2052.4: Aztecs survive Gamblers, move on to Cartwright

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2052.4: Aztecs survive Gamblers, move on to Cartwright

Post by Rubaboo » Mon Nov 07, 2022 10:17 am

It wasn't as clean or easy as it was supposed to be but the Aztecs defeated Atlantic City in 7 games in the Double Day series to set up a date with Las Vegas (who else?) in the Cartwright Cup.

Mexico City took Game 1 behind a strong performance from Dave Corfield, but the Gamblers surged in response, winning 3 in a row to put the Aztecs on the ropes. Mexico City tapped into their playoff experience and didn't panic, leveraging another strong outing by Corfield to flip the script on the Gamblers and take three in a row to dump Atlantic City out of the playoffs.

Game 1
Atlantic City jumped in Corfield early, with Cinema Jones hitting a double on the first pitch of the series and moving around to score two batters later after consecutive ground outs. The Gamblers would add to their lead in the third after Asher Chuang hit a leadoff double and scored from second on a single by Don Perez two batters later. Mexico City would wake up and get to work in the bottom of the 4th, taking the lead on a solo shot by Keith Kerfoot to lead off the inning and a 2 run homer by Jai Porter 3 batters later. The 3-2 line would hold until the bottom of the 7th when Kerfoot struck again with John Hopkins aboard, adding a 2 run shot to grow Mexico City's lead to 5-2. Corfield would give up a double and get a strikeout in the 8th before ceding the mound to Richard Lawrence who got a pair of flyouts to end the inning. The Aztecs failed to add to their lead in the home half of the 8th, leaving a save opportunity for Manuel Cruz in the 9th which he would convert with little drama.

Final Score: Mexico City 5-2 Atlantic City
POTG: Keith Kerfoot
Series: 1-0 Aztecs

Game 2
This time, it was Mexico City who jumped on the board early through some small ball in the 1st, followed by solo homers by German Velazquez in the 2nd and Felix Roman in the 3rd. The Gamblers would answer, manufacturing a run with a handful of singles in the 4th and with a triple by pinch hitter Michael Lawrence in the 6th to push the score to 3-2. Mexico City would add to their lead in the 8th on a sac fly by Kerfoot before handing the ball again to Cruz in the 9th. The normally dependable Cruz let the game unravel in the top of the 9th, however, as the Gamblers would go double, single, double, single after a leadoff strikeout to score 3 and take the lead. Cruz was flustered and walked the next batter before inducing a double play to escape the inning. The Aztecs went to the home half of the 9th suddenly finding themselves trailing by a run but would bear down and get to work. After a leadoff strikeout, pinch hitter Creegan Corney would rip a double and score on a sac fly two batters later to tie it. The Aztecs would strand two runners with a strikeout to send the game to extras. Mexico City would send Cruz back to the mound in the 10th and he quickly retired the first two Gamblers he faced before giving up a solo homerun to Jeff Erikson and being relieved of duty. Richard Lawrence would give up a single before getting the final out to send the game to the bottom of the inning. Steven Flannery would come on for the Gamblers and close out the game, with a single being the extent of the Aztec threat in the bottom of the 10th.

Final Score: Mexico City 5-6 Atlantic City
POTG: Juan Rivera
Series: 1-1

Game 3
No one hit the board early in this one. The teams looked to be feeling each other out until the home half of the 5th, when Aztec starter Mauro Mendoza melted down on the mound. Here's how it transpired for the Gamblers in the 5th: Single, Walk, Walk, Fly Out, Grand Slam, Hit by Pitch, Walk, Three Run HR. The HR by Octavio Moreno would be Mendoza's last pitch of the game, as Carlos Olivas would come in and get the next two batters out to staunch the bleeding. The damage, however, was done. The Gamblers would add a run in the 7th, and the Aztecs wouldn't score to lose the game 8-0 and fall behind 2-1 in the series.

Final Score: Mexico City 0-8 Atlantic City
POTG: Kevin Shepard
Series: 2-1 Gamblers

Game 4
Atlantic City would threaten in the second before getting the run factory going in the third, plating 3 runs on a pair of singles, a double and two fielders' choices. That would prove more than sufficient for Carlos Flores, who was dealing in Game 4. The Gamblers would pad their lead in the 5th, scoring two more runs on a leadoff solo homerun by Carlos Benitez and a sac fly three batters later that plated John Oliver. The Aztecs would finally find a run in the next half inning, after a Juan Medrano walk followed by a collection of singles would cut the Gambler lead to 5-1. Atlantic City was having none if it however and would take the home half of the 6th to manufacture a run after a pair of walks, a single, and a sac fly before Cinema Jones would crush the first pitch he saw for a three run homerun, pushing the Gambler lead to 9-1 at the end of the 6th. A solo shot by Juan Rivera in the 7th would further accentuate the Gamblers' point before the Aztecs scored a meaningless run in the 9th to put the final score, 10-2, on the board.

Final Score: Mexico City 2-10 Atlantic City
POTG: Carlos Flores
Series: 3-1 Gamblers

Game 5
The Aztecs, facing elimination, would show they meant business early in Game 5, using a pair of walks and a single to load the bases before Yazeed Bin Saleem doubled to clear them, giving the Aztecs a 3-0 lead after the first inning. The Gamblers would hit back in the 3rd, going walk, double, fielder's choice, double to score a pair and then would tie the game at 3 all in the 5th on a Juan Rivera double. The Aztecs would take the lead back in the 6th, however, on a Kenny Blackwell 3 run homer to go up 6-3. The Gamblers would make it interesting in the 7th, hitting 3 singles and taking advantage of a wild pitch to score a run and have runners on 2nd and 3rd with 1 out before back to back ground outs would stifle the threat. Only one other runner would make it into scoring position for the rest of the game, and Cruz would come on for the Aztecs and shut down the 9th with no drama.

Final Score: Mexico City 6-4 Atlantic City
POTG: Kenny Blackwell
Series: 3-2 Gamblers

Game 6
The Aztecs threatened in the bottom of the 2nd but couldn't get a runner in from 3rd. Atlantic City ended up getting on the board first in the top of the 3rd on a solo homer by Jeff Erickson. The game would hold at 1-1 for the next couple of innings, before Mexico City tied the game after some small ball in the 5th. The Aztecs would again get the run factory set up in the bottom of the 6th. After the first two batters of the innings were sent back to the dugout empty handed, Mexico City would go single, walk, single, walk, single and plate three runs to take a 4-1 lead. In the bottom of the 8th, Mexico City would take advantage of a leadoff double, and intentional walk and a wild pitch to move runners into scoring position before a clutch single by Felix Roman would bring both runners across, growing Mexico City's lead to 6-1. Cruz would come on for the 9th and would again prove shaky, giving up 3 hits, including a 2 run homerun to Carlos Benitez, before ending the game and knotting the series at 3.

Final Score: Mexico City 6-3 Atlantic City
POTG: Vassilis Zorba
Series: 3-3

Game 7
Game 7 was a back and forth affair, with both starters, Mauro Mendoza for the Aztecs and Kevin Shepard for the Gamblers, having tough outings. The Aztecs would get on the board first, via a first inning homerun from Fernando Moreno, before Atlantic City would answer with a 2 run single from John Oliver in the 2nd. An Atlantic City sac fly in the 3rd would add to their lead, making it 3-1. Moreno would hit his second homerun in as many at bats, a two run shot, in the bottom half of the 3rd for the Aztecs, knotting the score at 3. Atlantic City would answer in the next half inning, with Jose Romero hitting a solo shot to give the Gamblers the lead once again. The bottom of the 4th would see the Aztecs utilizing small ball to perfection, with a leadoff double and a walk followed by a sac bunt and two singles scoring two runs to put the Aztecs back ahead. Both pitching staffs would settle in a bit from there until the bottom of the 7th, when German Velazquez would deposit a 2-2 pitch in the stands 404 feet away for a solo homerun, pushing Mexico City's lead to 6-4. Felix Roman and Jeffrey Smith would go back-to-back in the bottom of the 8th to increase Mexico City's advantage to 8-4 before Manuel Cruz would stride to the mound and work set the Gamblers down in order to end the game and the series.

Final Score: Mexico City 8-4 Atlantic City
POTG: Fernando Moreno
Series 4-3

Series MVP: Felix Roman
Fred Holmes
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Mexico City Aztecs - BBA

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Re: 2052.4: Aztecs survive Gamblers, move on to Cartwright

Post by Jwalk100 » Mon Nov 07, 2022 12:53 pm

Great comeback for the Aztecs.
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Re: 2052.4: Aztecs survive Gamblers, move on to Cartwright

Post by recte44 » Mon Nov 07, 2022 2:21 pm

This is the matchup, folks. Best team in the league the last two years running against a team that used to be the best but is now held together by duct tape and safety pins, all MacGyver style.

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Re: 2052.4: Aztecs survive Gamblers, move on to Cartwright

Post by Jwalk100 » Mon Nov 07, 2022 2:31 pm

The loss of Korbel will make this tough for Vegas.

Turton has to man up.
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Re: 2052.4: Aztecs survive Gamblers, move on to Cartwright

Post by Rubaboo » Mon Nov 07, 2022 3:09 pm

recte44 wrote:
Mon Nov 07, 2022 2:21 pm
This is the matchup, folks. Best team in the league the last two years running against a team that used to be the best but is now held together by duct tape and safety pins, all MacGyver style.
I seem to remember that MacGyver mostly managed to save the day and usually cause several impressively large explosions with his safety pins and whatnot.

Don't listen to Matt downplay this people. His team is here for a reason.
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Mexico City Aztecs - BBA

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JL Champs - 2027, 2052
JL MW Champs - 2022, 2023, 2024, 2027
JL Sun Belt Champs - 2035, 2036, 2038
JL Frontier Champs - 2051, 2052
JL Manager of the Year - 2023, 2024, 2026, 2052

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