Championship
Montreal def. Casco Bay
Second round
Montreal 4, New York 3
Casco Bay 4, Louisville 3
First round
Casco Bay 4, Spokane 3
Louisville 4, Yellowknife 2
New York 4, Traverse City 2
Montreal 4, Wichita 1
Second round Casco Bay vs. Louisville Game 1: Nomo at Ortiz All Louisville all the time! 14-1 victory, Ortiz goes the distance, giving up only a solo homer to Hillenbrand, 5 hits overall and walked 6. Nomo was shelled giving up 13 hits and 9 earned runs in 5 innings. Meadows in relief gave up 8 hits and 5 more runs. Renteria and Pujols had 4 hits and 2 rbi each in the 21 hit attack, Giles, Pujols and Delgado all homered. It was only 2-1 going into the bottom of the 5th, when Renteria singled, Giles and Pujols went deep back-to-back, and Delgado doubled, Ramirez walked, and after a wild pitch, Finley singled in two runs and the rout was on. Game 2: Wakefield at Batista Louisville jumped all over Wakefield with 8 in the first two innings, a 3-run homer by Delgado in the first and two-run homers by Pujols and Ramirez in the 2nd being the key blows. Casco Bay showed some signs of life, getting 6 in the 3rd... with one out, Jones walked and Bagwell and Stairs homered....Ordonez walked and Myers singled him to third, after Hillenbrand struck out, Valentin singled in a run and Cabrera doubled. Foulke came on to get Suzuki. In the bottom of the third, Kent walked, and Donnelly relieved Wakefield. But Varitek and Castilla homered, Renteria doubled, Giles and Pujols walked and Delgado hit a grand slam...6 batters faced by Donnelly, 6 runs and no outs recorded!!! Kieschnick came on for mopup duty, and ended up surrendering 14 runs in his 4 innings of work. Final: Louisville 29, Casco Bay 12. ( Seadogs went for the two-point conversion twice, but failed) Bagwell homered three times. Delgado went 3-4 with 7 rbi, Renteria had 5 hits in his first 5 AB, Ramirez had 5 rbi, Louisville outhomered Casco Bay 9-5 in this one. Dotel was awarded the win for his two scoreless innings of relief. On to Casco Bay, Seadogs trailing 0-2 and things are not looking good. Game 3: Shields at Contreras Casco Bay scored first in the 3rd on a solo homer by Ichiro. But Louisville got 4 in the 4th and 6 in the 6th on the way to a 10-2 win. Varitek singled in a run, Renteria walked to force a run and Giles singled for two more in the 4th and then in the 6th, Varitek homered, Jackson singled and stole second, Renteria singled him to 3b and after Pujols was walked intentionally by Eischen, Delgado singled in one run and Ramirez greeted Mantei with a grand slam. Bagwell homered in the 8th for Casco Bay's other run, but Shield got the win with 5 effective innings and Contreras the loss. Louisville with a commanding 3 games to none lead in the series. Game 4: Ortiz at Nomo Delgado had a 3-run homer in the first after Renteria and Giles singled. Casco Bay tied it in the 2nd on a two-out, 3-run homer by Valentin, after a single by Stairs and walk to Myers. Louisville took the lead in the 3rd as Kent hit a sac fly to score Pujols, who doubled and went to third on walks to Delgado and Ramirez. Casco Bay left the bases loaded in the 3rd, but Ichiro scored Valentin on a groundout in the 4th to tie the game at 4 apiece. Varitek homered in the 5th but Kieschnick, batting in the DH spot after Chipper Jones got injured, homered off Foulke to tie the game in the 7th. Bagwell doubled, and with Wilson Alvarez on the mound, Ordonez singled him to third, Bagwell then scored on a passed ball and Myers singled in Ordonez. Jared Fernandez came on to face Aurilia, who doubled in another run. Aurilia went to third on a wild pitch but was out at the plate on a Grudzielanek groundball....Dotel came on only to give up a single to Ichiro and Kieschnick reached on a single that Pujols tried to make a diving catch on....only to have the ball skip behind him for a 3-base error with all runners scoring!!! The 8-run inning put Casco Bay up 12-5. Gordon came in in the 8th and Finley greeted him with a solo blast, but with 2 outs, Giles flied out and Gordon issued a harmless walk to Delgado in the 9th as the Seadogs stayed alive with a 12-6 win. Foulke took the loss and Mantei got the win as Casco Bay outhit Louisville 14-10. Game 5: Zito at Wakefield Louisville got on top in the 2nd as Finley singled with 1 out, Kent walked, and Varitek doubled in a run. But Wakefield stiffened and got Castilla and Renteria. In the CBS 4th, Grudz singled, Ichiro was hit by a pitch and Johnson walked, bringing up Bagwell....who struck out. Ordonez hit a sac fly on the ballpark (1-14) homer chance with the bases loaded, but Jones and Hillenbrand walked to force in one run and Aurilia doubled with 2 outs to clear the bases and give the Seadogs a 5-1 lead. Jones left the bases loaded against Foulke in the 5th, but Wakefield was cruising, retiring 15 of the 18 hitters through the 7th. After Giles doubled and Pujols singled with one out in the 8th, Donnelly came on and hit Delgado to load the bases. Ramirez dubbed one off the end of the bat that went for a single and error by Donnelly on the throw, scoring 2 runs. But Donnelly settled down getting the dangerous Finley to pop out and Kent to line out. Leading only 5-3 in the 8th, Hillenbrand singled and Kieschnick greeted Soriano with a pinch hit double to score Hillenbrand. Matheny bunted Kieschnick to 3b and pinchrunner Valentin scored on Ichiro's single. The two runs became important as Gordon came on in the top of the 9th, after Varitek struck out, pinchhitter Ryan walked, Pinchhitter Kennedy singled him to third and Giles walked to load the bases. After Pujols struck out, Delgado was hit by a pitch to force in a run and Ramirez walked to force in another run. But Finley lined out to end the game. Wakefield got the win and Zito the loss, as Casco Bay forced a return trip to Louisville, down 3-2. Game 6: Moyer at Batista With no other choice, Casco Bay started the crafty lefty against the lefty-bashing Thoroughbreds (was an offense ever better named!!!). Moyer, who had won three games in the previous series, seemed to have enjoyed the considerable rest, as he shut out Louisville through 4 innings. Meanwhile, Casco Bay jumped all over starter Batista with 3 in the first on a Stairs homer after Jones and Bagwell singled, and three more in the 2nd on leadoff doubles by Valentin and Grudzielanek, an rbi groundout by Jones and a homer by Bagwell. The Seadogs made it 8-0 in the third, scoring twice off Wilson Alvarez on singles by Myers, Hillenbrand and Grudz. In the 5th, Delgado was hit by a pitch and Ramirez walked. After a forceout by Varitek erased Ramirez, Kennedy singled in a run and Castilla singled in another. With Renteria coming to the plate, Paul Molitor relieved Moyer (short of the necessary 5 innings to get the win) with Gordon, who got Renteria on a hard liner to third that Hillenbrand turned into a doubleplay to end the inning. In the 6th, Ryan made it 8-4 with a two-run blast. No more scoring till the 9th when Varitek tripled off Donnelly to lead off, and scored on a two-out, two-base error by Grudz, but Giles grounded out to end the game....Series tied 3-3!!! Batista the loss and Donnelly the win, as Casco Bay outhit Louisville 17-7. Game 7: Nomo at Ortiz Ichiro led off with a triple (1-4 homer 1-10 chance) and scored on Jones groundout. Bagwell, Stairs and Myers walked but Hillenbrand struck out to end the early threat. Delgado hit a 3-run blast in the bottom of the first frame, after Renteria and Pujols singled. But Valentin homered to lead off the CBS second inning and when Jones doubled with 2 out, Bagwell homered to give Casco Bay a 4-3 lead. In the LTB second, Kent reached 2b on a single and error by Hillenbrand and Varitek walked. After Nomo struck out Castilla and Renteria, Giles was beaned and forced to leave the game. Molitor visited Nomo who was so visibly upset that Conteras was brought in to face Pujols, who failed in the clutch by popping out. Contreras retired all six hitters he faced and Ortiz retired CBS in the 3rd and 4th without allowing much. In the 5th, Stairs was hit by a pitch and Goodwin stole second as a pinchrunner. Alvarez came on and allowed a two out single to Hillenbrand, but Soriano got Aurilia to ground out and end that threat. Sanders singled with one out in the 5th and stole second off Meadows, then went to third on a Myers passed ball. Donnelly came on to fan Pujols and Delgado to end the inning. Still 4-3 Casco Bay, as Ichiro again tripled (on the homer chance) with 1 out and after Jones was intentionally passed, Soriano struck out Bagwell and got Goodwin to fly out. Finley walked with one out in the 6th but was picked off by Donnelly, which turned out to be important as Kent followed with a double to center. But Varitek grounded out and it was still 4-3. In the CBS 7th, Ordonez lead off with a double, Myers was intentionally walked and Kieschnick struck out batting for Hillenbrand, But Aurilia doubled to score Ordonez and after Grudz struck out, Foulke came on to get Ichiro to foul out. Gordon came on for Casco Bay and Castilla singled, Renteria struck out and Ryan hit a game-tying, pinch-hit homerun. Pujols followed with a double but was stranded at 2b. In the 8th, Bagwell homered with 1 out and Goodwin singled, bringing in Dotel. Goodwin stole second and Ordonez was intentionally passed. With Cabrera and Matheny coming up, Molitor flashed the double steal sign but Goodwin was cut down at third. Cabrera punched a single but Matheny flied out. In the bottom of the 8th, Mantei came in with one out and struck out Kent, but Varitek walked and Castilla homered to deep left center as LTB took the lead by a run! In the top of the 9th, Aurilia singled, and Ichiro walked with one out. Chipper Jones then bombed one to RF for a three run homer, and CBS took a two run lead. Mahay came on to close it out, and Damian Miller got a pinch single past Aurilia (3 SS). After Pujols singled, Delgado grounded into a 1-6-3 doubleplay and with 2 out and fans screaming and Jackson standing on 3B, Manny Ramirez took one deep to LF, and the game was tied again!. Finley doubled but Kent grounded out to end the rally, and it was free baseball in game 7 of the LCS!! In the 10th, Cabrera reached on a HBP but didn't advance, and Mahay got the T-Breds 1-2-3. In the 11th, Grudz singled and was forced at 2B by Ichiro. Ichiro went to second on a wild pitch, so Jones was intentionally passed by Shields to face Bagwell, who walked to load the bases. With the infield in, Goodwin scooted a grounder past Kennedy and up the middle for two runs and the lead. Mahay got the first out of the 11th but was out of gas and Eischen came on, only to allow a single to Pujols and a walk to Delgado. Ramirez singled in a run and it was 1st and 3rd with 1 out. Finley sent a (ballpark-homer chance 1-18) blast deep to CF......Ichiro went back and miraculously hauled it in, as Delgado scored the tying run. Kennedy grounded out to end the inning, so another inning would be needed with the game once again tied. In the 12th, Shields got Matheny, but Aurilia doubled, and when Grudz popped out, Ichiro worked a walk. With two out, and batting lefthanded, Jones went the other way and hit a screamer deep to LF.....and it went over the fence for a 3-run Casco Bay lead!!! Bagwell walked but Goodwin grounded out. In the bottom of the 12th and a very fatigued Joey Eischen holding the ball for CBS, Varitek singled, Castilla flied out and Renteria walked. After Willis struck out, Pujols came to the plate with a chance to tie the game. He hit a high fly to CF, Ichiro cradled the ball, and it was over. Casco Bay had done the (nearly) impossible, coming back from a 3-0 deficit to win the series in 12 innings, 14-11. CBS had 18 hits and LTB 17. Eischen got the win and Shields the loss. Jones went 3-6 with 7 rbi, Ichiro had two triples and scored 4 runs, and Bagwell had two homers and 3 rbi and Aurilia 3 hits. Gordon, Mantei, Mahay and Eischen all blew a save chance before it was over. For LTB, Pujols had 4 hits, Ramirez a homer and 3 rbi, Delgado 3 rbi on a homer and Ryan 2 rbi and Castilla 2 rbi, each with a HR. For the series, LTB scored 80 runs, on 100 hits and 42 walks and 22 homeruns, hitting .357 as a team (only three hitters were UNDER .300 for the series, Kent the low at .273). Delgado had 5 HR and 17 rbi, Varitek 4 HR and 11 rbi, Ramirez 3 HR and 14 rbi, and Pujols 14 hits and 11 runs scored. Casco Bay hit .311 as a team, scoring 56 runs and hitting 18 homeruns. Series MVP Jeff Bagwell had 7 homers and 9 rbi, walked 9 times and reached base an impressive 21 of 35 plate appearances. Aurilia went 7-12 with 4 doubles, a homer and 7 rbi, and Jones had 3 homers and 10 rbi, including the series clinching homer in the 12th inning of game 7. Montral vs. New York Game 1 TasteExplosion!. 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 - 4 11 1 McGaffigans..... 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 - 1 4 0 The New York TasteExplosion! defeated the Montreal McGaffigans by a score of 4 to 1 at Chamberland Park. New York jumped out to the early lead in the first inning scoring one runner using 3 hits. New York
finished with 11 hits while Montreal ended up with 4. Sidney Ponson(15-11) picked up the victory, allowing 1 run in 7 and 2/3 innings. Paul Quantrill got the save, his 27th. Esteban Loaiza(21-11) was the loser. Game 2 Jason Kendall had 3 base hits and 2 RBI as the Montreal McGaffigans defeated the New York TasteExplosion!
by a score of 8 to 5 at Chamberland Park. Montreal took the lead for good in the 7th inning when they scored 2 runs on 2 hits. The crucial at-bat was
provided by Austin Kearns who brought the crowd to their feet when he bombed a two-run dinger (his 16th of the season). Montreal rapped out 12 hits for
the afternoon. The win went to Guillermo Mota(8-8) who allowed 1 run in 2 and 2/3 innings. Kip Wells(12-16) ended up with the loss in relief. He allowed 2 runs and 2 hits in 2/3 of an inning. Game 5 Game 5 saw New York and Montreal go to the 6th inning tied, despite both teams' #4 starters, Sabathia and May, on the mound. No lefty-mashing affair this one, but New York did find power in supersub catcher David Ross, who launched a 2-run HR to take a 3-1 lead. An 8th inning sac fly was all Montreal could manage as NYT won 3-2 to send it back to Montreal for Game 6, with MMG leading 3-2 in the series. Game 6 TasteExplosion!. 3 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 6 12 0 McGaffigans..... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 - 1 5 0 WP-Day LP-Webb HRs-Huff. Aubrey Huff provided much of the offense. He lofted a three-run bomb (his 31st of the season) in the 1st inning and doubled in the 5th inning. Montreal was out-hit by New York, 12 hits to 5. Zach Day(6-6) was the winner allowing no runs in 6 innings. Brandon Webb(11-9) ended up with the loss. He was unable to control the New York offense and allowed 11 hits and 2 walks in 5 and 1/3 innings. Game 7 TasteExplosion!. 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 6 0 McGaffigans..... 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 3 6 0 WP-Loaiza LP-Ponson S-Mota HRs-A.Huff, A.Kearns, D.Young In a game for the baseball purist, Esteban Loaiza(22-11) and Sidney Ponson(15-12) squared off in a tense
pitching duel, Montreal McGaffigans finally emerged victorious
over New York TasteExplosion!, 3 to 1. Montreal scored all of the necessary runs in the 1st inning as they scored 3 runs on 3 base hits. That was all the offense they were to need. After the 2nd inning, neither team was able to score. Guillermo Mota earned his 14th save. Yes, in yet another low-scoring affair at home-run crazy Chamberland Park, the trio of Esteban Loaiza, Billy Wagner and Guillermo Mota did what they've done all year, helping the Montreal hitters when they needed it most and surrendering just one run. First-inning homers by Austin Kearns and trade
acquisition deluxe Dmitri Young would be all the McGaffigans
would need to advance to its first NASA World Series. First round Casco Bay 4, Spokane 3 Game 1: Moyer at Hampton: Casco Bay jumped on top in the first with a run on a groundout by Ordonez, but Boone answered with a solo shot in the 2nd. In the 3rd, Spokane went on top on a double by Redmond and single by Cabrera, but the Seadogs retook the lead in the 4th on a double by Jones and homer by Aurilia. Ibanez singled in the 4th to tie it, after a single by Alou and error by Bagwell on Boone's grounder. The Seadogs took the lead for good in the 6th on a walk to Aurilia and double by Hillenbrand. Donnelly snuffed out a potential rally in the 7th and Hillenbrand put two more on the board in the 8th with a homerun after Aurilia walked. Donnelly, Mahay and Meadows retired the final 6 Chief hitters. Moyer took the win and Hampton the loss, Hillenbrand went 4-4 with 2 doubles and a homerun. Game 2: Nomo at Lawrence The battle of the bullpens, as this one went the distance....and then some! Nomo lasted 4 2/3 giving up 5 runs on 9 hits and 4 walks, while Lawrence went one inning better giving up 6 runs including a 3 run homer by Myers and 2 run shot by Ichiro . Kline came on in relief and gave up a two run blast to Reed Johnson as Casco Bay took a 7-5 lead into the bottom of the ninth. Meanwhile, Contreras and Mantei put up goose eggs (though Aurilia got injured in the 7th hitting for Valentin, leaving the 4e88 Cabrera to play SS) and Gordon came on to close it. With one out, Boone singled. Ibanez followed with a foulout, but Preston Wilson cracked a tying shot to sent it to extra innings. Jamie Walker got the 'dogs 1-2-3 in the 10th, and Gordon wiggled out of a jam in the 10th, including an error by Cabrera. Both Walker and Gordon gave up one baserunner through the 12th without a tally, and Guardado came on for the Chiefs in the 13th. Matheny got injured for Casco Bay, leaving the Seadogs with only unrated Brooks Kieschnick on the bench to catch. Cabrera singled and promptly tested Kieschnick as he stole second, but Donnelly struck out Boone and Ibanez and got Wilson to fly out. In the 14th, Jones struck out for Casco Bay with runners at the corners, and Remlinger came on in the 15th allowing only a harmless 2-out walk to Ordonez. In the bottom of the 15th, Pierre singled and went to third on a steal and throwawa//y. Cabrera popped out, and Meadows came on to strike out Boone. With two out, Ibanez hit a grounder to Hillenbrand, who kicked it as the winning run scored -- 8 to 7 Chiefs, Remlinger with the win and Donnelly the loss. The Chiefs stole 6 of 8 base attempts. Ichiro had 3 hits and Boone, Ibanez and Pierre 3 hits each for Spokane. Series tied at 1 each going to Casco Bay for the next 3 games. Game 3: Garcia at Wakefield. This was all Freddy Garcia, who surrendered only 3 hits in 8 innings, in a 3-0 Chiefs win, walking only 2 and striking out 5. Guardado finished with the save. Cabrera singled in two runs off Wakefield in the top of the 6th, and then Ibanez doubled in another off Conteras, also in the 6th, for all the scoring. Chiefs take a 2-1 series lead. Game 4: Hampton at Moyer. Initial game starters match up again, with Moyer once again besting his southpaw counterpart, in a 10-2 Seadog win. Ordonez doubled in 2 runs in the 1st but Alou homered in the second and Palmeiro in the 4th for a 2-2 tie. In the 5th, Casco Bay broke the game open with 5 runs, on a double by Grudzielanek and consecutive singles by Suzuki, Johnson and Bagwell, and a triple by Ordonez. Ordonez had 3 hits and 3 rbi for Casco Bay and Alou 3 hits and the solo homer for Spokane. Series tied at 2 each. Game 5: Lawrence at Nomo. Again, neither starter was particularly effective but the Seadogs chased Lawrence with 6 in the second, and Nomo hung on long enough for an 8-6 win, with relief help from Donnelly, Contreras, Mantei and a last-out save from Gordon. Ichiro's bases loaded triple (1-4 dice roll) was the key blow in the second. Mondesi homered to make it 6-5 in the 6th, but insurance runs for Casco Bay came on a homer by Hillenbrand in the 6th and rbi single by Johnson in the 7th. A late rally off Mantei fell short when Gordon came on with two out and two on to get Preston Wilson on a lineout. Pierre had 3 hits, Mondesi and Ibanez two hits each, and all 3 Chief batters drove in 2 runs each. Bagwell added a homer for Casco Bay, and it was back to Spokane with the Seadogs leading the series 3 games to 2. Game 6: Wakefield at Garcia. Tim Wakefield carried a no-hitter through 7 innings, and Jose Valentin led off the 8th for Casco Bay with a homer for a 1-0 lead as Freddy Garcia repeated his game 3 mastery of the Seadogs. Mondesi walked to lead off the bottom of the 8th, stole second, and then scored as Ramon Hernandez homered for a 2-1 lead. Mantei came in to give up singles to Pierre and Cabrera, and Gordon came on to try to hold the fort...but after Boone bounced into a force play and Ibanez struck out, Wilson reached on yet another key Hillenbrand error and after Palmeiro walked, Lowell singled in two runs. Ordonez singled and Valentin doubled in the 9th, but Dejean struck out Grudz to end the game with the Chiefs evening the series by a 5-1 count. Benitez got the win and Wakefield was the tough-luck loser once again, as Spokane made all of their 4 hits (in the 8th) count. Game 7: Moyer at Hampton. For the third time, the lefties matched wits and for the third time, series MVP Jamie Moyer came out the winner. This one was over early ---very early, as the the first 11 Seadogs amazingly reached base and 10 runners crossed the plate before the inning ended. The final was 16-2 as Moyer went 5 innings giving up a solo homer to Palmeiro and Meadows finished it out allowing only a solo homer to Ibanez. But the story was the top of the first: Grudzielanek and Ichiro singled and Reed Johnson was hit to load the bases. Bagwell singled in two runs and Ordonez doubled in two runs. After Jones walked and Hillenbrand singled to again load the bases, Steve Kline came on only to give up a two-run double to Aurilia, Matheny followed with a 2 run single and Sparks relieved after a Grudz single. But Ichiro singled in a run, Johnson grounded out to score another, and when Jones doubled and Hillenbrand homered to lead off the second, it was all but over at 12-0. Every hitter but Reed Johnson (hitless in 5 AB) got at least two hits in the 20-hit attack. For the series, Ichiro and Ordonez had 7 rbi each and Bagwell and Hillenbrand 6 each (Shea with 3 homers), and no stolen bases for the Seadogs as a team. Grudz and Ichiro had 11 hits and Ordonez 10 for Casco Bay. Moyer won 3 starts and Nomo had 1 win (though giving up ten runs on 16 hits and 8 walks) while Wakefield lost 2 and pitched well. As a team, Casco Bay outscored Spokane 48-29, though the 16-2 final was most of the margin, and the Seadogs made 8 errors. Casco Bay hit .296 with a 3.19 ERA. Ibanez and Pierre each had 10 hits and Spokane had 14 team steals in 17 attempts, making only 3 errors as a team. Hampton and Lawrence combined to give up 35 hits and 31 runs through 19 innings in their combined 5 starts, while Garcia was very effective allowing only 1 run in nearly 16 innings. Spokane hit .241 with a 6.45 ERA. Louisville 4, Yellowknife 2 Game 1- Behind a strong pitching performance by Kevin Brown, the Moose take game 1 10-3 (**I, think- more later). Brown held the T-Bred offense to 3 runs and Scott Shields took the loss while pitching 4 innings. Game 2 was a reversal of fortune, as the T-Breds rode the back of Steve Finley's 2 homeruns, including a grand slam in the opening frame. Miguel Batista picked up the win, Javier Vazquez took the loss.
Moose........... 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 - 2 10 0 Thoroughbreds... 4 1 1 0 0 0 3 0 - 9 12 0 WP-Batista LP-Vazquez HRs-M.Ramirez, S.Finley-2, J.Kent The series moved to Yellowknife for Game 3. Russ Ortiz vs. Shawn Chacon. Finally, a little bit of a pitcher's duel. While Ortiz struggled with his consistency, walking 6 in 6 2/3 IP, Shawn Chacon was nearly untouchable. He threw 7 no-hit innings, until Manny Ramirez led off the 8th with a solo shot to center field to tie the game at 1-1. The T-Breds added a run off Chacon in the 9th and Jason Varitek added a 3-Run shot to give the T-Breds a 6-1 lead heading into the 9th. A costly error by Carlos Delgado led to 3 unearned runs off Octavio Dotel, but Keith Foulke came in to pick up the save. Rafael Soriano (1-0) picked up the win and Shawn Chacon (0-1) took the tough luck loss.
Thoroughbreds... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 - 6 4 2
Moose........... 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 - 4 9 1
WP-Soriano LP-Chacon S-Foulke Game 4 was another excellent pitching maychup. Kevin Brown was hoping to pick up his second win of the series for the Moose and Barry Zito was going for the T-Breds. Despite a lineup that loves facing lefties, Barry Zito was effective, going 7 1/3 innings, giving up 6 hits and 2 walks. Carlos Delgado's 2-Run double in the 3rd inning was enough as the T-Breds won 4-1. Thoroughbreds... 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 4 9 2 Moose........... 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 - 1 6 0 WP-Zito LP-Brown S-Alvarez With it do or die time for Yellowkinfe, the Moose fans were treated with a dandy in game 5. Scott Shields was ineffective once again for LTB and Javir Vazques gave up 3 Hrs, but did least 7 2/3 innings. Down 6-4 in the top of the 5th, the T-Breds went to the pen to try to pull it out. For 5 and 2/3 innings, the pen didn't allow a run, but the offense could only muster up 1 more run off the stingy Vazquez and the bullpen help of Matt Herges and Scott Sullivan (1-0). With two outs in the bottom of the 10th, Fraank Thomas singled to left off of Keith Foulke to give the Moose a 7-6 victory. Thoroughbreds... 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 - 6 10 0 Moose........... 0 1 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 7 11 1 WP-Sullivan LP-Foulke HRs-B.Giles, J.Kent, J.Varitek, B.Williams, O.Hudson Back to Louisville for Game 6, it figured to be a slugfest. Louisville jumped on Joel Piniero early for a 4-0 lead behind a solo shot from MVP candidate Albert Pujols and RBI doubles from Carlos Delgado and Jason Varitek. But Yellowknife responded to get 4 runs off of Miguel Batista, keyed by a 3-run HR for Ricky Ledee. Both teams went to their respective pens early. When the T-Breds responded to Ledee's three run shot in the top of the 4th with 3 runs of their own in the bottom half, the Moose came right back in the top of the 5th to tie it at 7. But 3 runs in the bottom of the 6th were enough for LTB to pull it out 10-8. Wilson Alvarez pitched 3 strong innings to get the win and Rafael Soriano picked up his first save of the series. Moose........... 0 0 2 2 3 0 1 0 0 - 8 9 0 Thoroughbreds... 4 0 0 3 0 3 0 0 - 10 13 0 WP-Alvarez LP-Herges S-Soriano HRs-R.Ledee, J.Rivera, O.Hudson, A.Pujols I want to congratulate John a great series. That was one scary lineup and a very tough series. Attached are the subsets of our series. All seven games are included. The series MVP was kind of a toss-up, but we'll give it to Jason Varitek. He hit .348 with 3 doubles, 2 homeruns, and 10 RBIs. Other notable performers: YKM- Scott Spiezio: 8-17, 1 HR Alex Rodriguez: 10-23 Ricky Ledee: 5-11 with 8 RBIs Larry Walker: 11-28, 3 doubles LTB- Jeff Kent: 7-14, 2 HRs Steve Finley: 8 RBIs Manny Ramirez: .333, 8 BBs, 9 Runs Montreal at Wichita In Game 1, Barry hit three homers (solo, grannie, two-run) and accounted for all 7 RBI. Roger Clemens and a cast of relievers silenced the Montreal bats as WWH trounced MMG 7-3. In Game 2, MMG tried to avoid Barry with a 1st inning IBB, only to have Jorge Posada slam a three-run HR to take a 3-2 lead. With the score tied 4-4 and two on in the 4th, MMG brings in Guillermo Mota to face Barry. Three-run jack, 7-4 WWH. Later, a pinch-hit, three-run HR from Austin Kearns for MMG ties it at 7-7. In the top of the 8th, MMG took the lead for good, tallying four runs, keyed by a two-run single by Bizarro Barry, aka Rey Ordonez (who went 2-for-2 with 3 RBI for the game). MMG wins 11-7. Game 3 The Whiffers struck first, putting 4 on the board in the top of the 1st to take a commanding 4-0 lead. The McGaffigans chipped away, with solo shots from Lance Berkman and J.T. Snow. After Wichita scored again, Hank Blalock went deep for a two-run shot to cut the lead to 5-4. Wichita would eventually extend to a 7-5 lead, as the great Barry Bonds launched his fourth homer of the series. Montreal wasted several chances during the game, including two HR diamond chances going for outs in a 16/17 HR park. With most of the Montreal bench burned and dominant closer John Smoltz in the game, Wichita entered the bottom of the ninth with a 7-5 lead. Marquis Grissom doubled, but was still at second with two outs. Snow then rolled a grounder to John Olerud, a 1e3 1B with only a 5% OB chance via error--but Olerud booted the ball, putting men on first and third with 2 outs. That brought up Montreal's hero of Game 2, Rey Ordonez. Smoltz delivered... ...and Rey Ordonez smacked it over the left-field wall for a three-run homer. 8-7 Montreal, final. What's shaping up as an epic series moves to Game 4 with the McGaffigans up 2-1. Esteban Loaiza and Roger Clemens will hook up on three days rest. Game 4 Whiffers........ 0 0 3 1 0 2 0 0 0 - 6 9 0 McGaffigans..... 2 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 - 8 9 1 WP-Loaiza LP-Schoeneweis S-Mota HRs-E.Martinez, L.Berkman, H.Blalock Lance Berkman grand slam propels MMG to an 8-6 win, after once trailing 6-2. Files attached. Game 5 Whiffers........ 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 - 10 12 1 McGaffigans..... 2 3 3 10 0 0 0 0 - 18 17 0 WP-Nathan LP-Schoeneweis HRs-B.Bonds-2, C.Beltran, A.Berroa, D.Young, A.Kearns The amazing Barry Bonds clouted two home runs, giving him 7 for the series. But in another comeback, Montreal manages to string together hits, erasing a 5-2 deficit with a 10-run 4th inning, capped by an Austin Kearns grand slam. Montreal wins 18-10, and takes the series 4-1. Sticking to the principle that the best player is always most valuable, Barry is awarded Series MVP, having earned the respect of the Montreal fans. I'd like to thank Rany for a fun series, while wondering what kind of havoc he's going to wreak with that lineup and a rotation of Johnson, Clemens, Arroyo, Bonderman, Weaver to boot next year. A great team, great manager. Next up, Montreal takes on New York in the LCS, as two expansion teams face off. New York at Traverse City Game 1 TasteExplosion!. 0 1 5 0 0 1 1 0 0 - 8 11 0 Cherry Pickers.. 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 - 3 11 2 WP-Ponson LP-Colon HRs-J.Giambi, T.Nixon, A.Jones Mark Kotsay had 3 base hits as the incredible New York TasteExplosion! outscored the Traverse City Cherry Pickers 8 to 3. Sidney Ponson(15-11) was solid if not spectacular. He went 6 innings allowing 8 hits and 3 walks. Both teams ended up with 11 on the afternoon. Bartolo Colon(19-7) ended up with the loss. He allowed New York 6 runs in 5 innings of work. Game 2 TasteExplosion!. 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 - 4 8 1 Cherry Pickers.. 0 0 1 5 0 0 0 0 - 6 8 1 WP-Williams LP-Wells S-Cormier HRs-T.Nixon, C.Patterson, J.Gerut, A.Jones Right fielder Jody Gerut jacked one out of the ballyard and had 3 RBI as the Traverse City Cherry Pickers defeated the New York TasteExplosion! by a score of 6 to 4 at Cherry Field. Woody Williams(16-11) was in control of the game from the outset. He didn't give up much, just 7 hits and 3 walks in 8 and 2/3 innings. Williams whiffed an impressive total of 9 New York batters. New York threatened in the 9th but Traverse City was able to put down the rally. Rheal Cormier earned his 15th save. Kip Wells(12-16) was the losing pitcher. He allowed 3 homeruns in 3 and 2/3 innings of work. Game 3 Cherry Pickers.. 0 1 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 - 6 8 0 TasteExplosion!. 4 4 1 0 0 0 1 0 - 10 8 0 WP May LP Bernero. HRs Paterson 2 (TCP) The Taste Explosion! jumped on Adam Bernero, who gave up 8 runs while recording
only 3 outs. The Cherry Pickers made it a game in the 6th, chasing Darrell May.
Corey Paterson drove in 5 of the Cherry Pickers 6 runs. Luis Matos went 2 for 3 for
the Taste Explosion, driving in 3 runs. Game 4 Cherry Pickers.. 2 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 - 5 12 0 TasteExplosion!. 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 3 6 0 WP Colon LP Ponson Sv Cormier. HRs Jones 2 (TCP), Garciaparra (NYT) Traverse City pulled the series even at 2 games each by winning a tight game in New York.
Andrew Jones launched 2 solo home runs and Luis Gonzalez was 4 for 4 in the lead-off spot
for the Cherry Pickers. Game 5 Cherry Pickers.. 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 - 3 8 2 TasteExplosion!. 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 - 5 9 1 WP Wells LP Williams Sv. Quantrill. HRs Giles, Gonzales (TCP) New York took a 3-2 series lead in this hard-fought game. The Taste Explosion!
put up a five-spot in the fifth inning against Woody Williams. Luis Matos capped
off the 5-run fifth with a two-run single. Four New York relievers were able to hold
the lead, with Paul Quantrill getting his second save of the series. Game 6 TasteExplosion!. 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 - 4 8 0 Cherry Pickers.. 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 6 0 WP Quantrill LP Rogers HRs Castillo, Ross (NYT) The Taste Explosion! advance to the next round with a 4-1 vistory over the
Cherry Pickers in Traverse City. The telling blow cam from pinch hitter Dave
Ross, who blasted a 2-run home run in the top of the seventh to provide New York
with a comfortable cushion. Five New York pitchers combined to quiet the Cherry
Pickers bats, holding them without a home run for the first time in the series.
