Minors Reds v. Cubs
The Cubs were on fire, winning seven out of their last eight games, and were excited to face the Reds for their last game of the season. Despite the threat of thunderstorms, the teams were able to eek out a game. Tyler Rohan walked and Kai Glick singled. Spencer Kiehl’s shot to left center brought in Rohan. Sam Frere-Holmes spanked one to centerfield, but the Cubs’ Cameron Lamser was all over it for the out. Tyler Kraehling grounded out to the pitcher, but was able to drive in Glick. Will Best found a hole in center field, bringing in Kiehl with a single. Dario Flores brought on the heat, though, and Jonathan Parker went down looking.
The Cubs faced Frere-Holmes on the mound, who, struck out three, while stranding two runners in the first.
In the top of the second, Liam Barwick and Rohan walked, and Glick’s powerful single drove two runs in. Kiehl’s pop-up was also deftly handled by Gabriel Quinones, and the Reds were now ahead 5 – 0.
Quinones tattooed two consecutive homerun-distance foul balls. His third contact sent the ball soaring into shallow left field. Kiehl, at shortstop, did his best to catch it over his shoulder, but the ball dropped for a double for Quinones. He stole third, but was stranded there.
In the top of the third, Kraehling got an R.B.I. single. Best had a one-bagger as well, and advanced to second when Parker grounded out to the pitcher. Derogatis walked and loaded the bases for White, who walked a run in. And in an outstanding at-bat, Oliver Mettle connected for his first hit of the season, a 2-R.B.I. single! Barwick walked, and Curtis-Ginsberg came in to relieve Dario on the mound. Rohan came up to bat, and his line drive double brought in White and Mettle. Barwick kept on going and was tagged out at home, but the Reds had added another six.
In the bottom of the third, Glick pitched a 12-pitch inning, striking out three.
The Reds were at bat again, and Glick led off with a single. Kiehl’s grounder forced Glick out at second. Frere-Holmes’ triple brought in Kiehl. Kraehling’s single brought in Frere-Holmes. Best singled as well, and Parker’s double brought in the third run. And the final batter for the Reds for this season, Derogatis, rose to the occasion with his best hit of the year, a double to left field, which drove in two runs.
For their last licks, the Cubs’ Matteo Flores took a base on balls and stole second. Brother Dario surprised the Reds with the first bunt of the season. Both stole bases and with the runners on second and third, Griffin’s grounder to second not only meant no force-out for Dario, but an R.B.I. for Griffin. Quinones connected again, driving in Dario and going to second on the overthrow. Curtis-Ginsberg was hit by one of Glick’s fast balls (trust us, we know that hurt!), but he and Quinones were stranded when a pop fly to second base was handily gloved by Kraehling, and the next batter struck out. Afterwards, both teams celebrated a fun season with trophies for everyone, not only the M.V.P.s of the teams, but for those with the best sportsmanship, the most improved hitting, and perfect attendance for the season.
Junior Minors Upper
Cardinals v. Tigers
Playing through periods of both hot sun and pouring rain, the Cardinals and Tigers showed off their defensive skills in one of the last games of the season. The visiting Tigers came to bat first. Marcus Wong made an impressive force-out play at second base for one out, and Ogden Opheim caught a fly ball at third to end the inning and hold the Tigers scoreless. For the Cardinal’s first at-bat, James Stinnett led off with a line drive to right field, and Ogden Opheim had a hard-hit double to score Stinnett and earn the first R.B.I. of the game.
In the second inning, Marcus Wong made both the second and third outs when he caught two fly balls at second base. The Tigers held the Cardinal scoreless in the second.
Cardinal defense continued to be key in the top of the third when pitcher Walker Brandt, with bases loaded, made a force out at home to end the inning.
Cardinal bats heated up in the bottom of the third. Kamron Landry led off with a hard hit single to left field, followed by double from Stinnett. Qiufei Smart and Bain Boudreaux both collected R.B.I.s batting in Landry and Stinnett respectively. Ogden Ophiem reached base on a single, and Marcus Wong batted in Smart and Ophiem.
At the top of the fourth, Kamron Landry held a Tiger rally in check at with two tag-outs at second base in the top of the fourth. The inning ended with a play by pitcher Tai Manheim to third baseman Brandt for a force out at third.
In the bottom of the fourth, Landry, Stinnett, and Palmer Menken started the inning with singles each. The Cardinals put more runs on the board when Qiufei Smart, with bases loaded, had a hard hit single to first base.
With the rain coming down hard, the Tigers put together a rally in the fifth inning to close the score by three runs. Mak Manheim scored in the bottom of the fifth for the Cardinals after reaching base on a double. James Stinnett earned the R.B.I.
With the game close and the rain ending, the Cardinals redoubled their defensive efforts. Playing first base, Marcus Wong fielded a hard hit grounder for the force out. Tai Manheim connected with second basemen James Stinnett for the second force out of the inning. Pitcher Brandt threw to second basemen Stinnett for the third and final out of the game.
Above, Cardinals 2nd baseman Kamron Landry tags out a Tiger. Middle, Tigers Arthur Perry at bat. Melina Driscoll hits the ball, bottom.
Tigers v. Astros
In a season in which the Tigers battled back game after game, to inch ever closer to the top of the standings, they faced on Sunday a juggernaut Astros team of dedicated players, mostly two and three year veterans, and whose strong suit is a defense that can play with anyone. While the Astros offense sputtered for the first part of the season, their bats had awakened recently. And the Tigers knew it was going to take a team effort to compete with the big bat of Noah Skelskie, who had started crushing any pitch near the plate and Will and Trevor Goldstein who had been showing their skills. As they took the field, the Astros looked to finish the season with pride and power.
The Tigers, though, relied on their forte: strong pitching, airtight fielding, and two-out hitting. It began in the first inning when Niall Gallagher and Michael Bogdanos, each sporting an on-base percentage of over .600 on the year, did what they’ve done all year: get on base, steal a base, and score. In a dramatic moment, Brody Sharoff came off the disabled list to drive them both home as if he had never missed a game. But the torrid hitting didn’t stop there: Tyler Adams, Kyle Goldfarb, Justin Ho, Max Dell-Thibodeau, and Ben Karam continued their hitting streak. Quality hitters all, even when they made outs, they made the Astros pitchers and fielders work for it. When William Watt, circled the bases to score on a perfect slide at home, the Tigers knew all their hard practice was paying dividends. It was reinforced later in the game when Bogdanos stroked a two–run single and Ethan Wallis singled him to third. They scored when Sharoff blasted a home-run, breaking his tie with Bogdanos for the team lead in home runs. But no one was going to catch switch-hitting Max Ripps who walked away with the team lead in triples.
It wasn’t just their hitting that shone. When the Astros started a rally, Graham Nelson used his rocket arm in centerfield to throw out a runner at second base, while Ripps and Gallagher added to their league-leading total of catching base-stealers—thanks to the lightning-quick tags of Wallis at third, Bogdanos at shortstop, and Karam and Ho at second. Anchored by slick-fielding Sharoff at first, hit after hit was taken away from the Astros—as it had been from other teams throughout the year.
In true Tiger fashion, though, it was the pitching that sealed a victory that was far closer than indicated by the 15 – 4 final score. Side-arming Ripps started the game, using both sides of the plate to hold the mighty Astros to one run. In the second inning, it was Gallagher’s turn to show his command of the mound as he pitched a scoreless frame. In the third, the tandem of Adams and Goldfarb showed their growth from throwers to pitchers by retiring the Astros in order. In the fourth inning, Sharoff came on to feature his dart-like fastball, with Dell-Thibodeau relieving mid-frame, and one of the league’s most reliable pitchers, Uriah Fredericks, coming in for the save. The team-oriented focus of the Tigers is best represented by the fact that on the year, five different pitchers earned wins (Ripps, Sharoff, Nelson, Gallagher, and Fredericks who led the team in wins).
