Well now. After shocking the world (the world defined as the guy that looks back at me in the mirror on those days I deign to shave), Kerry squares off against those dastardly Diamond Dogs. (How is that for alliteration?) Kerry and the Diamond Dogs finished last year with identical records, so I expect a close, hard fought series. (I really don’t. I expect to get clobbered but the goal is to keep you reading so Tom doesn’t can me like a ChiSox manager.)
Game 1 pits Williamson (C) against Kerry’s Jon Gray (CY). A funny thing happened on the way to getting clobbered. (This was the original working title to a Mel Brooks film, but he changed it at the last minute.) McCutcheon walked to lead off the Kerry first and took third on Freeman’s rocket to the gap. Hicks singled for a pair and was erased on Suwinski’s slow roller. Urias’ line single put runners on the corners with one out. Ibanez hit one to the track and just like that it was 3-0 Highlanders. Suwinski added a solo blast in the third, his first home dinger of the season. Meanwhile, Gray had faced the minimum through three, thanks to one double play. The Dogs finally broke through against Suarez (DW) in the 7th. Kiriloff doubled and came around to score on consecutive infield outs. Neris (A&C*XW) on to close it out for Kerry in the 9th. With one out, Chapman is aboard on an error. A walk to Kiriloff ended Neris’ evening. Bautista (A&C*XY) induced another ground ball error to load them up. Mullins singled to plate two unearned runs and swiped second. The Dogs had the tie run at third, the lead run at second when Rosario popped up down the right field line. Ibanez made an over the shoulder catch, wheeled and fired to Bailey at the plate to catch Stephenson to end the game. Kerry escapes, 4-3.
Game 2 has Glasnow (BXY) for the Dogs and Greene (CXY) for Kerry. Can Kerry stay hot? Well, in a word, no. Ohtani, fresh off his 0-4 performance yesterday, clobbers a two run tater in the first and a solo bomb in the third. He doubled in the 5th and walked in the 9th, going 3-4 on the day. Meanwhile, Glasnow fanned a mere 12 Highlanders in six innings of work, giving up just one earned on three hits. His best buds from the pen added 7 more K’s, ensuring that 19 Highlanders took the walk from the plate to the dugout to rest their posterior on some pine. Stephenson went yard for the Dogs as well. Kerry fell 5-2 to even the series.
Lyles (DZ) took the bump for Kerry against Hendricks (CZ) in Game 3. Don’t you just love it when a D starter over performs? Especially when its your D starter? Lyles went six scoreless, getting the bump up to a B starter before the wheels fell off. Mullins walked to start the Dogs 7th and Rosario’s swinging bunt put two on with no out. Lyles calmly gets the next two Dogs, but plunks Cabellero to load the bases. Ohtani parked one deep in to the Kerry night for a grand salami and a 4-0 Dogs lead. Kerry responded with two in the home 7th, when McCutcheon and Hicks both went deep. Sadly, the Dogs pen retired the last seven Kerry hitters to lock down a 4-2 win.
Paxton (CY) for the Dogs and Miller (CYZ) for the Highlanders. Miller gives up 1 hit, walks two and fans seven in seven innings of work. Paxton is perfect through 4 1/3 until Urias singles over a leaping Rosario. But that’s the only hit Kerry got off of Paxton. Leiter (B*XY) gets touched for a one out single in the top of the 8th, but he sets down the next two Dogs. Scoreless after 7 ½. Bet you can guess what’s coming! Yup. Urias leads off the Highlanders’ 8th with a big fly to make it 1-0. Bautista (A&C*KXY) closes it out for Kerry. Each team gets just two hits (both of Kerry’s by Urias). We go to Game 5 to see who wins the series.
The Dogs have Ohtani (BXY) against the Highlanders’ Ryan (CXYZ). The teams trade single runs in the 2nd. The Dogs strand a pair. The Highlanders had the bases loaded and one out, but couldn’t push across the lead run. Ohtani got McCutcheon on strikes and then set down Freeman. Zach Neto goes yard for the Dogs in the 3rd (Seriously? Neto? I drafted Masyn Wynn, the next pick was Neto.) 2-1 Dogs, until Suwinski answers with a solo dinger to knot it up in the 5th. Hector Neris gets – wait for it – bit by the Dogs in the 8th. A one out walk to Wong (was just so wong…) was followed by another walk. Someone, certainly not me, yelled make him hit it Neris. So he did. Mullins, that is, to where no one could catch it. A three run blast made it 5-2 Dogs. Did the Highlanders lay down? Google Highlanders and you tell me. Or read on. Ferguson (B*X) walked Suwinski to start the Kerry 8th. Urias beat out a single, as did Gimenez. Straw banged in to a double play, plating the second run of the inning. But Bailey popped up to end the 8th with Kerry trailing by a run. Ryne Stanek (C*Y) got a strike out to start the 9th, but singles by Chapman and Varsho put two on. Wong fanned, but Stephenson reached on an error. Columbe (B*XZ) came on to face Mullins and whiffed him to keep the deficit at a run. On comes Cosgrove (A&C*Y). What can Kerry do against the big, bad A&C*? With one out, McCutcheon walked. Hicks walked to put two on with two out. Suwinski grounded out to end it.
Oh, the humanity. The Dogs win 5-4 and take the series 3-2.
