1912 Cactus Champions Cup
Tris Speaker won his first Arizona League title, and the Payson Longhorns won their second as a franchise.
Longhorns round up Prisoners in five games
Yuma fired the opening salvo in the 1912 championship series, but Payson had more than enough answers to take the series in a near sweep.
The purple and yellow-clad Longhorns captured four straight games after losing the Cactus Cup opener and picked up their second title in franchise history.
The 'Horns definitely had a Murderer's Row offensive lineup. No. 3 hitter
Tris Speaker, clean-up man
Jake Daubert and No. 5 hitter
Del Paddock combined for 27 hits over five games. Paddock, a rookie third baseman, may have been the MVP of the series, finishing 10 of 18 with two doubles and two triples. He drove home three runs and set the table for a lot of other scores.
Speaker was outstanding as well, finishing 8 of 20 with five runs scored, a double, a triple and a homer in five games. He drove home five scores.
"This all really began after last season," Speaker said after the Game Five victory that clinched the series, an 8-4 decision that saw Payson stroke 14 hits. "A lot of us just got together, went camping and fishing for a few days in the White Mountains and talked about what we wanted this season to be. We all committed to being a championship caliber outfit and fulfilled our goals."
Charley "Sea Lion" Hall earned two of Payson's pitching victories, winning Game Two and Game Five. Hall finished 3-1 in the post-season, a nice finish to what had been an average year for him.
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John Dobbs was one of Yuma's top players. He had three hits in Game One and three more in Game Two. But the 'Horns kept him quiet the rest of the series.
Speaker dismissed reporters when asked about his thoughts on whether he'll win this year's Big Stick Award for the Northern League. Speaker again led the NL in many offensive categories. "I don't worry about that stuff," he said with a twinkle in his eye. "Really, I just want to win games and championships, and we did that."
Daubert was more blunt. "If he doesn't win, then it will be a travesty. Just like last year."
No word on whether the Payson boys have any camping trips planned this off-season...