest, while the Bay Citys added two more runs in the fourth and then twelve more in the fifth innings, including a home run by “Butterfly” Beceril. Due to time limits in the match, only five innings would be completed in the contest with the final ledger firmly in the Independents favor at 42-4. This would end the Welkins’ tournament, but hopefully not dampen their spirits, as despite the score one could see that much improvement had taken place from just their first season of play. Bay City would now move on to play the winner of the Clodbusters versus Hoosiers contest on the afternoon next.
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 0 4
David 3rd 0 4
McInerney lf 0 4
Garcia 0 4
D. Dinauer 2nd 0 4* *Four doubles
Revette 0 3
Koch 1st 1 2
J. Dinauer 1 2
Beceril cf 1 3* *1 double, 1 HR
Johnson J. 2 2
Brissette 1 2
Decuf 2 2
Banister p 2 1
Freehling c 2 1
Umphrey 2 1
A. Johnson rf 0 3
Total 15 42
Match #4
August 3rd, Walnut Grove #2
Bay City 11, Indianapolis 15
Sunday afternoon began for the Independents by discovering their opponents for the day would be none other than the defending 2007 World’s Tournament Reserve Champion, Indianapolis Hoosiers. The fact that such an opponent as this could be found in the Reserve Champion bracket, is a great testament as to the level of competition at the World’s Tournament.
The Bay Citys won the coin toss and elected to strike first. The Independents would pound home six tallies thanks in part to doubles by Doc Garcia and “Rope” Revette. The greatest drive of the innings would come from the bat of “Butterfly” Beceril. Beceril crushed a howitzer into the long field that allowed him to make his third. However, Beceril would not tally in the innings thanks to some fine play by the Hoosier fieldsmen. Not to be outdone, the gentlemen from Indianapolis would answer with six runs of their own, and after the first innings the score was knotted 6-6.
Each club would skunk the other with some fine scientific play in the second innings, and so the Bay Citys would take to the stripe with the score still tied. The Independents strikers would push five tallies across the plate in the third innings, but once again left a man standing on third base at its conclusion. Again the Hoosiers would match the Bay City effort with five runs of their own, and the match remained a tight scratch at 11-11.
The Independents appeared to run out of steam after the third innings, and despite threatening several times failed to score in the contest again. The Hoosiers however, would continue their fine striking and would score three runs in the fourth innings, and one run in the fifth to win the day with a score of 15-11.
Although the tournament did not end as the Bay Citys would have hoped, they did take solace in that the opponents they lost to Saginaw and Indianapolis, went on to finish runner-up in the Championship Class, and Reserve Champions respectively. In many aspects the tournament was a great success for the Independents. From a competitive aspect they totaled 88 runs in two days, and allowed only 30. From an educational standpoint, the Bay Citys passed out more than 300 of their base ball history papers to spectators, and spoke on the history of our great game with many people throughout the Village both during and in between their matches. The fact that so many spectators felt comfortable enough to approach the Bay City bench with questions while heated matches were ongoing says a great deal about the amiable and friendly way with which the Independent ballists conduct themselves. HURRAH for Bay City!
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 2 1
David 0 2
McInerney lf 1 1
Garcia 1st 2 1
Revette 3rd 0 2
Koch 1 2
J. Dinauer 2nd 0 1
Beceril cf 1 0
J. Johnson c 2 0
Brissette p 3 0
Decuf 1 0
Banister 1 0
Freehling 1 0
Umphrey rf 2 0
A. Johnson 1 1
Total 18 11
Tournament Totals
Ballist H.L. Runs
LeRoux ss 5 9
David 3rd 1 11
McInerney lf 2 9
Garcia 1st 4 8
D. Dinauer 2nd 4 7
Revette 3rd 3 8
Koch 1st 4 6
J. Dinauer 2nd 5 4
Beceril cf 4 4
J. Johnson c 8 3
Brissette p 9 3
Decuf cf 7 2
Banister p 4 3
Freehling c 4 2
O’Laughlin p 4 1
Umphrey rf 7 2
A. Johnson rf 3 6
Totals 78 88