Two of the 35+ divisions top contenders got together on a wet and cold Wednesday night at Bob Moore. It was too bad that the weather kept all the fans away, because this was an instant classic!
The Orioles looked in control early, as they scored twice in the opening frame on a HBP, a walk, and two singles. Jim Becker was dominant in the first 3-2/3 innings, as he retired the first eleven Cubs in order. Not a single Cub batter could manage to get the ball out of the infield, then suddenly, with two outs and nobody on in the top of the fourth, the Cubs erupted for 4 runs on three consecutive singles, two walks and a couple of Oriole throwing errors. The Orioles bounced back to knot the score at 4 in the bottom of the fourth by capitalizing on three Cub errors. The only hit in the inning was Tony Nardacci's 2-RBI single. Then the pitchers and defenses settled in. Becker cruised through the next 4 innings allowing only one infield single. Ron Massaroni was equally as good in the 5th through 8th innings, keeping the O's scoreless while scattering just one hit per inning.
Then came the deciding 9th inning: Tom Maney got on to lead off the inning, and as he attempted to steal second, Ron Lochner lined a double into the left field corner.
The Orioles decided to walk Mike Girard to load the bases for Andy Hoyle, who promptly singled home Maney. Randy Craft then worked a walk and Sean Maney was hit by a pitch to plate the second and third runs of the inning. Jim Becker was relieved and three wild pitches later the bases were emptied and the Cubs had a 6 run lead. With the curfew approaching, the Orioles mounted a comeback getting the first 3 hitters on base with two hits and a walk, scoring two. With a runner on third and nobody out, it was obvious that Massaroni was out of gas. On came Phil Gadomski, who promptly induced two fly outs and stuck out the last hitter looking.
There were a number of exceptional performances that need to be mentioned:
For the Orioles, Becker was terrific on the hill, both pitching and playing his position, once he released the ball. Tony Nardacci had three hits and two RBI's, and Doug Reisenger was 2-4.
For the Cubs, TJ Scorsone was super in his first appearance behind the dish. He blocked countless balls in the dirt and threw out two Oriole runners trying to steal in key situations. Sean Maney played a courageous game on a badly sprained ankle, and Andy Hoyle had two big RBI singles aginst a very tough pitcher.
I can't wait until the rematch later in the season. I'm sure it will be a great game as well! Let's just hope we have a little better weather and field conditions!