ICYMI: Regular Season Wrap-Up

As crazy as it is to hear myself say it "that's a wrap on 2023"... or at least until the playoffs this Saturday (July 29th). I'm so glad that we were able to make this season happen. I'd intended to do an ICYMI article after each series of games were completed. But there was a snafu with the May series and we got a double dose of play in June (no complaints here) that made it a little difficult for the turnaround so I prioritized on releasing a new WTH podcast episode before our July 8th series of games. What else can I say? I'll do better next year.

I'm not going to reach all the way back to June and tell you what you missed there. If you weren't there for one or both of those series, you can listen to the WTH (Wiffle Talk Hour) episode for those details. Today, I'm going to be focusing just on the July series that happened. As many of you may already be familiar, the schedule was designed for each team to play the same opponent in a four-game series each week (to mimic MLB). To keep this from being a total grind, we cut down on the clock by eliminating one out on each side of each inning so games could remain 5 innings in length. There were also a couple minor adjustments: 3 fouls for a foul out (instead of 5) and 5 balls for a walk (instead of 6) to keep things moving. All games were less than one hour and this has been the most successful aspect of the roll out this year, in my opinion. Games have been starting at 11am and ending by 2pm (sometimes sooner). Gone are the days of the marathon games!

So that none of the teams faced any foe more then necessary, the last round of games were split up into a couple two-game series. When the schedule was made, no one knew how down-to-the-wire these games would be but these match-ups had set the table for the playoff bracket. The season didn't have any clear victor going into July 8th and even the last place team stood to play spoiler of any would-be contenders. It really was an "anything can happen" atmosphere that afternoon and it was also incredibly hot.

The Huntington Aces and Hurricane Locomotives squared off on field 1 in their two-game series. The Locos have been a bubble team throughout the entire season, beginning with their split series with the Yellow Sox in April before surging to first place in May. But they've been struggling for a victory since (despite being close in a couple instances). The Aces had found themselves in the basement early on going 1-3 in their April series against the Pearls and then dropping 4 games in May due to forfeits but roared back in a four game sweep against the Locomotives in early June. Since then, the Aces have been threatening to take first place and been a nuisance to the Pearls contending to make a move for the top spot as well. If the Aces hoped to make a play for first place, they'd need to win out all day.

The Aces brought more than 3 players to the field for the first time all season. Paul Hesson and Jacob Dunkle were in attendance but Hunter Smith had returned for the first time since Opening Day. Joining them was the uncle/nephew combo of Heath and Colton Bryant (relatives of Hesson's from Tennessee). The Aces put up 8 runs in the top of the 1st, which went unanswered. It was a scoreless 2nd Inning (a testament to what both Greg Sowards and Paul Hesson are capable on the mound) but the third inning saw the Aces unleash 10 runs upon the rail riders before turning it over again. Ultimately, Kevin Chattin would hit a solo shot before the Locomotives would succumb to the bludgeoning (Hunter Smith 3 HRs, Dunkle 2 HRs & Bryant 1 HR) with the final score of 18-1, Aces victory (Paul Hesson's 7th victory on the mound for the season).

The Locomotives attempted to avenge their loss against the Aces in game 2 and did indeed keep things competitive. But sadly, they again were unable to score until the final inning (this time a solo shot from Draeden Black, who also pitched - 5IP, 8 ER, 11 H, 4K & 1BB). Jacob Dunkle earned his 4th win on the mound during this game, relying on the Aces defense as he only struck out 2 batters and walked 1 (only giving up 1 run in the process). The Aces scored 8 runs and hit 5 HRs (Hesson - 2, Bryant - 2 & Dunkle - 1) with most of them being solo shots so the offense was somehow more muted than their past performances despite the moon shots. Of the six meetings between these two teams, this was the best game between them, and fitting that it was their last. Final score of game 2 of this series was 8-1.

The Locomotives continued onward against the Poca Great Aunt Pearls. The Pearls saw another player return for the first time since Opening Day: Jason Eaches. He's a player that Jeremy Ray claimed could have made a claim to Rookie of the Year... had he played more often. But there's showing up frequently and there's showing up just at the right time.. and Eaches showed up to handle business on this day. He did start off quiet by only going 5-8 in the first game but Jeremy Ray hit 5 HR's in this game. The Locomotives put up their sole run in the bottom of the first with a solo shot by Kevin Chattin (a stat seen often in the box scores) but the relentless bats of the Pearls kept the Locos from getting too far from the station with a final score of 15-1.

In the next game, it was more-of-less the same situation but the Locos did manage to put 3 runs on the board. There were no home runs and it was more of a small ball style that the team put on late in the game to try to start a rally before running out of momentum. However, the Pearls came out of the gate strong with 12 runs in the first inning and 6 additional runs in the 2nd. Ray hit 5 HRs in the game and Eaches came alive with 4 of his own. Eaches earned a win on the mound in this game, walking 3 hitters and striking out as many. The last stop for the Locomotives was heartbreak and the Pearls defeated the trains 18-3.

Sadly, the Locomotives ran out of steam early on in the season and this was 12th consecutive loss. They did have 3 other losses in the season of 4 runs or less that could have been the difference between them finishing in 3rd or 4th. The loss of Mike McCoy to the injury list and Brice Clark not returning after April has left a lot of 'what ifs' in the air but the team has shown great resolve despite the set backs. They could still potentially play spoiler in the playoffs and they have a great core to work with (as they look to recruit and develop in the off-season) as the franchise looks forward to 2024. The Pearls similarly look to focus on recruiting in the off season as they appeared to have a full squad on paper, but on the field usually only had 2 or 3 players.

Before they played the Locomotives, the Pearls played the Charleston Yellow Sox. The Pearls went 3-1 against the Sox in their last meeting earlier in the season and were in dire need of a sweep to move up in the standings. The Pearls' Jeremy Ray faced off against Steven Adkins of the Sox on the mound in an admirable pitcher's duel. Pearls struck first with one run in the bottom of the first and the 1-0 score would hold until the top of the 4th when Josh Smith and Noah Patterson would go yard to open the game up and the Pearls answered only with one run in return. In the bottom of the 5th inning, the score 3-2 with Sox leading and two runners on - Jason Eaches came up to bat for the Pearls... and hit a walk-off home run for a phenomenal finish. The Pearls won with score 5-3.

In game 2, Smith took the mound for the Sox and Eaches found his way to the hill (an less familiar sight). Noah Patterson and Steven Adkins provided much needed run support with a pair of home runs and Jeremy Ray hit a solo shot for the Pearls in kind. The Sox jumped out to an early lead in the first inning 3-0 and earned two more runs in the 3rd inning to hold a 5-1 lead going into the 4th inning and only gave up one more additional run, and it was all they'd need. Smith would earn the win as the Sox marched on 5-2 to split the series and keeping their hopes alive to finish the season in first place. But they had one more series to go, and it was against the most high-powered offence in the league: the Huntington Aces.

The Aces and Yellow Sox met up in a high stakes match-up to cap off the season. The Sox hoping to hold onto their first place spot and the Aces hoping to complete their worst-to-first Cinderella story - timing is everything for these games as their destinies were in each other's hands. In the bottom of the first, Jacob Dunkle hit a 3-run home run off of Steven Adkins to put the Aces up early in the game of a score 3-1 (Josh Smith would respond with a solo HR in the bottom of the 1st for the Sox). The game would remain scoreless for the next three innings until the top of the 5th when Heath Bryant, Colton Bryant & Paul Hesson would go back-to-back-to-back to provide four insurance runs. It would be too much for the Sox to overcome and the Aces would take game one with a score of 7-1.

The Aces came in strong into game two, bringing in 5 runs in the 1st inning (which featured a grand slam from Heath Bryant) after the Sox had put goose-egg on the board in the top of the same inning. But in the top of the 2nd, a slow and steady rally began with Josh Smith and Steven Adkins hitting a pair of home runs. In the third inning, Adkins hit another and Noah Patterson hit a 2-run homer, tying the game. The Aces then returned with 3 more runs in the bottom of the 3rd (2-run HR from Colton Bryant and a RBI single from Jacob Dunkle). Top of the 4th, the Sox regained control as Draden Black and Noah Patterson both hit 2-run shots, putting the Sox up by one run. The Sox defense would shut down the Aces the rest of the game and Josh Smith hit another solo shot in the top of the 5th as added run support for his own campaign on the mound. All told, the Sox would win 11-9 over the Aces and split the thrilling series. This victory would solidify the Yellow Sox's hold onto the top spot in the league standings.

Were there little moments I missed? I'm sure. But... I guess you just had to be there.