Eagles Gash Sea Kittens

Recap

Timely hitting and opportunism favored Swingin’ Eagles (2-1 MSCR Monroe League) Wednesday night at Olbrich Park, and the hosts picked apart Harmony Sea Kittens (2-1) for a 9-5 win.

Sea Kittens started the night with lively bats, opening the game with back-to-back singles from the Polish Puma, Alex Latzka, and Jami “Roadrunner” Hauer.   With tremendous speed on the bases, David Zen Master Rowe blooped a single to right-center to plate Latzka and open the evening’s scoring.   One batter later,  starting pitcher Joe Hennessy sent a rocket to the far bank of Starkweather Creek,  frightening the bejeezus out of some poor guy pulling a burley on the bike path and giving Sea Kittens a 4-0 lead…

…which they promptly started to give back.  Not playing their sharpest defense after a 2-week layoff (and three weeks since playing a competitive game),  Sea Kittens gave the Eagles a number of extra outs over the course of the game. The Eagles repeatedly capitalized, not with long balls, but with sharp singles and a number of doubles, frequently opening innings with a runner on 2nd and putting the Cats on their hind legs.

Roadrunner wheeling to first- one of the few Sea Kitten highlights of the evening

Meanwhile the Cats’ bats went cold, going a collective 3-14 after the home run and posting three consecutive goose eggs on the scoreboard.  In the same span, Hennessy and the Kitten defense couldn’t record a clean inning, and Eagles held an 8-4 advantage after four innings.  Sweet Thing Harkins and Laura Hewitt briefly breathed life into the Harmony offense, opening the 5th with back-to-back hits.  Boom Boom Magyera got Harkins home with a sacrifice fly to left and Latzka singled again, but the rally stalled, and Eagles recovered the run they lost in the bottom of the frame.

After going down 1-2-3 in the 6th, Los Gatitos finally kept Eagles off the scoreboard and entered the 7th down four runs, but believing in the power of the Rally Cat.  And indeed Harmony put runners on first and second with one out, but the Eagle defense twisted a 1-5-3 double play to silence the Kits once and for all.

Game Notes

• The last time Sea Kittens were held scoreless for three consecutive innings was May 24, 2017, in an uninspired 8-4 Opening Night loss to We Got the Runs
• That was also the last time Sea Kittens were held to fewer than 6 runs in a game
• Heidibadger Nelson played her 97th game as a Sea Kitten, moving her closer to the Century Club occupied by Hennessy, Mama Cat O’Brien, and Rowe
• Kyle’s sac fly was the 7th of his career, putting him 1 behind Joe for the most in SK history
• In MSCR League play, the loss was the Cat’s 3rd consecutive on Olbrich Field 3 (but the team also went 2-1 on that diamond in the Harmony Tournament in the same time span)
• Sea Kittens are 53-23 all-time when holding opponents under 10 runs…
• …but Sea Kittens are 2-41 all-time when scoring 5 runs or fewer

Salmon Snacks

• Jess for not getting a wedding photo black eye when the ball popped out of her glove on a high fly to right-center
• Jess also for making a slick barehanded grab of a grounder to second and flicking it to Erin for an out
• Joe for not hitting the ball into the creek and ruining it
• Jackson & Carter for retrieving it
• Heidi for delighting us with a pickle
• Brad went 3-3 in his season debut