A Belgian Wiffle
Another glorious Vermont summer day greeted the first Belgian Wiffle at Gapbridge, setting the tone for the day. The game would come to exemplify all that is right in wiffle; scoring, defense, pitching, comebacks, and good beer. In short, it was a classic.
Lonichiro shows off the bounty of a fine morning from the waffle stand at Gapbridge
The game got off to an explosive start as the Away side jumped to a 6-0 lead in the first. With a strong breeze blowing across the field from the North, the game would quickly turn into a battle of pitching and defense. The pitching was downright nasty for the bulk of the game.
The home side rallied in the 5th to rack up 4 runs. Guapo looked to have a deep ding to left. The wind held it up enough for Beck to mozy over from right field to make the catch in triple land. The home side would add a run in both the 6th and 7th to even the score at 6 a piece entering the 8th. Dan "The Plastic Surgeon" sent the away side packing on three consecutive K's, while Hot Rod knocked the home side down in order with a GO, FO, and K.
After Guapo made quick work of the away side in the top of the ninth, it came down to the last three outs of scheduled play knotted up with J-Mac on the hill. Things were looking good for the home boys as they quickly got two runners on with just one out. Then things got interesting.
"The Catch" - generally I don't like writing about my own play, so I am going to describe this part of the game from the first person. I was playing right field and knew that any extra bases hit was going to end the game. I cheated as far towards left as I felt I could get away with. Trot Thompson was at the plate and already had shown he was hitting with power. Soon as he swung, I knew he had made solid contact and I started to run for left. It was as solid a hit as you could expect in the wind and started to drop abruptly. Everything timed out perfectly, I laid out into a full dive and just caught the ball before crashing into the ground. I still am not sure how it all played out, but I know it was one of those moments that makes you truly love the game. Only in LowBall would the opposing team run onto the field in celebration after you robbed them of a win with a completely luck driven play. What a game.
The game went on into extra innings. Though El Guapo got a bit of a scare, things remained tied after 11. It was decided that due to constraints, the game would be called as a tie, a fitting end to a contest fought equally hard on both sides.
No wins were awarded, however I have elected to award a dual player of the game. For the home side, Dan "The Plastic Surgeon" was the obvious choice. Despite a slow game at the plate, The Surgeon dominated from the mound. Racking up a whopping 10 Ks while only giving up 3 hits in 4 innings of action. For the away side, Hot Rod Beck is finally finding his mark and has racked up some solid numbers. In today's game, Beck sent 9 batter's away KO'd, deadmanned 2 batters, only walked 3, while giving up a measly one hit in four innings.
El Guapo, owner of a shut-out through 4, throws to the league's top batsman, LonIchiro
The Beck Opposite Field Swing. On a signature drive just foul off the right field line, Trot Thompson would make a phenomenal running/diving catch to kick Beck to the bench.
LonIchiro with the steady camera work
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