The Whiz and Cubs met for game 3 tonight at Dutchman field. Pitching for the Whiz was Bob Bolt and for the Cubs was Chris Dunn. The first 2 innings were quiet for both teams. The Whiz got things going in the top of the 3rd. Dave Sirani started the inning with a single followed by a walk to Bob Bolt. Shawn Martin laid down a sac bunt to move the runners to 2nd and 3rd. Doug Reisinger had an RBI single followed by Gene Hallenbeck with an RBI single. Jeff Friedman followed by an RBI double. Paul Graziano followed that with an RBI double to finish the scoring for the Whiz. Whiz had a 5-0 lead after 3 innings. Bottom of the 4th had the Cubs threatening. With 1 out, Mike Girard, Chris Dunn and Jerry Rosen reached base on consecutive singles. The next batter grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning. The 5th & 6th inning were quiet for both teams. Top of the 7th saw Martin reach base on a single to left center and he proceeded to steal 2nd base. Greg Mangione, who replaced the injured Reisinger was able to hit a ball to the right side that moved Martin to 3rd. Hallenbeck hit a double to right that scored Martin. With 1 out in the top of the 7th, Mike Girard came in to pitch. Girard was able to get Jeff Friedman to hit a grounder back to the pitcher, but Hallenbeck was able to move to 3rd. Hallenbeck scored the final run on a pass ball. Whiz were up 7-0 going into the bottom of the 7th. Bottom of the 7th saw Rosen reach on a walk. Bolt was able to get the next out on a fly to left, followed by a strikeout. With 2 outs Dave Mitchell hit a single through the left side. With runners on 1st & 2nd, Bolt was able to strike out the next batter. Whiz win 7-0. Bolt finished the game giving up 5 hits, with 3 strikeouts, 3 BB and 1 hit by pitch. For the Cubs Chris Dunn was 2-3, with singles by Mike Girard, Jerry Rosen and Dave Mitchell. Dunn and Girard finished the game giving up 10 hits, with 1 strikeout and 2 BB. For the Whiz Gene Hallenbeck was 3-4 with a double and 2 RBI´s. Paul Graziano was 2-4 with a double and an RBI. Dave Sirani was 2-4 and Jeff Friedman had an RBI double.
CONGRATULATIONS Guys. Well deserved. Gene way to lead and get the job done. You and the Cubs both have quality teams. Looking forward to next season. I speak for everyone on the Yankees brother, Congratulations! We all will be coming for ya Lex
A tip of the cap to the Whiz on capping off the 3-peat with a great performance in game 3 (7-0 victory). The fact that they did so without Mike Kane and Jim Hicks (unavailable for game 3) makes it that much more impressive. To say that this effort was largely due to the pitching of Bob Bolt would be an understatement. He was in complete control all night. He rarely threw the ball anywhere near the middle of the plate. He worked in and out; up and down; hard and soft. It was a lesson on how to pitch. Great job Bob! The Whiz bats managed 10 hits off of the best pitcher in the division, when they needed them most. The Cubs were beaten by a better team on Monday night. It was just that simple.
That being said, I want to take this opportunity to thank my guys for all of the effort they put in to getting us to the finals, and to the final game. We ended up winning 16 of our 17 regular season games (including two wins vs the Whiz) against just one loss (vs the Whiz). We swept our first 3 playoff games and won our first elimination game in the finals vs the now 3-time defending champs. That puts the total season record at 19-3. Not bad! Won the regular season title: not bad. However, this team always strives for one thing, and that is the 55+ division championship. We fell one game short, and will enter the offseason disappointed that we did not achieve that goal. That does not mean that we did not enjoy the season. It just means that we have work to do. We will add a couple of new players and lose a couple of players (that happens every year), and we will try to turn the tables and end the 2024 season with the trophy back where it belongs.
To all of my baseball brothers here in the CDMSBL. I wish you all a very happy and healthy offseason. See you again next year. God willing!
Congratulations Wiz Awesome year Cubbies. Didnt help having Mr Reuter out and Loch hamstrung. Wiz certainly showed their class but Cubbies cant hang their heads after great year..
