This article by BSUK special correspondent Simon Fitzjohn, was first published on www.britishbaseball.org

The Mildenhall Bulldogs claimed the prized final playoff spot in 2010, and the Richmond Flames laid down an impressive marker as the National Baseball League regular season drew to a close on Sunday 21 August. The Bulldogs swept the Herts Falcons in a winner-takes-all showdown, while the Flames eased past heavyweights Bracknell Blazers.

Herts Falcons’ leading batter, Dan Kerry, had to be taken out of the first game with a  suspected broken toe.

Everyone connected with Herts wishes him a speedy recovery. (photo by www.HP2photographic.com)

HERTS FALCONS AT MILDENHALL BULLDOGS

Anyone expecting a tension-filled, tight brace of encounters were to be disappointed as the Bulldogs rolled to impressive 11-4 and 18-1 victories. Barry Wiles and Ken Reber picked up the wins on the mound, sentencing Pete Kikel and Nic Goetz to defeat and erasing the Falcons from the play-off picture in the process.  Herts’ Aspi Dimitrov said, “My immediate reaction is obviously one of disappointment.  We were so close to making it, but all of the credit must go to Mildenhall.  They fully deserved their wins.” “I would predict that if they have their full roster available for the play-offs they are going to surprise a few people and could even go all the way.”

BRACKNELL BLAZERS AT RICHMOND FLAMES

Richmond swept the Blazers in impressive fashion to wrap-up their third-placed finish in style.  The Flames were 13-0 and 6-5 winners, with Ryan Bird and Rob Unsell taking the pitching honours. Coach Grant Delzoppo also clubbed a two-run home run in game one as part of an impressive all-round display. Delzoppo said: “We are really pleased.  To get two wins and finish the season on a high is a real plus for us.  We beat their best pitchers.  It is always good to beat a side like Bracknell and this will give us a real boost heading into the play-offs.”

The Herts Falcons suffered a setback in their mission to reach the National League playoffs.  A spirited fight back by the visiting Essex Arrows in the last inning resulted in a heartbreaking loss for the Falcons. Despite this, a combination of results in the other NBL games and a convincing win in the second game of the day meant that the loss in game one was not as costly as first thought.

Having beaten the Arrows in their previous two meetings this season, the Falcons went into the game with confidence but the tension of the postseason race was evident.  Herts took a slender lead early in the game, but the visitors kept in touch with their starting pitcher Matt Gilbert keeping batters off balance by changing speed very effectively.  Herts went into the seventh and final inning with a 3-2 lead and it looked as though starting pitcher Pete Kikel would complete the game with a win after he struck out the lead off batter, Ben Sayer.  A great deal of credit has to be given to the Essex Arrows at that point as they didn’t give up.  Their next two batters got on base after they were both hit by pitches.  A double by the always dangerous Rich Chesterton tied the game.  Up next was Essex’s cleanup batter Matt Gilbert and the Falcons decided to walk him intentionally to load the bases.  Leftfielder Brandon Florence was the next to bat and he drove the ball all the way to the outfield wall to bring in 3 more runs.  In total 5 runs came in and that proved to be too much for the home team to recover from in the bottom of the inning.

Stung by that loss, the Falcons came back fighting in the second game.  They took a 14-1 lead in just three innings of play.  Their bats were on fire.  Third baseman Alex Ganster went 4-for-4 driving in 5 runs.  Carlos Casal from Hemel Hempstead and Jason Greenberg had two hits each but the biggest ovation was for shortstop Brandon Deal who launched the ball high over the left-centerfield wall for a 3-run home run.  He was 3-for-3 with 3 RBIs in the game.  He will miss the remaining games of the season as he will be on military duty overseas over the next few weeks, but that was a great way to end his season and send the Falcons on a high going into next week’s do-or-die last game of the season against playoff rivals Mildenhall.

After the games Herts Falcons Manager, Jason Greenberg said: “”It was a disappointment that we let game one on Sunday slip through our fingers.  We had a slim one-run lead going into the final frame, but it wasn’t enough to secure the win. But the boys battled back in game two, and I was pleased with the confidence and momentum we found right from the first pitch.  That’s how we need to begin our series against the Bulldogs this Sunday: with the knowledge that we are going to get ahead early, and stay ahead until the final out is made.”

With Mildenhall picking up two wins against Southampton, losing game one against Essex has turned out to be not as costly as first thought.  The Herts Falcons will be travelling to RAF Feltwell this Sunday knowing that they must win one of their two games against the Bulldogs to book their place in the playoffs.  If they win both games they would jump over both Mildenhall and Croydon which would give them better seeding in the playoffs.  Losing both games is not an option as that would signal the end of the season for the boys from Hemel Hempstead.

images courtesy of www.HP2photographic.com

Going into the sixth inning and trailing 5-2 the Herts Falcons stunned their playoff rivals Croydon by scoring nine runs in the last two innings of the game.  This incredible comeback keeps the Falcons firmly in the race for the postseason playoffs.

The Herts Falcons went into their double-header against the Croydon Pirates knowing that a sweep would put them in pole position for the playoffs, but on the other hand if they were to lose both games, their chances of postseason glory would virtually disappear.  Croydon faced a similar predicament which gave this game a postseason feel.

Croydon took the lead in the second inning after a solo homerun by Maikel Azcuy.  Herts came back with two runs of their own in the third inning but Croydon regained the lead again in the bottom of the inning.  Going into the bottom of the fifth with the game finely poised at 3-2 Jose Sosa delivered a devastating blow by driving the ball over the left field wall with the bases loaded for a grand slam.  This took the game beyond the Falcons.

This meant that the second game of the double header became “must-win” for the visitors from Hertfordshire.  They started aggressively taking an early lead on an infield single by Marty Cullen which glanced off the glove of the pitcher allowing Luis Goncalves to come home.  Croydon bounced right back and after 5 innings they had a commanding 5-2 lead.  Their lead could have been even bigger if it wasn’t for some incredible defensive plays including a spectacular diving catch by left fielder Marc Martinez.  With only two innings remaining the Falcons produced one of the comebacks of the season.  They first tied the game scoring 3 runs in the sixth which included a 2-run double by Carlos Casal. Falcons starting pitcher, Nic Goetz, was still going strong on the mound and he retired the Pirates quickly in the bottom of the sixth to keep the game tied at 5-5.  In the seventh Herts continued their onslaught.  The offensive pressure was too much for the Pirates to take as six more runs came in. 

Despite Croydon putting runners on second and third with nobody out in the final inning, Goetz held on allowing only one run to come in.  That one run may have appeared to be nothing more than a consolation for the Pirates, but it could have huge implications if Croydon and Herts end the regular season with identical win-loss records.  In that situation the League’s tie-break rules would come into effect.  In their head-to-head encounters Croydon and Herts each have 2 wins and 2 losses, which means that the tie would have to be broken by looking at who has conceded the lowest number of runs in the games between Croydon and Herts.  Thanks to that consolation run Croydon would jump above Herts as they have conceded 1 run less than them after Sunday’s epic games.

This may prove to be decisive, but at the same time it may actually be a blessing in disguise as the Falcons now know their task very clearly.  They need to win three out of their remaining four games and this would guarantee their place in the playoffs. After their incredible comeback win, the Falcons have the momentum with them.  Next up for them is a home clash with rivals Essex.  Can they do it?

Images courtesy of www.HP2photographic.com

GAME 1 BOX SCORES

GAME 2 BOX SCORES

The Bracknell Blazers and London Mets strengthened their place at the top of the BBF’s National Baseball League standings in Week 14, while Southampton and Richmond continued to squabble over third spot as the race to the National Baseball League play-offs is heating up.

NBL Special Correspondent Simon Fitzohn reports:

BRACKNELL BLAZERS @ HERTS FALCONS

Bracknell Blazers earned a sweep of their own against Herts, in wildly contrasting games.  Game One was a comfortable 12-1 win, with Kirby Brooks on the mound, Rob Rance clubbing a home run. But Game Two was a different matter entirely, the Blazers having to rally in the final inning for a 10-4 win. Aspi Dimitrov was saddled with the loss. A dejected Dimitrov said: “We had a 4-3 lead going into the final inning of the second game. We played really, really well and in the end I let the team down blowing the save.

“Our future is still in our own hands though.” Dimitrov added. “It is very disappointing and it hurts right now, but we have to get over that and keep battling.”

LONDON METS @ ESSEX ARROWS

An understrength London Mets side still had too much in their locker for the Essex Arrows, earning a sweep by 10-0 and 9-6 scorelines. Jason Roberts took the win in Game One, with Reed Wilson on the mound for Game Two. Roberts also caught the eye with the bat, scampering for an inside-the-park home run in the opening game. The Mets’ Alex Pike said: “The first game was pretty straightforward, but we only had nine men and it was a case of trying people out in different positions. We know we are going to make the finals and the key now is for us to try a few things out. “Anything could happen in the finals,” Pike added, “and we have to be prepared for what they throw up.”

CROYDON PIRATES @ MILDENHALL BULLDOGS

Mildenhall finally got back to winning ways by seeing off the Croydon Pirates in both their games, 5-4 and 17-2. Kevin Culver pitched the win in Game One and Jason Coffey followed up in Game Two, with Jose Perez smashing a home run. Mildenhall’s Gabriel Macias said: “It feels good to be back. We came out hard and we came out hungry. It was just what we needed. It had been a long time coming, but we still feel we can make the play-offs.”

SOUTHAMPTON MUSTANGS @RICHMOND FLAMES

The battle for third spot showed no signs of clearing up after Southampton and Richmond split this doubleheader. Southampton took Game One 7-5, thanks to Lee Ralph’s pitching and despite home runs from Grant Delzoppo and Ryan Bird. Bird was at it again in Game Two, clubbing another home run along with Michael Osborn, who also took the 6-1 win on the mound. Delzoppo said: “It was a little bit disappointing. We had plenty of chances in the first game but didn’t take them and gave runs away on errors. But it was really pleasing for us to bounce back the way we did and get the win in the second game.”