Three-Run Comeback sends Beat into the break at 4-0

Ronin the latest C-league champ to fall to the Beat in 15-14 shootout.

The Beat took a week off with a well-deserved bye and a perfect 4-0 record after eking out a stunning 1-run walkoff victory over defending league champs Ronin on April 17. The “ugly” error-marred victory capped an exhilarating 2-week stretch in which the boys in gray defeated both of last year’s C-league champions, the SF Ballers (formerly Joey Js) and Ronin in completely different fashion.

The 15-14 Beat/Ronin donnybrook set up a potentially exciting 2nd half in which the Beat will go through the league again with big targets on their backs. While the Beatniks enjoyed a hiatus this past Saturday, the Ballers ran their record to 3-1 with a convincing 18-11 win over the Other Guys to stay on our tail. Conversely, Ronin (1-3) suffered its third 1-run loss of the spring to Finnegans in a 10-9 heartbreaker to fall into a crowded last place tie with Finnegans and the OGs.

Following a decisive 10-2 Beat win over the Ballers, the same team that had vanquished us in the C-league title game last June, the long-awaited match up with Ronin seemed as though it might have been anti-climactic when the Beat learned that Ronin was missing half its lineup due to a co-ed tournament in Hawaii. Regardless, the Ronin replacements without the dangerous cleanup hitter Joe Tang, its erstwhile manager and legion of fans, proved to be a scrappy outfit that led for most of the game. The Beat committed 6 errors and made at least 2 more mental mistakes in almost handing the game to Ronin before having to dig deep to pull out a close win after falling behind 14-12 in the top of the final inning.

“It was exhausting to pour over that score sheet,” said the manager. “Some of the emotions I was feeling at the time came flooding back later—it was frustrating and scary at the same time.”

You could say the same thing about the early season. The first half of Spring 2004 was a roller coaster for The Beat that began with a hard fought 8-6 comeback victory over Finnegans on opening day. This game also saw a defensive breakdown in the middle innings that The Beat was able to overcome. The boys in gray followed with an efficient 14-2 rout of the Other Guys and Ron Hamilton in his first appearance on a softball mound in 2 years.

Kevin (Special K) Austin won the first of 2 consecutive game balls with a 7-hitter over the OGs then followed it up with a 10-hitter and no earned runs against the hard-hitting Ballers. In that game, The Beat capitalized on 5 walks in the 2nd inning and a big defensive breakdown by the one-time Joey Js (7 walks and 5 errors overall) to take an early 10-2 lead after 3 innings before the 2 pitchers settled into a pitchers’ duel that resulted in 4 innings of offensive futility. No fewer than 8 Ballers runners were left on base by the stingy Beat defense.

To D or not to D

2004 Spring Standings

Team W L PCT Pts GB

The BEAT 4 0 1.000 8 –

SF Ballers 3 1 .750 6 1

Finnegan's 1 3 .250 2 3

The Other Guys 1 3 .250 2 3

Ronin 1 3 .250 2 3

The OGs and Ballers wins were tidy affairs thanks to the pitching of Austin and the spectacular Beat defense. The team turned 4 double plays in the 2 games (6 in the first 3 contests) to defuse rallies and help Kevin out of jams. “These guys are, without a doubt, the best defense I've seen on a softball field,” boasts Austin. “We see at least two ‘Web Gems’ every game, and with the speed we have in the outfield, there are no gaps—this defense takes away the big play and forces teams to earn every run!”

Fleet rookie Jason Pendergast joined the incomparable Wilson Brothers in the outfield to form an iron wall that freed up Armando Lopez to take over shortstop from Brian (The Rifleman) Arcuri, who suspended his Beat career on March 24 after 5-1/2 seasons. The Beat used the depth of its extended roster by calling on Paul Sanders and Terry Hempleman to fill in capably on offense and defense as regulars Mark Briscoe and Mark (MSG) St. Georges missed games due to prior engagements. But the key to the early Beat surge was once again overall team speed and pitching as well as some timely clutch hitting in the late innings. The team average was relatively low at .445, down from .513 last summer, so the beatniks made the hits count when they needed them.

The Ronin game could've been a classic game for the Beat to lose, too. Coming off the big Baller's win, one could imagine the Beat coming out and losing a sloppy game just to bring us back to earth. The Gods might have decreed it. But they didn’t despite the uncharacteristic spate of Beat errors.

The Beatniks were down 5-1 in the 3rd inning against Ronin due to 3 errors before coming back with 8 runs in the home half on consecutive singles by Mike (Butz) Buttafuso, MSG, Donnell (Big Daddy) Moody and Jim (The Thrill) Colletto before a 2-run homer by Jason to deep left center made it 9-5. Ronin came right back with 6 runs of their own in the 4th mostly on line singles. A clutch tag-out at the plate by Greg (Lucky Luki) Lukoski saved the Beat from further damage and kept it at a manageable 11-9 deficit.

The Beat came right back in the bottom of the 4th with 3 runs to take the lead at 12-11 thanks to more singles by the middle of the order (MSG, Moody and Colletto) before Jacque (The Jet) Wilson’s hard-hit grounder trickled through the legs of shortstop Mike Conlan leading to 2 runs and a Beat advantage.

Bye-week Heaven can wait
After a leadoff single in the Ronin 5th with only minutes left to play, Austin got 2 outs to put the Beat on the brink of 4-0. However, a critical outfield error put the go-ahead run aboard for Ronin, which scored on an ill-advised fielder’s choice which should have been the 3rd out. A 2-out single by “Robert” resulted in an insurance run to make it 14-12 Ronin.

The never-say-die Beat looked all but dead when Lukoski’s 1-out grounder rolled toward the Ronin 2nd baseman in the bottom of the 5th, but an errant bobble and wide throw pulled the 1st baseman Stu Besman off the bag, giving the boys in gray another life. A locked-in EP Pete Wenner scalded a single up the middle to move the alert Luki to the 3rd before the fleet Pendergast came in to run for the lead-footed manager. Austin singled to bring the Beat within 1 and put runners at 1st and 2nd with 1 out. A single by Jacq Wilson loaded the bases before Buttsy ended the marathon with a 2-run single that kept the Beat undefeated and firmly in first place (1-1/2 games at the time). Butts (2 for 4, 2R, 3 RBIs) walked off with a game ball for his heroics.

Team leaders at the break
Jacq (The Rock) Wilson put together a great first half by leading the Beat in 4 offensive categories—runs (8), hits (8), average (.615) and OBP (.750). Mike (Butts) Buttafuso currently leads in RBIs with 5 with Colletto, MSG and Moody close on his heels tied with 4 apiece. The rookie Pendergast led the team in slugging with a prodigious 1.111 mark courtesy of a double, triple and home run.

On the mound, Austin was indomitable logging a microscopic 3.08 ERA. Prior to allowing 7 earned runs in the Ronin match up, Special K sported an unheard of 1.40 ERA over a 3-game stretch that may never be duplicated. The defense, despite shortcomings against Finnegans and Ronin allowed an overall un-softball rate of 6.72 runs a game. Since May 11, 2002, the boys in gray have won an incredible 26 of 29 regular season games. Needless to say, the second half will be tough for The Beat to improve on, but don’t put it past us.

Next up, Finnegans at 1.45pm on May 1 at the wind tunnel on Jackson #2.

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