Pastime Baseball League
PENNANT WATCH!
Sept. 29, 2011
Late-Inning Hero-ics
New York scores 11 runs in 7th, 8th to take first place from Louisville
NEW YORK -- For six innings, it was everything pennant-race baseball should be. Then it crashed around the Louisville Racers.
The New York Heroes scored six runs in the bottom of the 7th, and another five runs in the bottom of the 8th for a 14-4 win in the opener of their season-closing four-game set against Louisville, putting New York in first place by a game.
After a week of chaos and criticism of the suspensions of aces Jim McCormick and Roy Oswalt, it was time to decide it on the field.
Edinson Volquez (15-9, 3.30) started for Louisville and retired leadoff man Fielder Jones before surrendering a single to Dick Higham, a double to Roger Connor and a two-run triple to Jesse Burkett. Irish Meusel then doubled to score Burkett and the New York crowd was rocking.
Louisville's Joe Kelley led off the second with a long home run to right center off Heroes starter Harry Howell (11-9, 4.02) to make it 3-1.
The pitchers settled in after that, Volquez escaping a bases loaded jam in the third by getting Jim Viox to pop up to second and striking out David Wright, whose disappointing season continues.
Howell walked two in the fifth and with two outs Billy Southworth skied one to center that Fielder Jones simply dropped. Heinie Peitz scored while Willard Marshall stopped at third and Southworth pulled into second, the lead trimmed to 3-2.
On the eighth pitch of Hardy Richardson's at bat, he bounced one to short that Ed McKean muffed, allowing Peitz and Marshall to score and giving Louisville a 4-3 lead.
But the good times for Louisville ended soon after. Irish Meusel threw out Lefty Marr at the plate in the 6th, trying to score on a Hideki Matsui single.
Volquez had retired seven in a row when the bottom of the seventh began, and the wheels began to come off. Jones singled, as did Higham, moving Jones to third. Roger Connor flew out deep to right, letting Jones tag to score, tying the game at 4.
Volquez was done as Jeff Tesreau came in to relieve him. He walked Jesse Burkett, then allowed an infield single to Meusel to load the bases. He then hit Pat Mullin with the first pitch he threw him, forcing in a run and giving New York a 5-4 lead.
Jim Viox then roped a 2-run single, scoring Burkett and Meusel to make it 7-4. Wright struck out again, but hopes of minimizing the damage were dashed when Ed McKean lashed a 2-run double down the third base line to make it 9-4.
Tesreau's horrific effort was done, as Danys Baez came in to strike out Fielder Jones to end the inning.
Howell escaped trouble in the top of the 8th, and New York went back to work in the bottom of the ninth, adding runs on a 2-run homer from Pat Mullin and a RBI hits from Hughie Jennings - pinch hitting fo David Wright - and Ed McKean.
"This first one was big," said McKean - who drove in three on the night - after the game. "We wanted the driver's seat, and now we're in it."