Harmony Sea Kittens (3-1 MSCR Castle Rock League) encountered a tough Great Dane (1-3) pack at Olbrich Park October 3, but tenacious Kitten defense and just enough hitting gave the Harmony side an 8-5 come-from-behind win. The victory ensured a third consecutive winning fall league season for the Sea Kittens and was the team’s 14th victory in 2018, matching a franchise-best established in 2016. With an upset of Castle Rock front-runners Wilson’s Coolers (4-0) October 10, Sea Kittens would force a 3-way tie atop the league.
With strangely warm, powerful autumn winds blowing in from center field (recorded at 27 mph, with gusts to 41), both teams had to find ways to punch the ball through both the wind and the opposing defense, while both teams’ pitchers had to finesse the ball to the plate. Sweet Thing Harkins opened the ballgame with a ringing single for Harmony, but after a pair of fielders’ choices the Kittens still only had a runner on first base. Mama Cat O’Brien delivered a two-out knock to extend the inning, and Man-Aaron Jossart continued his manly ways with a clutch hit to drive home the first Sea Kitten run.
Great Dane also opened its half-inning with a single, but Sea Kitten starter- and Zen Master- David Rowe and the Kitten defense settled in nicely to retire the next three Great Dane batters to preserve the 1-0 Harmony advantage.
Hennessy singles in the second, Zen Master Rowe delivers with bases loaded. Run Roadrunner, run!
Four consecutive Cats singled with one out in the top of the second, but with the windy conditions and a stout Great Dane outfield, the sequence only produced a single run. With two out in the inning and the bases loaded, the Cats turned to Sweet Thing, who took a 3-pitch walk and drove home a pair without swinging the bat to push the Harmony lead to 4-0.
Flash Marsicek swinging away.
Great Dane charged back at the Kittens in the bottom of the inning, with five consecutive runners reaching safely to open the inning and setting the Kittens momentarily on their hindquarters. Great Dane tied the ballgame 4-4 in the sequence, but a smartly-played relay from Helen Boo Rabbit Bradley- making her first appearance in the outfield since perhaps high school- to shortstop Joe Hennessy to third baseman Dynamo Dan Oele nabbed a Dane runner attempting to go first-to-third and threw a wrench in the rally. Los Gatitos recovered and retired the next two batters, and began the game anew with a tie score.
Sea Kittens went quietly in the third- O’Brien scorched a ball towards the hot corner that the Dane third baseman intercepted before it could make left field, and the Dane’s left fielder handled two high flies with ease despite the swirling breeze. In the bottom of the inning Great Dane mounted a two-out surge, picking up a run and taking a 5-4 lead on three hits, but again Harmony limited the damage and stranded runners on second and third base.
Playing from behind for the first time in the ballgame, the Sea Kitten offense got to work. Roadrunner Jami Hauer beat out an infield single with one out, and Hennessy ripped a game-tying triple to right, the ball wickedly slicing away from and past the Dane outfielder. Hennessy dashed home on a Katherine “Sunshine” Curtis hit, and Sunshine booked a ticket home on a double from Rowe to give Sea Kittens a 7-5 lead.
From that point on, the Kittens were masterful in the field. Rowe worked the strike zone and Brenna “Flash” Marsicek played a busy game at second base through the middle innings, at one point recording four consecutive putouts for the Cats. Great Dane put runners on base in every inning, but the Kittens prevented them from stringing together hits and stranded Dane runners in scoring position in the third, fourth, and sixth innings. Oele and Hauer combined to notch an additional insurance run for Harmony in the 6th, but the Cats couldn’t bring any more home despite having runners on first and third and nobody out in that frame.
With Sea Kittens clawing to an 8-5 advantage entering the bottom of the 7th, Great Dane intensified the drama by putting runners on first and second with nobody out, but Oele gobbled up a hot shot to third, stepped to the bag and fired a laser to Marsicek at second for a brilliant 5-4 double play to quell the threat. Rowe induced a bounce out from the next Dane batter to end the game, and Sea Kittens had held Great Dane scoreless over the contest’s final four innings.
Watch the video. Was The Polish Puma robbed of a hit, or did the ball really land foul, as the umpire ruled?
Next up:
Sea Kittens (3-1) at Wilson’s Coolers (4-0).Wednesday October 10, 7:15 PM, Olbrich 1
Sea Kittens are all that stand between the Coolers and an unbeaten season and league title. With Chief’s (3-1) and I’d Hit That (3-1) squaring off (both of which have lost to Wilson’s), a Sea Kitten win would force a 3-way tie for first between Sea Kittens, Wilson’s and the winner of the latter game. Wilson’s has outscored its opponents 65-21; Sea Kittens have posted a 66-31 run differential. The Wilson’s crew sports power to all fields, but scouting suggests Sea Kittens may hold a significant advantage on the women’s side.
Game Notes
Regardless of outcome in its final game, the 2018 Sea Kittens will establish the top calendar-year winning percentage in franchise history. At 14-3, the Cats can finish no worse than 0.778 (14-4). The 2016 Sea Kittens played 19 games and finished 14-5 (0.737)
The 4th through 7th innings marked just the 8th time Sea Kittens have finished a game pitching four or more consecutive shutout innings, and first since August 30, 2017.
Joe’s triple was the 21st Sea Kitten triple of 2018, breaking the record of 20 set in 2012.
Sea Kittens have also hit more home runs (30) in 2018 than in any previous year (28 in 2016), and have matched the franchise-best total for extra-base hits (118, also in 2016)
The Cats’ 0.557 batting average is on pace to be a new team record (0.545, 2016),
Together those extra-base hits and that batting average yield an 0.873 cumulative slugging percentage- more than 80 points better than the current team record (0.792, 2016)
Jami is on track to establish a new record for batting average over the course of a year among Sea Kitten women. She sits at 0.528 (28-53). With Erin at 0.491 (26-53), the pair could become the second and third women to hit 0.500 or better in a year. Jess hit 0.500 (19-38) in 2016.
How ’bout that?
Brenna’s first-inning single in the Sea Kittens fall league opener was the 2,500th hit in Sea Kitten history!
Salmon Snacks
Alex to help with that gimpy hammy
Kyle to help with his concussion recovery
Brenna for a great game at 2B
Dan & Brenna for what may have been a game-saving double play
Helen-Joe-Dan for the outfield to third-base relay
Helen, Alex, Brad, Aaron & Jami for handling the outfield so well in that wind
Dave for pitching really well in tough conditions
Brad for his willingness to play lawyer ball in the Name of The Cause- and take a 2-run 2-base walk
Joe for the triple
Jami for a 3-3 game and Katherine for collecting two more hits- the bottom five batters in the lineup combined to go 11-15 with a double, triple, 6 runs scored and 4 RBI!
