Wow. Put this one up there with the Spirit's win in Quebec in 2004. This game had it all.
Tonight's starting pitchers, Gary Galvez and JC Huguet, cruised early on, and the game settled into a calm pattern. It was scoreless through 5. Then, the runs came fast and furious, and in the end the Spirit emerged with a 5-4 victory and a 2-1 series lead. WOOO!!
With the game tied at 4, Mike Torres smashed a home run off of Surf closer Matt Pike to decide the game. Derek Drage came in and set Keesee, Fischer, and Taylor down 1-2-3 to end the game.
The Spirit struck first in the 6th on Alex Trezza's solo home run, but the Surf came right back to chase Galvez with 3 of their own in the bottom of the frame.
In the top of the 7th, Mike Torres's RBI single and Alex Trezza's bases loaded sac fly tied the score again.
But once again, the Spirit bullpen could not hold it. With Lucas Taylor (who else?) on 3rd and 1 out, Anthony Granato grounded out against Carl Schaeffer to bring home the 4th Surf run.
The Spirit, however, did not give up. Vic Davilla came through with a clutch RBI single in the top of the 8th, scoring Gary Roche and tying the game before Torres's winning blast an inning later.
ONWARD!
Showing posts with label i have a permasmile because of this game. Show all posts
Showing posts with label i have a permasmile because of this game. Show all posts
Friday, September 07, 2007
Monday, August 13, 2007
Wow
Christ on a Cracker, that game got DRAMATIC. Wow. My pulse is still returning to normal after that one. DAMN those Rox are a FEISTY bunch.
The live-blog below this post is pretty much an accurate stream-of-consciousness rambling of what I was feeling in the 9th.
The Spirit took a fairly comfortable 6-3 lead into the 9th inning, but Derek Drage continued to be a 'heart attack closer' tonight, letting the Rox crawl right back into the game.
Rox slugger Francisco LeBron came up to bat with the bases loaded and 2 out and drew a four-pitch walk to make it 6-4.
Then, John Allen hit a ground ball up the middle that was booted by Gary Roche, continuing the game and allowing a run to score.
Tony Gonzalez came to the plate with the bases loaded and a chance to win the game. After a nail-biting at bat, Drage reared back and whiffed Gonzalez to finally end the game and give Gary Galvez a well-deserved victory.
Gary Galvez (is it bad that I want to write Gary Glitter?) gave up 2 runs on 6 hits in 6.2 strong innings of work.
Donny Langdon came in and got the last out in the 7th, but gave up a leadoff single in the 8th. He was then replaced by Jamie Baker, who came in to face Francisco LeBron.
Baker walked LeBron, putting runners on 1st and 2nd with nobody out, but Baker escaped the jam and got three huge outs to maintain the 6-3 lead --- every bit of which would be needed.
At the plate, Mike Torres and Anton French starred with 3 hits apiece. Torres also had 2 RBI on the day, including an RBI triple in the 8th.
Luis Lopez added an RBI double in the 8th inning to score Torres with what would end up being the winning run.
Nice.
The live-blog below this post is pretty much an accurate stream-of-consciousness rambling of what I was feeling in the 9th.
The Spirit took a fairly comfortable 6-3 lead into the 9th inning, but Derek Drage continued to be a 'heart attack closer' tonight, letting the Rox crawl right back into the game.
Rox slugger Francisco LeBron came up to bat with the bases loaded and 2 out and drew a four-pitch walk to make it 6-4.
Then, John Allen hit a ground ball up the middle that was booted by Gary Roche, continuing the game and allowing a run to score.
Tony Gonzalez came to the plate with the bases loaded and a chance to win the game. After a nail-biting at bat, Drage reared back and whiffed Gonzalez to finally end the game and give Gary Galvez a well-deserved victory.
Gary Galvez (is it bad that I want to write Gary Glitter?) gave up 2 runs on 6 hits in 6.2 strong innings of work.
Donny Langdon came in and got the last out in the 7th, but gave up a leadoff single in the 8th. He was then replaced by Jamie Baker, who came in to face Francisco LeBron.
Baker walked LeBron, putting runners on 1st and 2nd with nobody out, but Baker escaped the jam and got three huge outs to maintain the 6-3 lead --- every bit of which would be needed.
At the plate, Mike Torres and Anton French starred with 3 hits apiece. Torres also had 2 RBI on the day, including an RBI triple in the 8th.
Luis Lopez added an RBI double in the 8th inning to score Torres with what would end up being the winning run.
Nice.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Spirit @ Brockton Video from Saturday Trip
Here is a video of pics/vids I took on the road trip Eric,Joe,Amanda,Alan & I took on Saturday to Brockton.
Warning,it's a little long......but this game was awesome! ^_^
Warning,it's a little long......but this game was awesome! ^_^
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Mea Culpa
That just brings a tear to my eye......
The Spirit pounded Brockton tonight, 14-3, and Josue Lopez had quite possibly the best game any Spirit positon player has ever had. He went 5-FOR-5 with a triple (Dave thankfully has video of this amazing feat), a double, and three singles. Truly unbelievable. Ever since Leahy compared him to Mo Vaughn, he's got 7 hits... so keep it up. Jo-sue might actually be turning it around - which would be huge! WOOOO!
Our thoughts on tonight's MVP:
In addition, Vic returned. North Shore improved to 4-0 with Vic Davilla in the lineup, although Vic did go just 1-4 with a cheap hit in the 9th. I really hope he stays permanently this time.
For the record, WE CALLED IT TONIGHT!! hahahahahaha....
Post game reactions in the car:
Chris Farley didn't have his best stuff tonight, giving up 8 hits in 6 innings, but in a very unSpirit like fashion, North Shore escaped a lot of jams tonight AND were opportunistic at the plate --- and won the game by 11 despite only having 1 more hit than the Rox. When has THAT happened this year?
Gary Galvez was cruising along for Brockton until the 3rd, when Tony Gonzalez dropped a routine fly ball into right by Luis Lopez. That opened the floodgates for the Spirit, leading to an 2RBI double for Josue "MY MAN" Lopez with 2 outs to open the scoring. Jerson Perez added another RBI to make it 3-0.
A job very well done....
In the bottom of the 4th, Gonzalez atoned for his error with a solo blast to right to make it 3-1, but it was as close as Brockton would get.
The rest of the game was a hit parade:
Torres RBI single in the 5th off of Galvez...4-1
Luis Lopez RBI single in the 6th off of Galvez...5-1
Top 6: Josue Lopez scores on a DOUBLE STEAL off of Luis Carreras...6-1
Top 8: Josue Lopez legs out an RBI TRIPLE...7-1
Stevens then came in for Brockton in the 9th and the wheels really fell off:
Luis Lopez brings in two on an E-6 by de La Cruz...9-2
Josue Lopez makes it 5-for-5 with a ribbie single...10-2
BJ Weed with 2RBI single...12-2
The Rox put in right fielder Tony Gonzalez to pitch... he walked Chris Wood and Mike Torres with the bases loaded to make it 14-2.
Yes... Fun IS Good....
Jamie Baker, Donny Langdon and Derek Drage combined to pitch the last three for the Spirit. They were all a bit shaky, but got the job done.
I think everyone can agree with this one.
Hey, at least the Rox had a FEW things to cheer about:
Vic didn't have a very good night...
And Sumo Wrestling always keep the patrons happy. I think the idiot in the red is Chris Miyake. It WOULD sum up his night... :)
Superman, Spirit style........QUOTE OF THE NIGHT:
"It's all fun and games until you [opens the fan scroll] CATCH THE SPIRIT!" -Eric Roberts
Also, I want to add that I called in to the Rox postgame show after the game. First and foremost, the Rox postgame show is GREAT. Why can't we do stuff like that?
The host is awesome, as well - and we had a nice chat. I avoided 'rubbing it in' as best as I could. ;)
At the end, he said that he knows that the Spirit fans have a blog... and that broadcasters around the league read it and pick up valuable information on the Spirit. He also greatly complimented the diehard Spirit fans out there -- we were all over Campanelli tonight.
So, Can-Am broadcasters...thanks for reading... and you're welcome. :)
Saturday, June 30, 2007
FUN IS GOOD: SPIRIT STUN PRIDE 7-5 IN 10 INNINGS
With 2 outs in the 9th and the Spirit down 5-4, Darren Blakely hit a pop up to left, and it appeared to be over. I got up and started to walk out. The Pride were about to win in come-from-behind fashion.
But not on this night - on a night when the sellout crowd of 3,341 bought into the 'fun is good' mantra and created a tremendous atmosphere, a night when Vic Davilla came out of retirement for the 80000th time, and a night when the Spirit continued to finally show some pop.
There were a million story lines going into the bottom of the 9th: Vic's return, Josue Lopez's Golden Sombrero (0-4, 4 Ks), Torres's continued offensive excellence, the solid pitching of Josue Matos, and the not-so-solid pitching of Jamie Baker, who served up a 2-run, game tying homer in the 8th to Jermy Acey.
But the real storyline was about to unfold.
Jerod Edmondson, Nashua's left fielder, dropped Blakely's easy pop to left. Blakely reached 2nd.
Enter BJ Weed. He smokes a game tying single to lift, prompting some serious jubilation in the Fraser stands the likes of which I don't think I've ever seen, except maybe in playoff games.
In the top of the 10th, Nashua put runners on 1st and 2nd w/ 1 out. Matt Creighton smashed a line drive to right which Carlos Rodriguez handled. The runner on 2nd attempted to tag up and reach 3rd.... big mistake. Carlos Rodriguez GUNNED him out and ended the inning, prompting another standing ovation from the Fraser faithful.
Alex Trezza started the bottom of the 10th by reaching 2nd--- 2ND!!! --- on a dropped third strike. (In the many baseball games I've seen, I don't recall EVER seeing that happen. EVER!) Then Carlos Rodriguez sent everyone home happy with an absolute no-doubt screaming blast over the left field fence and into Jimmy Hurst territory near the trailers. Amazing. Absolutely amazing.
I didn't even go nuts when he hit the HR (I used up all of THAT energy when Weed tied the game) I just kind of sat there amazed and a little overwhelmed --- this probably rivals the Tony C night walkoff win over Brockton for the title of 'best ever Spirit regular-season home game.'
The Pride looked absolutely stunned and the Spirit were hopping around jubilantly. It was a great celebration and a deserving one for Rodriguez who was already a hero for his top-of-the-frame heroics. They were clearly pumped and could feel some serious momentum.
The Spirit now have 4 wins in a row - their longest streak of the season. Maybe the fight and getting smoked by Quebec brought them together. Or maybe their big bats are just starting to hit up to their potential. Either way, the offense is turning it around, and the pitching has been there all year (league leading 2.94 ERA going into tonight). With an easy part of the schedule coming up, this might just be the turning point we've been anticipating since day two of the season.
Vic Davilla hit a home run in his third-ever 'first game back', a solo dinger to dead center. Darren Blakely also had a smashed HR of his own early on. In addition, Mike Torres ripped an RBI single, adding up to an early Spirit 4-0 lead.
But the Pride chipped away at Spirit starter Josue Matos, who did pretty well in his debut appearance but was chased after narrowly escaping further trouble in the sixth.
The man/ninja/myth/hero/Lantigua-slaying legend Dennis Robinson made his return in the 7th and retired the Pride in order.
In the 8th, Jamie Baker struggled mightily. He walked the leadoff man (never a good sign) and gave up a 2-run opposite field blast to Jermy Acey to tie it. Then in the top of the 9th Billy "Simple Simon" fared no better. He also walked the leadoff man, Luis Rodriguez. With runners on 2nd & 3rd and 2 out, Simon threw an awful wild pitch that skipped past Trezza and let Rodriguez in the back door, stunning the Spirit and giving Nashua a 5-4 lead.
It appeared to be a lost cause, then --- the Spirit had complete control of the game and let it go to waste. They were going to fall back to .500 and lose a game they should have won.
But it was not to be. Hooray drama!
What an awesome night at the ballpark.
It's nights like these that make all the rest of them worth it... this was the Spirit experience at its best. Here's hoping it's not the last time we get that magical feeling this year.
Post script: QUEBEC LOSES TO NEW HAVEN, 7-3! Perfect. AND Atlantic City's 3-1 win over Worcester means the Spirit are a half game back of the magic #4 spot in the league table.
But not on this night - on a night when the sellout crowd of 3,341 bought into the 'fun is good' mantra and created a tremendous atmosphere, a night when Vic Davilla came out of retirement for the 80000th time, and a night when the Spirit continued to finally show some pop.
There were a million story lines going into the bottom of the 9th: Vic's return, Josue Lopez's Golden Sombrero (0-4, 4 Ks), Torres's continued offensive excellence, the solid pitching of Josue Matos, and the not-so-solid pitching of Jamie Baker, who served up a 2-run, game tying homer in the 8th to Jermy Acey.
But the real storyline was about to unfold.
Jerod Edmondson, Nashua's left fielder, dropped Blakely's easy pop to left. Blakely reached 2nd.
Enter BJ Weed. He smokes a game tying single to lift, prompting some serious jubilation in the Fraser stands the likes of which I don't think I've ever seen, except maybe in playoff games.
In the top of the 10th, Nashua put runners on 1st and 2nd w/ 1 out. Matt Creighton smashed a line drive to right which Carlos Rodriguez handled. The runner on 2nd attempted to tag up and reach 3rd.... big mistake. Carlos Rodriguez GUNNED him out and ended the inning, prompting another standing ovation from the Fraser faithful.
Alex Trezza started the bottom of the 10th by reaching 2nd--- 2ND!!! --- on a dropped third strike. (In the many baseball games I've seen, I don't recall EVER seeing that happen. EVER!) Then Carlos Rodriguez sent everyone home happy with an absolute no-doubt screaming blast over the left field fence and into Jimmy Hurst territory near the trailers. Amazing. Absolutely amazing.
I didn't even go nuts when he hit the HR (I used up all of THAT energy when Weed tied the game) I just kind of sat there amazed and a little overwhelmed --- this probably rivals the Tony C night walkoff win over Brockton for the title of 'best ever Spirit regular-season home game.'
The Pride looked absolutely stunned and the Spirit were hopping around jubilantly. It was a great celebration and a deserving one for Rodriguez who was already a hero for his top-of-the-frame heroics. They were clearly pumped and could feel some serious momentum.
The Spirit now have 4 wins in a row - their longest streak of the season. Maybe the fight and getting smoked by Quebec brought them together. Or maybe their big bats are just starting to hit up to their potential. Either way, the offense is turning it around, and the pitching has been there all year (league leading 2.94 ERA going into tonight). With an easy part of the schedule coming up, this might just be the turning point we've been anticipating since day two of the season.
Vic Davilla hit a home run in his third-ever 'first game back', a solo dinger to dead center. Darren Blakely also had a smashed HR of his own early on. In addition, Mike Torres ripped an RBI single, adding up to an early Spirit 4-0 lead.
But the Pride chipped away at Spirit starter Josue Matos, who did pretty well in his debut appearance but was chased after narrowly escaping further trouble in the sixth.
The man/ninja/myth/hero/Lantigua-slaying legend Dennis Robinson made his return in the 7th and retired the Pride in order.
In the 8th, Jamie Baker struggled mightily. He walked the leadoff man (never a good sign) and gave up a 2-run opposite field blast to Jermy Acey to tie it. Then in the top of the 9th Billy "Simple Simon" fared no better. He also walked the leadoff man, Luis Rodriguez. With runners on 2nd & 3rd and 2 out, Simon threw an awful wild pitch that skipped past Trezza and let Rodriguez in the back door, stunning the Spirit and giving Nashua a 5-4 lead.
It appeared to be a lost cause, then --- the Spirit had complete control of the game and let it go to waste. They were going to fall back to .500 and lose a game they should have won.
But it was not to be. Hooray drama!
What an awesome night at the ballpark.
It's nights like these that make all the rest of them worth it... this was the Spirit experience at its best. Here's hoping it's not the last time we get that magical feeling this year.
Post script: QUEBEC LOSES TO NEW HAVEN, 7-3! Perfect. AND Atlantic City's 3-1 win over Worcester means the Spirit are a half game back of the magic #4 spot in the league table.
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