GEORGE PRATT CLUB TOPPLE MAKEPEACE

Daily Playoff Recaps M STREET SOFTBALL - By Jim Sullivan The semi finals of the M Street Softball League continued last week with Makepeace and the George Pratt Club (GPC) battling for five thrilling games before the Pratt Club pulled off their amazing comeback in the series clincher on Wednesday evening. Prior to the deciding game, Makepeace took a commanding 2-0 series lead with 13-6 and 5-3 victories which were highlighted in last week's article. They returned last Monday and were looking to complete the series but the George Pratt Club had other ideas. In a game that saw both teams break out the lumber, the Pratt Club kept their playoff hopes alive with a thrilling 12-11 win. There were a combined 40 base runners on a night when the pitchers found themselves scuffling. Makepeace's Jimmy Pinkston followed Friday's eight-strikeout effort with seven more in this game, but didn't always have his overpowering stuff. Pratt Club starter Mark Senna was strong through the first four, then gutted it out over a rocky final three to snare the one-run victory. GPC jumped out to a 3-0 lead on a two-run homer by Kevin O'Hara, followed by a solo shot from Pat Dolbeare. Sandwiched in and around the three runs, Pinkston struck out the side. Makepeace came back in their half of the first, scoring two, on a walk, three singles, and a sac fly. The score remained 3-2 until the bottom of the fourth when Ryan Wilson (2 for 3, 3 RBI) stroked a solid home run that took a one-hop bang off the brown wall across the street from left. Joe Pano followed with a double, subsequently scoring, making it 5-2. Makepeace evened things up in the top of the fifth. After Mike Mercier made a really nice play for the first out, tracking a ball in short right from his position at second base, walks to Ian James and Brian Pacheco brought Joe Claudio to the plate. Claudio (3 for 4, 3 RBI) singled. Senna then got Jimmy Pinkston to hit what looked to be an inning-ending double play ball, but it got through the infield, bringing Jim Innocent (3 for 4, double, 3 RBI) up. The "I-Man" singled, bringing Angel Andrews to the plate. Senna got Andrews to provide another possible double-play ball, but The Pratt Club could only get the lead man, leaving the inning alive and allowing Makepeace to tie things up at 5-5. A force out at second finally ended the bleeding. The Pratt Club fought back, rocking Pinkston for six runs in the bottom of the fifth. A single by Danny Ekasala started things off. Pat Sullivan was robbed on a fine play by shortstop Claudio, going to his right to snare a hard shot and throwing back to second for the force. From there, though, it would be another six batters before Makepeace could record a second out. O'Hara singled, Dolbeare walked, Ryan Wilson singled, Pano was hit by a pitch, and Senna cleared them with a hard shot to center, taking third by hustling around the bases on a throw home that eluded the catcher. Mercier grounded out to first, unassisted, for the second out, with Senna's run scoring. The final out of the inning was recorded when Dave Seerman was ruled out, while still at the plate, for using an illegal bat, and, by rule, he was also ejected from the contest. The heavy damage had been done long before, though, and George Pratt led by a score of 11-5. Back came Makepeace! Four hits, an error, a hit batsman, and it became a one-run contest. Jim Innocent stood on second, with one out, representing the tying run following his two-run double. Senna stranded him, however, getting the next two batters on a fly to left and a grounder to short. Pratt scored what proved to be an important insurance run in the bottom of the sixth, as O'Hara (3 for 4, 3 RBI) brought Tim Walsh home with a clutch two-out double. The score stood at 12-10 for GPC through six complete. Not ready to die by any means, Makepeace started their final at-bat by loading the bases with nobody out, on singles by Chris Barrientos, Matt Fornier, and Ian James. The single by James was a rocket back through the middle that Senna somehow got a glove on, deflecting it and keeping it in the infield, saving a sure run at that point. A fine pick and throw by Pano then got a force at home, leaving the bases loaded and still no runs. Joe Claudio hit a deep sac fly to Wilson in left, scoring Fornier. That made the score 12-11, with runners on first and third, two out, and the always-dangerous Pinkston coming to the plate. Senna dug down for what he had left and got Pinkston to fly out to right, ending a very exciting contest. The series then moved to Tuesday where a full harvest moon was overshadowing right field. GPC was looking to even the series while Makepeace wanted to end it and save the 1 hour drive from Fall River for a trip to the finals. However, the George Pratt Club were not to be denied as they scored early and often on the way to tying their series at two games each. The undermanned Makepeace squad, missing star pitcher Jim "Country" Pinkston and big-batting centerfielder Ian James, were valiant in defeat, but the relentless hitting attack of the Pratt boys was just too much for them. The never aging 61 year old Angel Claudio started in place of Pinkston and was rocked in the first inning. After a leadoff walk by catcher Danny Ekasala, and a sharp single by Pat Sullivan (4 for 4), Marty Jimenez made his first at-bat following his layoff count, driving in both runners with a bloop triple to right field. Brad Morrill copied Jimenez, hitting one to almost the same spot and also grabbing three bases. Kevin O'Hara singled home Morrill and, after Claudio finally got the first out on a fly to right, Pat Dolbeare launched a mammoth shot that clanged a good 60 feet high off the light pole in straightaway left. That made it 6 - 0 and it seemed like it might be the start of a rout. Joe Pano followed with a hard double, and then Tim Walsh hit one right on the screws, too, but his liner was fielded by shortstop Joe Claudio, who doubled Pano off of second to stop the damage. A fine defensive play by Jimenez highlighted a scoreless bottom of the first. He held the bag while making a tremendous scoop of a throw in the dirt, completing a 5-4-3 double play. Claudio settled down in the second, holding Pratt scoreless. Then his teammates showed that they weren't going to lie down in this one, sending ten men to the plate in a six-run, seven-hit bottom of the inning. Angel (3 for 4, 3 RBI) helped himself by driving in the first two, and clutch hits by Ito and Joe Claudio drove in two more. What had started as a laugher was now a tied game after two. The teams traded goose eggs in the third, highlighted by another defensive gem from Jimenez. He ranged well into right field, back to the plate, to corral a pop down the line with bases loaded and two away. The Pratt Club sent Angel Claudio to the showers in the top of the fourth with a walk by Walsh, a line single to center by veteran Tommy Connolly, and an RBI double by Pat Sullivan. Jim Innocent relieved for Makepeace, and retired the first man he faced, but Brad Morrill singled home Ekasala (who had reached on a fielder's choice) and Sullivan, making it 9 - 6, Pratt. They would not relinquish the lead from that point. Pratt pitcher Mark Senna settled down nicely following the Makepeace uprising in the second inning, allowing only one run thereafter. Meanwhile, GPC tacked on an additional run in the fifth, and another two in the seventh, to make the final tally 12-7. For the fifth and deciding game, Mark Senna threw a five-hit shutout, and The George Pratt Club completed their comeback from down 0-2 in the best-of-five semi-finals, beating a shell-shocked Makepeace squad, 12-0. Pratt pounded out 15 hits on their way to scoring 12 runs for the third consecutive game. The 2 through 5 spots in the line-up led the attack: Pat Sullivan (3 for 4, double, 3 runs scored), Marty Jimenez (3 for 4, triple, 2 RBI, 2 runs), Brad Morrill (3 for 3, home run, 3 RBI, 3 runs), and Kevin O'Hara (2 for 3, triple, 3 RBI). Perhaps the most amazing fact concerning the run production in Pratt's comeback was that it came, in two of the three 12-run games, against a pitcher regarded by many to be the top hurler at M Street this year. Jim "Country" Pinkston set a league record for strikeouts this season, and he picked up quite a few more in this series. He had seven more in this game, including a run of five in a row at one point. When Pratt connected, however, it was with authority. It wasn't an auspicious beginning for Senna and the Pratt Club. Makepeace's Ian James started the game with a long triple. As it turned out, he would be the only Makepeace batter to reach that base all night. Two hard line drives to shortstop Joe Pano and a fly to Pat Dolbeare in center left him stranded, and then the carnage began. Danny Ekasala singled, as did Sullivan. After a fielder's choice cut down Ekasala at third, Morrill doubled, scoring two, and O'Hara drove home Morrill, to make it 3 - 0 after one. The second inning saw Pano draw a one-out walk, followed by a triple from Adam Ralston. A fielder's choice by Ekasala scored Ralston, to make it 5-0. More damage was limited when, on a Jimenez single to right, Makepeace's Matt Fornier made a strong throw to cut down an ambitious Pat Sullivan at third, ending the inning. In the third, Morrill hit a towering home run to lead off. Following a one-out double by Dolbeare, though, Pinkston found his groove, striking out two to end the inning, and then striking out the side in the fourth, completing a string of five consecutive strikeouts. It was an impressive stretch, but Senna allowed only two hits to Pinkston's teammates, and the score was 6-0, Pratt, through four complete. Makepeace mounted their last real challenge of the night in the top of the fifth. The lone base-on-balls given up by Senna was to Jose Ortiz leading off. With one out, catcher Dan Nash singled, putting men at first and second. Senna quelled the mild uprising by inducing a fly to left and a grounder back to himself, which he flipped to Jimenez at first to end the inning. Then GPC virtually put the game away in the bottom of the inning, banging out four straight hits - three of those for extra bases - followed by a sac fly to very deep center. That scored four more, making it 10-0. In the top of the sixth, Pinkston made a bid to break the shutout with a double to the 316 marker in center, just missing clearing the fence. As with every other Makepeace runner this night, he ended up stranded. Senna left him where he was with an infield pop-up and a fly out. The game came to a merciful end in Pratt's half of the inning on a single by Pano, a two-out run-scorer by Sullivan, and a game-ending single to left by Jimenez. Sullivan crossed the plate to make it 12-0 and the teams exchanged handshakes. It should be noted that the Makepeace boys were a class act all the way, even when faced with this disappointment, and the league as a whole is richer for their having joined. George Pratt moves on to face defending champion Shenanigans in the best-of-seven final which was scheduled to start on Monday, September 19th at 8:00 pm. The series will continue on Tuesday (Sep 20), Wednesday (Sep 21), Monday (Sep 26), Tuesday (Sep 27), and Wednesday (Sep 28). If the level of play exhibited in these playoffs continues, it promises to be one for the ages. We hope to see you at the park. Have a great week!

Jimmy Pinkston Mark Senna Jim Innocent Kevin Ohara Pat Sullivan Marty Jimenez Brad Morrill Pat Dolbeare