JMC was now up 11-6 heading into the 6^th with time running down. Special K finally settled into a groove putting down the heart of the JMC order 1-2-3 and the Beat came back for more hacks. But as quick as you can say “grab some pine, meat!” the Beat went down with only a single by Brett (1-3).

JMC opened the 7^th with back to back singles but the bottom of the order was set down three straight without advancing a runner past second. The Beat had one last chance to lay down the hammer and change this dreary sunny day or go home for a long winter.

Rob and Pete (1-1) opened the inning with clean singles, then the old man started to struggle with the strike zone walking Jacq to load the bases. Brian hit a sac fly driving in Rob. Jacque drew a walk to load the bases. Kev took the count full then drove a ball to deep center for another sac fly scoring Mondo (running for Pete). Tim stepped up and roped a two run single driving in the Wilson brothers and suddenly the Beat had come from an 11-3 deficit to within one run, 11-10. Two down and Big Daddy at the plate, 2-3 with a double on the day. D scorched a ball to Vic at third, but like McCovey to Richardson 46 years ago the Beat’s comeback was thwarted and their playoff chances dashed.

The Beat had turned a nightmare into a nail-biter, but the end result was just as sad. The Beat skulked off the field trying to fathom what had just happened while JMC took their momentum across the field to manhandle Spread the Glove 24-12 in the nightcap. JMC's double-header win in week eight vaulted them to the division title and dropped Ronin into the wildcard slot. JMC finished the season at 6-2 and won the division crown outright thanks in part to a gift from the dreaded umpire Henry who handed JMC a forfeit win over Old Clamhouse in a tight contest a week earlier. The Beat and the Glove go home to lick their wounds for a long winter off.

Overall the game was much closer than it seemed. Both teams had 18 hits but the Beat’s 3 errors accounted for 7 unearned runs (however I’ll shoulder half of those after letting the floodgates open with two down in the 4^th, dammit!). The Beat’s slow start forced the team to play catch-up the entire game but any number of “little things” could have made up that last elusive run that would have sent the game into OT.

We may have had a few bumps this summer but we still came within one run of making the playoffs for the third consecutive season, a feat the Beat has only accomplished once before during the great 4-title run from 2002 to 2004. I think the divisions we played in this year were the most evenly matched we’ve ever seen; this summer’s 5-team division had 4 teams still in the hunt in the final week!

But Mondo went back to the team charter quoting off-field as well as on-field contributions. At the suggestion of MSG, Mondo made a final decision on another two time winner that no one could argue with; Pete Wenner.

Pete’s been on many Brass Beat lists over the years for the thankless position of trying to hold this team together; playing one week shorthanded, the next week with too many, trying to juggle who’s hot and who’s not in a short 8 game season, and doing all he can to make sure everyone gets ample playing time even at the expense of his own at bats when he’s one of the hottest hitters on the team. This year Pete posted an outstanding .552 batting average and .647 OBP but came in just a few at bats shy of qualifying for the leader board.

Pete won his first Brass Beat as a player in 1993 but he now joins Jim Harvey and Wilfred Spoon as player/manager winners, and MSG and Mondo as the only two-time winners. This is Pete’s 21^st season with the team and 11^th as manager, so this second award has been a long time coming. However it couldn’t come at a more apropos time as this year Pete broke the 100 victory milestone for regular season games with a career winning percentage of .617; and that includes those first few difficult years in C.

Not many on the team now remember our first season in C league when Wilfred moved and the Rat Pack left as well; about half of the starting line up in fact. Pete took over the helm and started a great rebuilding process that began with Brian Arcuri and Jim Colletto. We lost a lot of games those first couple years shocked by how much more talented the teams were in C; and the league asked us more than once if we’d like to step back down to DD. But the Beat legacy bought us the option and we stayed up and battled, picking up new talent along the way, most notably franchise cornerstones Jacq and Jacque Wilson (with a huge assist from Gunnar and the Sandbox), until within a few short years we went from being the doormat of the league to perennial challenger for the title with 7 post-season appearances in the last 8 years. Under Pete we are one of the few teams that have lasted over 10 years in C league without ever being sent down.

Pete has taken the Beat Legacy to a whole new level over the last decade. He continues to find talented players that fit in and help us continue forward. In just the last few years he’s brought in Mondo, Brian, D-Rey and Tim and this year Brett, Dylan and Rob (this great team has seen over 90 players come and go over our 20+ years).

Say It Ain’t So!
It was rumoured after the game that Jim Colletto is hanging up his cleats; say it ain’t so Jethro! I’m hoping we haven’t seen the last of the Thrill. I know he’s talked about this for a few years…who hasn’t? I know I have. But I have to say Jim, it has truly been a pleasure. You are one of the all time great teammates. You take whatever role is handed to you on any given day and give it 100% with a great attitude and you’ve been one of the most consistent hitters (if not THE most) on the team for the last decade. I hope we see you back for at least a few games next year.

If indeed this is the end for Jim, he finishes his illustrious 10+ year career with a lifetime .511 BA (4th all time).  He won three team batting titles and was the Brass Beat winner in 2004. Jim was a 3-time team leader in OBP and RBIs. He compiled a mind-boggling .633 BA and .727 OBP in 2005.  

Stat Attack
Okay, well first off this season was nothing like the outlandish record breaking season we had last year. And since we’ve already seen what Jacque did this year I guess it’s off to the also-rans.

I usually save rookies for last, but I just have to throw Dylan’s name out there first. I have to be honest I wasn’t sold on Dylan in the spring but damn, this guy can hit! I was wrong…mea culpa. Dylan not only led the team in hitting with a .568 average, he slammed three doubles, a triple, and three holy monster home runs to lead the team with a .946 slugging percentage as well; not to mention coming in second in OBP at .590 for a team high OPS of 1.536.

Big Daddy had another good year hitting the leader board with 26 hits (2^nd), 17 runs (4th), a .542 average (2^nd), 4 doubles, a couple triples, a .708 slugging pct (4^th) and .571 OBP. D also extended his team career marks with 298 RBI and 32 triples. Jacq was right behind his brother with 23 runs scored (2^nd) from the leadoff spot and 25 hits (4^th). Kev was up there also with 25 hits (3^rd), 17 runs (4th), and 15 RBI (4^th). White Lightning chimed in with 17 runs scored (4^th) and 17 RBI (3^rd). MSG turned in a solid season with 24 hits (5^th) and a .500 average (4^th) and extended his career marks with an incredible 528 hits and 402 runs scored. And our buddy JC was there as usual with 14 RBI (5^th), .500 batting (5^th), and .690 slugging (5^th). Rounding out the leader board is Beat rookie Brett Goldstein who showed some pop late in the season with .727 slugging (3^rd) and .563 OBP (4^th). Brett, the highly successful manager of 2-time 2008 C-1 division champ the Horseshoe, was also instrumental to the team leadership regularly consulting with Pete on lineups and defensive alignment as well as plugging holes in the spring with some of his talented players to spell key Beat injuries and absences.

Now if it seemed like I rushed through that last group I did. Many years ago we used to draw an arbitrary line between those who qualified for the leader board and those who didn’t. It became clear that a better standard was required so we set the line at a reasonable 2 at bats per game average. However this year a gross injustice was done by that line and three players were left off the board by only 1 or 2 plate appearances. Tim Smith had another outstanding year though he missed a 6-game chunk of the summer for school. Tim finished with a team high .647 batting average, .676 OBP, 1.206 slugging, and 1.882 OPS. Tim tied Jacque with 5 home runs and was second on the team with 18 RBI and third with 21 runs scored. Pete turned in a .647 OBP (2^nd) and .552 average (3^rd). And Beat rookie Rob Villegas finished with a .545 average (4^th) and .600 OBP (4^th). So with just a couple more at bats these guys would have owned the percentage side of the leader board and that just deserved special mention.

Special K got spanked a few times on the mound as usual but turned in nine games with five earned runs or less and finished the season with a 5.82, his best of the composite bat era. Kev also passed a milestone with over 100 total wins (including tourneys and playoffs) and set a new team iron-man mark with 88 consecutive starts dating back to 2004.

Note from the Editor: For many years now T.C. has been the unofficial Beat photographer providing us with team photos and enough classic shots to make some nice player cards. In 2008 T.C. really stepped up his game with some incredible live-action shots of which we’ve posted quite a few. It’ll be quite an off-season project culling through this year’s photos to find the perfect group to add to the team photo site. Thanks T.C. for all your dedication and devotion to the Beat for these many years (and you know when we give you a hard time over team photos it’s all in fun, right?).

 

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