9-News: 38.052 – Nine Extend Unexpected Heartland Lead

[RonCo]

What are we to make of this baseball team?

It is a group seemingly unchanged from the collection of players who won only 80 games last season. A team that pundits suggested were not much better this year than last. The front office had, over a tow season span, changed out the entire coaching staff, and in the pre-season hired an upstart manager with a grand total of 24 games’ experience—in the Florida Prospect League, fer cryin’ out loud. Their closer had blown a billion saves going into the season. Their rotation consisted of three arms and a veteran with his best days far enough behind that they no longer looked closer than they were. Their offense was, most said, an illusion of freak nature and random luck.

And yet, here we are in the earliest days of June, and with the season well past a third of the way over and the Yellow Springs Nine stands at 40-23, a mind-boggling 10 games better than its closest division rival. No team in baseball has won more games. Only the mega-tron accumulation of baseball brilliance that is Rockville leads their division by more games.

“We’re just trying to stay focused,” said Bill Inkster, that manager who nobody knew. “We got together as a team in the spring, and told ourselves that if no one believed we could be any good, that we should just work hard and find ways.” Which is what this team is doing.

Last week it found a way to sweep Montreal, then threaten to do the same with Edmonton before settling for two games of three.

In Montreal it started with youthful Luis Colon, a kid who skipped AAA last year, throwing 7 innings of three-hit baseball while a resurgent Lucas McNeill launched his 16th and 17th homers of the season and light-hitting utility infielder Brian Sullivan doubled in a go-ahead run. Game two of the series saw aging wonder Jose Chavez throw 5.1 innings of perfect, no-hit baseball before being relieved by the newly acquired Elwood Blues, who held onto the lead for a long save. Offensively, the weight was carried by a pair of George Robertson doubles and Andy McKinney, who was on base three of four plate appearances. Game three brought a barrage of five doubles thatched around a pair of Alfredo Salazar homers, and a 12-5 capper. Classic Nine offense, actually. When Yellow Springs comes to town, the opposing grounds crews have to get prepared to do some work on the outfield fences.

Of course, these days sweeping Montreal isn’t completely unexpected. The Blazers are struggling to find identity. But Edmonton, well, the Jackrabbits are in the front part of a surge, one thinks. One does not, as they say, merely walk into Edmonton.

Yet, that’s what this rag-tag group of non-players wearing Yellow Springs Nine uniforms did.

They walked into Edmonton and took game one of the series by a score of 6-0 when suddenly dominating starter Carlos Valle made his presence known. He went 7 scoreless innings and was relieved by Tristan Alfama, who tacked on two more perfect frames. Meanwhile three of the kids drilled homers in the notoriously tough hitters park: 3B Rob Thomas, who the team has been rumored to be trying to trade, OF Andy McKinney, who was disparaged by opponents last season as if he was some kind of a lark—and maybe they were right and maybe they were wrong, and this year’s Gillstrom candidate OF Jose Machado all went deep.

Game two was more of the same offensively, with Thomas doubling, and Robertson and Machado blasting timely homers. Miguel Padilla collected three hits, Brian Sullivan, Mauro Saucedo, and Nate Wood got two each. The team stole four bases, and evened out two errors with a slick double play to preserve a lead.

Even game three was a solid showing, the team losing in extra innings after taking a lead into the 9th, Chavez once again showing dominance for his limited physical constraints, but the bullpen fading in inopportune moments. The Nine offense was up to the task, though, scoring on a Salazar homer and another by back-up 3B Alejandro Rodriguez. That’s what happens when you’re playing Edmonton, though. Sometimes a good team beats you.

Turning the mirror, though, what does that say about this 2038 edition of the Yellow Springs Nine. Is their 40 victories a fluke? Is that 10 game lead a golden framework of alchemy that’s due to turn back to lead when the clock strikes midnight? Or is this a case that sometimes a good team just beats you?

Yellow Springs fans aren’t sure. But then again, no one else seems to be, either.

The only thing certain is that it’s June 10th and the Yellow Springs Nine are 40-23, ten games up in the Heartland division.