Wings over Dogs in Nail-Biter

Two undefeated teams entered Eliot Field tonight, and only one would leave. The Sea Dogs brought their bruising lineup and gold glove defense. The Red Wings countered with lights-out pitching and a stacked lineup of their own.

In the top of the first, Tom managed a single to center, but the Red Wings were unable to bring him home. Starting pitcher Eric took care of business in the bottom half, retiring 3 of 4 batters faced.

The Wings could not get anything going in their half of the second. Josh and Parker both made good contact but excellent defensive play kept them off the bases.

In the second, Eric retired the side in order. He had a good fastball tonight and he was hitting his spots. Through two innings, he had only allowed one baserunner.

With no score to start the third inning, Alejandro came to the plate. He worked a walk and then moved into scoring position when Alex took ball four on a full count. Two on for Eric. Batting lefty now, the switch-hitter took three balls and then launched the 3-0 pitch into right center for a single. With the table set, Tom stepped in and clocked a line drive that rolled up the rock and under the bush in deep center field. He thought he'd gone yard, but the call was a ground rule double. Two runs scored, and the Wings were on the board first. They were not finished yet. Next up was Jack, who smashed a hard single up the middle, scoring Eric and Tom. Wings 4, Sea Dogs 0.

Eric put the finishing touches on his masterful start in the third, striking out the side and keeping the Sea Dogs off the scoreboard. Eric had to battle the elements as well as the menacing Sea Dogs bats. It began to drizzle sometime during the second inning and cold air was moving in. By the end of the third inning, it was all out raining. But Eric kept his cool and made efficient work of a very good Sea Dogs lineup.

Three straight singles in the top of the fourth would produce another run for the Red Wings. Will hit the first up the first baseline and beat the first baseman to the bag. Great hustle. Josh hit the second up the middle and hustled to beat the throw.  Noah hit the third and also hustled to beat the throw. Noah's shot brought Will in from third, scoring what would be the winning run. Wings 5, Sea Dogs 0.

When you look back at any close game, you see many different plays that could have won it or lost it for you. In tonight's game, the three singles hit by Will, Josh, and Noah in the fourth inning were three at-bats that won the game for us. Each player had to sprint to beat the play at first. If any one of these three guys ran a half step slower, he would have been out. Will would not have scored. The Red Wings would finish with 4 runs instead of 5, and the game would end in a tie. This is why, no matter where you hit the ball, you always, always run hard up the line to first base.

With the Wings still alive in the top of the fourth, "J.D." Drew stepped in. He worked a full count and then took ball four. With Drew on at first, Micah did what he could to keep the rally alive. He worked a full count, fouled off a few, and laid off a pitch that could have gone either way. Strike was the call. But what a battle!

We knew the Sea Dogs' bats would get going at some point, and that point came in the bottom of the fourth inning. With one on, the Sea Dogs clean-up hitter connected with a fastball and sent it across the basketball court in left field--a two-run homer. But Red Wings reliever Will would limit the damage at two with some crafty pitching. He would get one batter looking, get another to ground softly to first, and strike out the next batter to get out of the inning. A good pitcher stays tough no matter what happens, and that's exactly what Will did.

Alex got things going for the Red Wings in the fifth with a single up the middle. He was perfect at the plate tonight, going 1-1 with a walk. A ground ball to first base by Eric and a walk by Tom would move Alex to third, but he would be stranded there and the score would remain 5-2, Wings.

The Dogs would continue to chip away at the Wings' lead, adding two more runs in the bottom of the fifth. The Wings were able to get out of the inning without any further damage because of Jack's overpowering fastball and some nifty glovework at first base by Sam who made a nice stop on a throw from Jack to get out number two. Red Wings 5, Sea Dogs 4.

In a close game, doing the little things right can make the difference between winning and losing.  When the second Sea Dogs run crossed the plate in the fifth, the ball was thrown to third base to hold the runner there. The throw was a bit off target and Alejandro had to stretch to make the catch. It was an important catch and not an easy one. If the ball got by him, the runner at third would have scored, and we would have a tie game. Alejandro saved the run with that catch--and the Red Wings' lead.

The Red Wings carried their one-run lead into the bottom of the sixth. Jack took the mound, and with rain falling hard at times and night rolling in, he stared face-to-face at the heart of the Sea Dogs' lineup. None of this seemed to faze Jack, though, who managed to grip the muddy ball well enough to strike out three of five batters faced and pick up the spectacular save. Parker helped the cause with some excellent work behind the plate. He held a steady target in the wind and rain and managed to stop almost every pitch.

This was truly a whole-team effort, and there were many outstanding contributions, so it was difficult to settle on only one player who deserved the game ball. Eric, our starting pitcher, gave us three scoreless innings in the wind and rain, displayed an absolutely dominant fastball, and produced at the plate with a single and a run scored. Tonight's game ball belongs to Eric.

A very exciting win for us against one of the best teams in the league. I have a feeling we will face these guys again in the playoffs. I can't wait!

T-Storm Puts This One on Hold

Thunder started to rumble right around first pitch and grew more menacing as the first inning came to a close. The managers of both teams gathered at home plate and decided to try to wait out the storm sheltered in cars. After 30 minutes in the Newman parking lot, we decided to give up the fight.

We were wise to surrender to the weather this afternoon, but the Red Wings will not surrender to the Durham Bulls. We will play this one sometime over the next couple of weeks. I will let you know as soon as we get it scheduled.

Whenever we do play this one, it's going to be quite a battle. Top notch pitching on both sides, two stacked lineups, and both teams are solid defensively. Should be a lot of fun!

Wings Continue to Soar

Dry skies with partial sun and a warm breeze made for real baseball weather tonight, but the Thunder rolled in with designs to spoil it all. The Thunder had put up big offensive numbers earlier this week in their 14-9 victory over the Knights. Would the Wings' pitching staff be able to tame the Thunder bats? This was the question on everybody's mind tonight at Newman.

Starting pitcher Tom took the mound in the first inning and quickly settled in to strike out the side. Thunder bats were silent through one.

In the bottom half of the first, leadoff hitter Eric worked a walk. Parker hit a shot to center for a single, moving Eric to second. Tom launched a double to left to drive in Eric, and the Wings were on the board with nobody down in the first. Three batters later, Josh got a hold of a fastball and smashed it up the middle scoring Tom and Parker, a 2-RBI double. 3-0, Wings.

Tom returned to the hill for the second and struck out 3 of 5 batters faced. The Wings were in command through an inning and a half.

Alex led off the Wings' second with a single. He showed good speed and hustle as he beat a good throw to first by half a step. Ken would then work a walk and move Alex into scoring position. Tom loaded the bases with a single to left, setting the table for Sam who drove in Alex with a single to right--the first of Sam's 5 RBIs on the night. The score was 4-0, Wings after two.

Tom came out for the third, stuck out two, and benefited from some excellent fielding at second base by Parker who scooped a ground ball up the middle and threw out the lead runner. No damage in the third, and the score would remain 4-0, Wings. Tom would finish his outing with 8 Ks over three innings pitched. Much credit goes to Noah who caught three flawless innings for Tom. He framed several key pitches near the edge of the zone and stopped almost everything. Every pitcher appreciates a reliable catcher, and the Wings have certainly found one in Noah.

In the bottom of the third "J.D." Drew got things going when he worked a full count walk. Alex hit a hard shot up the middle, but somehow the pitcher got a glove on it and threw him out at first.

Parker came out for the fourth inning and threw serious heat. He struck out the side and kept the Thunder off the board through four innings.

Ken led off the bottom of the fourth working a full count walk. Parker then hit his second of three singles on the night and brought Tom to the plate. Tom hit an absolute bomb to deep center, way back, way back... Gone! The first Red Wings' homerun of the regular season, a two-run dinger to put the Wings up by 6.

The first homerun of the season was followed immediately by the second. Sam came to the plate after Tom and hit a colossal shot to right center nearly all the way back to the Newman thicket--a no-doubt-about-it four bagger. Back-to-back homeruns for Tom and Sam put the Wings up 7-0.

Parker returned for the fifth and continued to pound the zone with a scorching fastball. He would strike out one, benefit from a baserunning error for another out, and get some solid defensive support at first base from Eric. Five scoreless innings for Wings pitchers.

Josh sparked a big fifth inning for the Wings with a single up the middle. Alejandro would keep the line moving with a full count walk. He has a great feel for the strike zone and knows how to get on base. Parker and Tom would both single in runs and keep the bases loaded for Sam. Yes, the same Sam who homered in the fourth. With three on, "Grand" Sam launched a 3-1 fastball to deep, deep center... Gone again! A grand slam this time. This is not something you see often in baseball at any level. Unbelievable!

Wings closer Eric took the mound in the sixth and put on a pitching clinic. He had absolutely dominant stuff and shut the lights out, retiring three of four batters faced with only 12 pitches. Ken was brilliant behind the plate, offering a steady target for each pitch and stopping nearly everything.

The final score was 13-0, Wings. Another solid team effort. Consistently effective pitching, reliable fielding, and phenomenal production at the plate.

The game ball went to starting pitcher Tom, who pitched three scoreless innings, went 4-4 at the plate with a double, homerun, 4 RBI, and 3 runs scored.

Tomorrow at Newman, we face another difficult match-up. The Bulls are undefeated so far, with some of the league's best pitching and a stacked lineup. 12:00 to warm up, first pitch at 12:30.

Clear Skies but Thunder in the Forecast Tonight

Fresh off a victory in their season opener, the Thunder bring their stacked lineup to Newman this evening. The Red Wings will counter with a pitching staff that's throwing some of the best stuff in the league and a well-oiled defensive machine behind it. Not to mention a lineup that produced seven runs on Monday against the hard-throwing River Cats. This will be a fun matchup to watch and an exciting challenge for the Red Wings.

See you at Newman. 5:15 to warm up, first pitch at 5:45.

Game Is Cancelled

The field is just too wet. Standing water covering much of the infield.

We will reschedule the game for 12:30 on Saturday at Newman, during our originally scheduled practice time. Warm up at 12:00.