A Mustang Victory Still in the Cards

PPBA PLAYOFF ROUNDUP

Looking to rebound from last Wednesday’s loss to the Cubs, the Cardinals handed the ball to ace pitcher Paul Kirkpatrick, hoping he could slow down the red hot Phillies. Kirkpatrick did just that, allowing only one run and two hits in two and two-thirds innings and going two-for-two at the plate with two runs scored as the Cardinals won 11-6 and got to where they expected to be all along: the Mustang Division championship series. The Cardinals (15-4) finished first in the National League and earned the top seed in the playoffs before being upset by the third-seeded Cubs, dropping them to the loser’s bracket and a must-win situation against the fourth-seeded Phillies. The Cardinals took a 9-1 lead into the fourth but the Phillies scored three runs to tighten the score. With the Cardinals threatening to add to their lead in the bottom half, Phillies short stop Tyler Newman fielded a two-hopper, stepped on second base and threw to first for an inning-ending double play. Remi Bisharat’s two-out double scored the Cardinals’ final two runs in the fifth inning and gave closer Justin Ruder a cushion. The Phillies, however, rallied on a walk, a single by Alec Dodson, and a groundout by Tommy Collins that advanced the runners to second and third. Ruder struck out the next batter, then Jonathan Sington singled down the third base line to score the Phillies’ final run. The Cardinals advanced to the finals needing to beat the Cubs Wednesday to force a winner-take-all game today at 4:30 p.m. on Diamond 3 at the Field of Dreams complex. The Cubs finished behind the Cardinals in the National League standings despite winning both regular season meetings. Bronco The top-seeded Red Sox (16-3) shook off last Tuesday’s 15-5 loss to the second-seeded Cardinals with a 10-6 victory over the Tigers in an elimination game to determine who would play the Cardinals for the championship. Harrison Wolman and Sam Wasserman each pitched three innings for the Red Sox, who broke the game open with six runs in the bottom of the second inning. Wasserman scored twice and went two-for-two, including a single with the bases loaded that plated three runs. The Red Sox needed to beat the National League champion Cardinals (13-5) Wednesday to force a decisive game today at 4:30 p.m. on Diamond 2. The teams met only once in the regular season, with the Red Sox winning 3-2 on a walk-off home run by Daniel Gurvis. The Cardinals entered Wednesday’s contest on a nine-game winning streak. Pinto The Tigers’ offense picked a perfect time to get into a groove. Moving base to base with one single after another, the underdog Tigers pounded out 14 hits in a 13-3 victory over the second-seeded Yankees Tuesday that earned them a second chance at the fourth-seeded Red Sox, who had dealt the Tigers a 7-4 defeat in the finals of the winner’s bracket one week before. Shane Stoklos doubled to leadoff the game, William Winkenhower followed with an RBI single, PJ Hurst singled to score Winkenhower and Dane Morrow singled to score Hurst as the sixth-seeded Tigers (9-10) jumped ahead 3-0. The Yankees (10-9) answered in the second inning with runs by Daniel Furman and Shayan Soltanie. The Tigers increased their lead in the top of the third when Stoklos scored on a high fly ball to center by Matthew Stockman, who then scored on a fielder’s choice. Hunter VanDuzer’s double scored Morrow and VanDuzer scored on an error to increase the Tigers’ lead to 7-2 in the top of the fourth. Soltanie singled to score Jack Brue with the Yankees’ last run in the bottom of the inning. Stockman doubled to ignite a five-run Tigers rally in the sixth inning that put the game out of reach. The Red Sox entered Wednesday’s game undefeated in the double elimination tournament, meaning the Tigers needed to win Wednesday to stay alive in the double elimination tournament. A second game, if necessary, will be today at 4:30 p.m. on Diamond 3.