It came down to the final four games of the year. Maine was sitting at 43-34, while Boston was at 42-35, entering the final series in Maine. Winner to the playoffs as the wild card; loser was looking at a long winter. These two combatants were very familiar with each other, having faced off in last year's playoffs (with Maine advancing to the World Series, where they would lose to Michigan).
Maine won the first game handily, 8-3, to move to one game away from playoffs. It would not be an easy journey though. Boston won game two, 18-2 and game three 15-0 -- a 33-2 onslaught that brought both teams to the edge of elimination going to Game 81!
Game 81 was a nail-biter, as it should have been. FIVE players got injured in the game, including TWO Maine pitchers (damn 6-12 roll with the DH!). Both benches and bullpens were stretched to the limit. Game was tied 2-2 in the bottom of the 7th. Maine got two men aboard and up stepped Adalberto Mondesi. One of the most controversial picks in draft history. Most said Maine "reached" with the 11th pick of the first round four years back, including both the Boston and Pittsburgh general managers. But reach for the stars is what Mondesi did, lacing a 2-run triple into the gap. Another hit knocked him in, and Cy Young candidate Tyler Duffey closed it out with two shutout innings, and the Loggers were alive and well, with a 5-2 win, which brought 41,000 masked Logger fans streaming onto the field to celebrate.
This now makes two years in a row that Maine has ended the Bobcats season -- both times, against Bobcat starter Lance Lynn. The Phantoms are next on the Adalberto "hit list".
No comments:
Post a Comment