NLDS Game 4: Fleetwood at Parkland

Game 4 - Fleetwood at Parkland
Drew Pomeranz (11-3, 2.30 ERA) vs. Ubaldo Jimenez (9-9, 5.95 ERA)

Facing a 2-games-to-1 deficit, Parkland knew that Game 3 was a virtual "must win" game. In response, the Green sent Ubaldo Jimenez to the mound, but surely would not hesitate to turn to its deep bullpen as early as needed. Fleetwood countered with lefty Drew Pomeranz, but also would likely have its full bullpen at the ready as well.

Joey Votto RBI single in 1st inning

For the fourth time in 4 games, Parkland was once again the first team to answer the bell. In the bottom of the 1st inning, Lorenzo Cain reached base on a one-out single. He quickly stole second base to put himself in scoring position. Joey Votto followed with an RBI single, and Parkland was up 1-0 early.

Neither team scored in the 2nd inning, but Fleetwood responded in the 3rd. Francisco Cervelli and Ian Kinsler led off the frame with back-to-back singles. Tommy Pham followed with a sacrifice fly, tying the game 1-1. After a Mike Trout fly out, Justin Turner collected a two-out RBI single to give Fleetwood a 2-1 lead.

In the 4th inning, Fleetwood mounted another rally. Curt Casali got things started with a one-out single, and Mookie Betts followed with a single of his own. That hit knocked Jimenez out of the game in favor of Jeremy Jeffress. Jeffress surrendered an RBI single to Cervelli before retiring Kinsler on a double-play ground out to end the threat. Fleetwood now led 3-1.

In the bottom of the same 4th inning, Fleetwood shortstop Carlos Correa committed a costly throwing error that put leadoff hitter Jose Bautista on second base. Pomeranz retired Francisco Lindor and Khris Davis thereafter, but then walked Luis Valbueno and served up a single to Mike Zunino to load the bases. That hit drove Pomeranz from the game in favor of righty Erik Goeddel.

Despite an impressive regular season, Goeddel was not up the challenge. He walked Melky Cabrera, forcing in a run. Ben Zobrist followed with an RBI single, and Parkland tied the game 3-3.

Jose Fernandez: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K.

Both teams were quiet in the 5th and 6th innings, with Jose Fernandez entering the game for Parkland in the 6h inning. In the 7th, Joey Votto crushed a Carson Smith offering for a solo home run. After a scoreless 8th inning for both teams, Parkland needed only to hold Fleetwood scoreless in the 9th for the win.

Parkland called on Pedro Strop to close out the game. Strop retired Derek Norris on a ground out, and then Mookie Betts on a strikeout. With Fleetwood lefty Chris Coghlan due up next, Parkland took the ball out of Strop's hand and gave it to lefty Brandon Finnegan. Fleetwood quickly countered with David Wright, who mashed lefties like Finnegan in the regular season (.372 average, .429 on-base percentage, .603 slugging percentage).

David Wright indeed scorched a Finnegan offering for a vicious line drive, but one that found itself squarely in the glove of Parkland shortstop Francisco Lindor for the inning's final out. Parkland had collected both a hard-earned win and a vital series split.

Final score: Parkland 4, Fleetwood 3.

W: Jose Fernandez (1-0)
L: Carson Smith (0-1)
SV: Brandon Finnegan (1)
HR: Joey Votto (3)

Series tied 2-2.


BOXSCORE: 2016 Fleetwood Walkers At 2016 Parkland Green            10/12/2016

  Walkers            AB  R  H RBI AVG     Green              AB  R  H RBI AVG
  T.Pham RF           2  0  0  1 .222     B.Zobrist 2B        5  0  3  1 .471  
C-K.Kiermaier CF      1  0  0  0 .333     L.Cain CF           4  1  1  0 .158  
  M.Trout CF,RF       4  0  0  0 .105     J.Votto 1B          4  1  2  2 .389  
  J.Turner 3B         4  0  1  1 .214     J.Bautista RF       4  1  0  0 .143  
  M.Cabrera 1B        2  0  0  0 .200     F.Lindor SS         4  0  1  0 .188  
  C.Correa SS         4  0  0  0 .308     K.Davis DH          3  0  0  0 .067  
  C.Casali C          2  1  2  0 .500     L.Valbuena 3B       3  1  0  0 .000  
A-J.Smoak PH          1  0  0  0 .000     M.Zunino C          3  0  1  0 .143  
B-D.Norris C          1  0  0  0 .000     M.Cabrera LF        2  0  0  1 .118  
  M.Betts LF          4  0  1  0 .125                                          
  F.Cervelli DH       2  1  2  1 .444                                          
D-C.Coghlan PH,DH     0  0  0  0 .500                                          
E-D.Wright PH         1  0  0  0 .400                                          
  I.Kinsler 2B        3  1  1  0 .308                                          
                     -- -- -- ---                            -- -- -- ---      
         Totals      31  3  7  3                 Totals      32  4  8  4

A-Pinch Hit For Casali In 6th Inning
B-Subbed Defensively (C ) For Smoak In 6th Inning
C-Subbed Defensively (CF) For Pham In 6th Inning
D-Pinch Hit For Cervelli In 7th Inning
E-Pinch Hit For Coghlan In 9th Inning

Walkers......... 0 0 2  1 0 0  0 0 0  -  3  7  1
Green........... 1 0 0  2 0 0  1 0    -  4  8  0

Walkers (2-2)            IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET
D.Pomeranz                3 2/3   4   3   1   2   1   0   2.45  A1 B8
E.Goeddel                 0 2/3   1   0   0   1   1   0   3.38  B9 C3
A.Bastardo                1 1/3   1   0   0   1   2   0   0.00  C4 C9
C.Smith LOSS(0-1)         2 1/3   2   1   1   1   5   1   1.23  D1
Totals                    8       8   4   2   5   9   1

Green (2-2)              IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET
U.Jimenez                 3 1/3   6   3   3   0   2   0   8.10  A1 B7
J.Jeffress                1 2/3   1   0   0   0   0   0   0.00  B8 C3
J.Fernandez WIN(1-0)      3       0   0   0   3   4   0   2.45  C4 D5
P.Strop HOLD(1st)         0 2/3   0   0   0   0   1   0   0.00  D6 D7
B.Finnegan SAVE(1st)      0 1/3   0   0   0   0   0   0  27.00  D8
Totals                    9       7   3   3   3   7   0

ATTENDANCE- 49,282 DATE- Wednesday, October 12th 2016 TIME- Night WEATHER- Average
T- 2:46
LEFT ON BASE- Walkers: 5  Green: 9
DOUBLE PLAYS- Walkers: 1  Green: 2
ERRORS- C.Correa
DOUBLES- B.Zobrist(2nd)
HOME RUNS- J.Votto(3rd)
RBIs- T.Pham(4th), J.Turner(2nd), F.Cervelli(1st), B.Zobrist(2nd),
      J.Votto-2(4th), M.Cabrera(2nd)
STOLEN BASES- L.Cain(2nd), F.Lindor(2nd)
SACRIFICE FLIES- T.Pham
WALKS- M.Cabrera-2, C.Coghlan, K.Davis, L.Valbuena, M.Zunino, M.Cabrera-2
STRIKE OUTS- K.Kiermaier, M.Trout, J.Turner, C.Correa-2, J.Smoak, M.Betts,
             L.Cain, J.Bautista-2, F.Lindor-2, K.Davis, L.Valbuena, M.Zunino-2
GIDP- I.Kinsler-2, L.Cain
2-out RBI- J.Turner, M.Cabrera, B.Zobrist
RLISP 2-out- F.Lindor, L.Cain-3, L.Valbuena
TEAM RISP- Walkers: 2 for 3  Green: 3 for 9

NLDS Game 3: Fleetwood at Parkland

Game 3 - Fleetwood at Parkland

Garrett Richards (17-6, 3.55 ERA) vs. Wade Miley (11-10, 4.82 ERA)

Having split the first two games, Parkland and Fleetwood moved the NL Divisional Series to Parkland for Game 3. Matching up on the mound were Fleetwood righty Garrett Richards and Parkland lefty Wade Miley.

On paper, the matchup did not look inspiring for the hometown Parkland faithful. During the regular season, Fleetwood's lineup crushed lefties like Miley to the tune of a .312 team batting average, a .392 team on-base percentage and a .504 team slugging percentage.

But Parkland's offense was no slouch either, having scored 902 runs during the regular season. That performance was 4th best in all of BRASSball, behind only Santa Barbara (975), Metropolis (936) and Fleetwood (932). And given Parkland's homer-friendly ballpark (253 total home runs, the most in BRASSball; 138 hit by Parkland, 115 hit by Parkland opponents), the next few games figured to be high scoring affairs.

Joey Votto 1st inning home run

And for the third time in three games, Parkland drew first blood. This time, it was star first baseman Joey Votto who did the damage, crushing a 96-mile-per-hour Garrett Richards fastball deep to the opposite field for a solo home run. The blast seemed to rattle Richards, who then immediately surrendered a walk to Jose Bautista and a double to Ben Zobrist. But the Fleetwood pitcher finally gathered himself, and retired Khris Davis on a groundout to prevent any further damage.

Fleetwood's lineup answered the bell in the 3rd inning. Ian Kinsler led off the frame with a double. After two quick outs, David Wright knocked Kinsler in with a double of his own. Miguel Cabrera followed that with an RBI single, putting Fleetwood up 2-1. Carlos Correa then joined in on the fun, hitting a double that sent Cabrera racing around second and third. But a strong throw from center fielder Lorenzo Cain beat the lumbering Cabrera to the plate, and he was easily tagged out to end the threat.

Votto was there again for Parkland in the bottom of the 3rd inning, this time pulling a home run to deep right field for his second solo homer of the game. The game was now knotted 2-2.

Fleetwood's Marwin Gonzalez led of the 4th inning just two batters later, and he joined in on the home run fun as well with a solo shot of his own. When Francisco Cervelli collected a single just two batters after that, Miley's day was done in favor of Parkland reliever Alex Colome. Colome quickly retired Kinsler and Tommy Pham to keep the score at 3-2 in favor of Fleetwood.

Parkland failed to score in the 4th, but Fleetwood added another run in the 5th on a double by Chris Coghlan, an infield single by Carlos Correa, and (following a pitching change to Jeremy Jeffress) an RBI single by Justin Turner. The score was now Fleetwood 4, Parkland 2.

Neither team mounted any threats in the 6th or 7th innings, but Fleetwood put more pressure on Parkland in the 8th. Now facing the imposing Jose Fernandez -- who had been assigned bullpen duty for this series to better manage on-going elbow soreness -- Correa and Turner led off the innings with back-to-back singles. Parkland quickly turned to Greg Holland to put out the fire, but Holland walked Mookie Betts to load the bases with nobody out.

Carlos Correa slides safely into home in 8th inning

Holland then firmed up, striking out Kevin Kiermaier. Kinsler was up next, and managed a medium-deep fly ball to center that was deep enough to plate Correa. Holland was one batter away from limiting the damage to one run, but Fleetwood backup catcher Curt Casali had other ideas. Casali launched a deep home run to left-center field, and the Walkers suddenly found themselves with a commanding 8-2 lead.

Miguel Cabrera hit another Fleetwood home run in the top of the 9th to cap the game's scoring. Five homers had been hit in total on this day, with Fleetwood coming out on top this time in both homers (3 versus 2) and total runs.

Final Score: Fleetwood 9, Parkland 2.

W: Antonio Bastardo (1-0)
L: Wade Miley (0-1)
SV: None
HR: Curt Casali (1), Miguel Cabrera (1), Marwin Gonzalez (1), Joey Votto 2 (2).

Fleetwood leads series 2-1.

BOXSCORE: 2016 Fleetwood Walkers At 2016 Parkland Green            10/11/2016

  Walkers            AB  R  H RBI AVG     Green              AB  R  H RBI AVG

  T.Pham RF           4  0  0  0 .286     L.Cain CF           4  0  0  0 .133  

D-C.Casali C          1  1  1  3 .250     M.Cabrera LF        4  0  0  0 .133  

  M.Trout CF,RF       5  0  0  0 .133     J.Votto 1B          4  2  2  2 .357  

  D.Wright DH         1  1  1  1 .500     J.Bautista RF       3  0  0  0 .200  

A-C.Coghlan PH,DH     3  1  1  0 .500     B.Zobrist 2B        3  0  2  0 .417  

  M.Cabrera 1B        5  1  2  2 .231     K.Davis DH          3  0  0  0 .083  

  C.Correa SS         4  1  3  0 .444     F.Lindor SS         2  0  0  0 .167  

  M.Gonzalez 3B       2  1  1  1 .273     A.Guerrero 3B       2  0  0  0 .000  

B-J.Turner PH,3B      3  1  2  1 .200   E-L.Valbuena PH,3B    2  0  0  0 .000  

  M.Betts LF          3  1  1  0 .083     Y.Grandal C         1  0  0  0 .286  

  F.Cervelli C        2  0  1  0 .286   F-M.Zunino PH,C       2  0  0  0 .000  

C-K.Kiermaier PH,CF   2  0  0  0 .375                                          

  I.Kinsler 2B        3  1  1  1 .300                                          

                     -- -- -- ---                            -- -- -- ---      

         Totals      38  9 14  9                 Totals      30  2  4  2

A-Pinch Hit For Wright In 5th Inning

B-Pinch Hit For Gonzalez In 5th Inning

C-Pinch Hit For Cervelli In 6th Inning

D-Subbed Defensively (C ) For Pham In 6th Inning

E-Pinch Hit For Guerrero In 7th Inning

F-Pinch Hit For Grandal In 7th Inning

Walkers......... 0 0 2  1 1 0  0 4 1  -  9 14  0

Green........... 1 0 1  0 0 0  0 0 0  -  2  4  0

Walkers (2-1)            IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET

G.Richards                4       4   2   2   3   1   2   4.50  A1 B9

C.Smith                   2       0   0   0   1   3   0   0.00  C1 C7

A.Bastardo WIN(1-0)       2       0   0   0   0   2   0   0.00  C8 D4

S.Kelley                  1       0   0   0   2   2   0   0.00  D5

Totals                    9       4   2   2   6   8   2

Green (1-2)              IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET

W.Miley LOSS(0-1)         3 1/3   7   3   3   2   0   1   8.10  A1 B8

A.Colome                  1 1/3   2   1   1   0   0   0   6.75  B9 C5

J.Jeffress                0 1/3   1   0   0   0   0   0   0.00  C6 C7

J.Fernandez               2       2   2   2   0   0   0   4.15  C8 D6

G.Holland                 0 2/3   1   2   2   1   1   1  20.25  D7 E1

P.Strop                   0 1/3   0   0   0   0   1   0   0.00  E2 E2

S.Geltz                   1       1   1   1   0   1   1   4.50  E3

Totals                    9      14   9   9   3   3   3

ATTENDANCE- 49,213 DATE- Tuesday, October 11th 2016 TIME- Day WEATHER- Good

T- 2:44

LEFT ON BASE- Walkers: 6  Green: 7

DOUBLE PLAYS- Walkers: 1  Green: 1

DOUBLES- D.Wright(1st), C.Coghlan(1st), C.Correa(1st), I.Kinsler(2nd),

         B.Zobrist(1st)

HOME RUNS- C.Casali(1st), M.Cabrera(1st), M.Gonzalez(1st), J.Votto-2(2nd)

RBIs- C.Casali-3(3rd), D.Wright(2nd), M.Cabrera-2(3rd), M.Gonzalez(1st),

      J.Turner(1st), I.Kinsler(1st), J.Votto-2(2nd)

SACRIFICE FLIES- I.Kinsler

WALKS- D.Wright, C.Correa, M.Betts, J.Bautista, B.Zobrist, K.Davis, F.Lindor-2,

       Y.Grandal

STRIKE OUTS- M.Trout, J.Turner, K.Kiermaier, L.Cain-2, J.Votto, J.Bautista,

             F.Lindor, L.Valbuena-2, M.Zunino

GIDP- M.Gonzalez, Y.Grandal

2-out RBI- J.Votto-2, D.Wright, M.Cabrera, J.Turner, C.Casali-3

RLISP 2-out- K.Davis-2, M.Betts, M.Zunino

TEAM RISP- Walkers: 5 for 10  Green: 0 for 3

NLDS Game 2: Parkland at Fleetwood

Game 2 - Parkland at Fleetwood

Julio Teheran (6-13, 5.64 ERA) vs. John Lackey (20-4, 3.68 ERA)

The second game of this National League Divisional Series pitted Parkland's Julio Teheran against Fleetwood's John Lackey. Given Teheran's poor regular-season record and high regular-season ERA, Fleetwood appeared to have the clear advantage. But baseball games are not played on paper or in the rear-view mirror, so only time would tell.

After a scoreless 1st inning for both teams, Parkland once again drew first blood. And this time, the Green did so in a big way thanks to a two-out, three-run home run in the 2nd inning by catcher Yasmani Grandal. In the very next frame, Parkland's Khris Davis matched the feat with a three-run homer of his own. Very quickly, Parkland had jumped out to a commanding 6-0 lead.

Julio Teheran: 6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 10 K.

Meanwhile, Teheran cruised through 6 scoreless innings on the mound while Parkland's Jose Bautista hit a solo shot in the top of the 7th inning for another insurance run.

In the bottom of the 7th, Teheran gave up a lead-off single to Chris Coghlan. After striking out the next two batters, he surrendered another single to Kevin Keirmaier. This hit drove him from the game in favor of reliever Jonathon Papelbon, who retired Fleetwood's Marwin Gonzalez to end the threat.

Neither team would mount another rally, and the game ended with Parkland earning a shutout and a much-needed win. The series would now shift to Parkland for Games 3 through 5.

Final Score: Parkland 7, Fleetwood 0.

W: Julio Teheran (1-0)
L: John Lackey (0-1)
SV: None
HR: Jose Bautista (1), Khris Davis (1), Yasmani Grandal (1)

Series tied 1-1.

BOXSCORE: 2016 Parkland Green At 2016 Fleetwood Walkers             10/9/2016

  Green              AB  R  H RBI AVG     Walkers            AB  R  H RBI AVG
  L.Cain CF           5  0  0  0 .182     M.Gonzalez 2B       4  0  0  0 .222  
  M.Cabrera LF        4  0  0  0 .182     M.Trout RF          4  0  0  0 .200  
  J.Votto 1B          3  1  0  0 .300     J.Turner 3B         3  0  0  0 .000  
  J.Bautista RF       3  2  1  1 .286     M.Cabrera 1B        4  0  0  0 .125  
  K.Davis DH          4  1  1  3 .111     M.Betts LF          4  0  0  0 .000  
  B.Zobrist 2B        4  1  1  0 .333     C.Coghlan DH        2  0  1  0 .667  
  L.Valbuena 3B       3  1  0  0 .000     C.Correa SS         4  0  0  0 .200  
  F.Lindor SS         4  0  2  0 .200     F.Cervelli C        3  0  0  0 .200  
  Y.Grandal C         3  1  1  3 .333     K.Kiermaier CF      2  0  2  0 .500  
                     -- -- -- ---                            -- -- -- ---      
         Totals      33  7  6  7                 Totals      30  0  3  0

Green........... 0 3 3  0 0 0  1 0 0  -  7  6  1
Walkers......... 0 0 0  0 0 0  0 0 0  -  0  3  0

Green (1-1)              IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET
J.Teheran WIN(1-0)        6 2/3   3   0   0   3  10   0   0.00  A1 C9
J.Papelbon                1 1/3   0   0   0   0   0   0   0.00  D1 D4
S.Geltz                   1       0   0   0   1   0   0   0.00  D5
Totals                    9       3   0   0   4  10   0

Walkers (1-1)            IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET
J.Lackey LOSS(0-1)        3       3   6   6   4   3   2  18.00  A1 B7
E.Goeddel                 1       1   0   0   1   1   0   4.50  B8 C3
A.Bastardo                1 2/3   0   0   0   1   2   0   0.00  C4 C9
C.Capps                   1       0   0   0   0   1   0   0.00  D1 D3
T.Sipp                    1 1/3   2   1   1   0   3   1   6.75  D4 D9
S.Kelley                  1       0   0   0   0   1   0   0.00  E1
Totals                    9       6   7   7   6  11   3

ATTENDANCE- 48,165 DATE- Sunday, October 9th 2016 TIME- Day WEATHER- Bad
T- 2:26
LEFT ON BASE- Green: 5  Walkers: 7
DOUBLE PLAYS- Green: 1  Walkers: 0
ERRORS- F.Lindor
HOME RUNS- J.Bautista(1st), K.Davis(1st), Y.Grandal(1st)
RBIs- J.Bautista(1st), K.Davis-3(4th), Y.Grandal-3(3rd)
STOLEN BASES- F.Lindor(1st)
WALKS- M.Cabrera, J.Votto-2, J.Bautista, L.Valbuena, Y.Grandal, J.Turner,
       C.Coghlan-2, K.Kiermaier
STRIKE OUTS- M.Cabrera-2, J.Votto, J.Bautista, K.Davis-2, B.Zobrist,
             L.Valbuena-2, F.Lindor, Y.Grandal, M.Trout-2, J.Turner,
             M.Cabrera-2, M.Betts, C.Correa, F.Cervelli-3
GIDP- C.Correa
2-out RBI- Y.Grandal-3, J.Bautista
RLISP 2-out- M.Gonzalez-3, J.Votto

TEAM RISP- Green: 2 for 6  Walkers: 0 for 4

NLDS Game 1: Parkland at Fleetwood

Game 1 - Parkland at Fleetwood

C.J. Wilson (10-4, 3.73 ERA) vs. Zack Greinke (24-5, 2.70 ERA)

While Metropolis and Sacramento squared off in one National League Divisional Series, the other NLDS pitted the upstart Parkland Green against the perennially contending Fleetwood Walkers.

Parkland's path to the playoffs wasn't easy. In the early going, Parkland sported an uninspiring 10-18 record through April and just a 23-33 record through May. But as the weather warmed up, so did the Green. The team went 17-11 in June, and drew its record to near .500 after 140 games at 69-71. Parkland then caught fire in September, winnings 16 of its final 22 games to end the season with an 85-77 record. This was enough to earn Parkland the NL East Divisional Crown.

Fleetwood had no such drama during its regular season. The Walkers kicked off the season with an impressive 19-9 record through April and a 56-28 record thru June. But Fleetwood really hit its stride in the back half of the season, winning 65 of its final 78 games. That impressive run resulted in a NL Central Divisional Crown and a final team record of 121-41, the best in BRASSball by 5 games over the defending NL champion Metropolis Avengers (116-46).

But come October, both Parkland and Fleetwood were back on even ground and ready to rumble. Taking the mound in Game 1 for Parkland was lefty C.J. Wilson. Zack Greinke toed the rubber for Fleetwood.

Despite Fleetwood's gaudy regular season record, it is fair to say that Parkland was not intimidated. Before many hometown Fleetwood fans could even reach their seats, the Green had quickly plated 3 runs in the top of the 1st inning. Greinke was uncharacteristically wild in that opening frame, walking leadoff hitter Lorenzo Cain and later forcing in a run with a bases-loaded walk to Khris Davis.

Kiermaier RBI single in 6th

While Greinke labored his way through the early innings of the game, Fleetwood's offense began to chip away at the Parkland lead. The Walkers scored once in the 2nd inning on a Kevin Kiermaier sacrifice fly, once in the 3rd inning on a David Wright solo home run, and once more in the 6th inning on a Kiermaier single. The game was thus tied 3-3 through 6 frames.

Parkland immediately responded in the 7th inning, retaking the lead on an RBI single by Cain. The Green would hold that lead into the bottom of the 9th inning. In that frame, Fleetwood second baseman Ian Kinsler collected a one-out hit against Parkland reliever Greg Holland. The Green quickly turned to Jonathan Papelbon, only to see Mike Trout and Tommy Pham greet Papelbon with consecutive singles to load the bases. Miguel Cabrera followed with a deep fly ball, but one that was ultimately caught at the warning track. One run scored to tie the game, but Papelbon wiggled out of more trouble by retiring Mookie Betts for the third out to end the frame.

The game headed to extra innings.

Neither team managed a single baserunner in the 10th or 11th innings, but Fleetwood mounted a rally in the 12th off Parkland reliever Jeremy Jeffress. Pham led off the inning with a walk, and advanced to third on a single by Miguel Cabrera. With Cabrera having taken second base on the throw to third, Parkland walked Betts intentionally to load the bases with nobody out. Fleetwood fans were on their feet.

With Parkland's infield and outfield pulled in out of desperation, Fleetwood's Marwin Gonzalez hit a ground ball that forced out Pham at the plate. After a Curt Casali strikeout, Parkland brought in Brandon Finnegan who quickly retired Justin Turner on a fly out. With this third out, the Green had somehow wiggled free.

The 13th inning quickly proved unlucky for Mookie Betts, as he dropped a Joey Votto fly ball. This error put a runner on second base with no outs, but Fleetwood's Shawn Kelley pitched around it by striking out Joey Bautista and Khris Davis. He then retired Ben Zobrist on a fly out to end the threat.

Pham walk-off home run in 13th

In the bottom of the 13th inning, Fleetwood's Ian Kinsler hit a one-out double. Parkland then intentionally walked Mike Trout to face Tommy Pham. Pham responded in a big way, ending the game with a walk-off homer. Despite being down by 3 runs early and by 1 run in the bottom of the 9th inning, Fleetwood had pulled out the win.

Final Score: Fleetwood 7, Parkland 4 (13 innings).

W: Shawn Kelley (1-0)
L: Brandon Finnegan (0-1)
SV: None
HR: David Wright (1), Tommy Pham (1).

Fleetwood leads series 1-0.

BOXSCORE: 2016 Parkland Green At 2016 Fleetwood Walkers             10/8/2016

  Green              AB  R  H RBI AVG     Walkers            AB  R  H RBI AVG
  L.Cain CF           6  1  2  1 .333     I.Kinsler 2B        7  2  2  0 .286  
  M.Cabrera LF        7  1  2  1 .286     M.Trout RF          6  1  2  0 .333  
  J.Votto 1B          7  1  3  0 .429     D.Wright DH         3  1  1  1 .333  
  J.Bautista RF       4  0  1  0 .250   F-T.Pham PH,DH        3  1  2  3 .667  
  K.Davis DH          5  0  0  1 .000     M.Cabrera 1B        4  0  1  1 .250  
  B.Zobrist 2B        5  1  2  1 .400     M.Betts LF          5  0  0  0 .000  
  L.Valbuena 3B       4  0  0  0 .000     M.Gonzalez 3B,SS    5  2  2  0 .400  
  F.Lindor SS         6  0  0  0 .000     C.Correa SS         1  0  1  01.000  
  Y.Grandal C         3  0  1  0 .333   A-C.Coghlan PH        1  0  1  01.000  
D-D.Murphy PH         1  0  0  0 .000   C-C.Casali C          3  0  0  0 .000  
E-M.Zunino C          2  0  0  0 .000     F.Cervelli C        2  0  1  0 .500  
                                        B-J.Turner PH,3B      4  0  0  0 .000  
                                          K.Kiermaier CF      4  0  1  2 .250  
                     -- -- -- ---                            -- -- -- ---      
         Totals      50  4 11  4                 Totals      48  7 14  7

A-Pinch Hit For Correa In 6th Inning
B-Pinch Hit For Cervelli In 6th Inning
C-Subbed Defensively (C ) For Coghlan In 7th Inning
D-Pinch Hit For Grandal In 7th Inning
E-Subbed Defensively (C ) For Murphy In 7th Inning
F-Pinch Hit For Wright In 7th Inning

Green........... 3 0 0  0 0 0  1 0 0  0 0 0  0 -  4 11  0
Walkers......... 0 1 1  0 0 1  0 0 1  0 0 0  3 -  7 14  2

Green (0-1)              IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET
C.Wilson                  5 1/3   5   3   3   3   5   1   5.06  A1 C6
J.Fernandez BS(1st)       2 1/3   3   0   0   0   4   0   0.00  C7 D7
G.Holland HOLD(1st)       0 2/3   1   1   1   0   1   0  13.50  D8 E1
J.Papelbon                0       2   0   0   0   0   0   ----  E2 E3
P.Strop BS(1st)           2 2/3   0   0   0   0   3   0   0.00  E4 F2
J.Jeffress                0 2/3   1   0   0   2   1   0   0.00  F3 F7
B.Finnegan LOSS(0-1)      0 2/3   2   3   3   1   0   1  40.50  F8
Totals                   12 1/3  14   7   7   6  14   2

Walkers (1-0)            IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET
Z.Greinke                 5 2/3   7   3   3   5   6   0   4.76  A1 D3
A.Bastardo                0 1/3   0   0   0   1   0   0   0.00  D4 D5
E.Goeddel                 1       2   1   1   1   1   0   9.00  D6 E2
C.Capps                   1       1   0   0   1   2   0   0.00  E3 E7
C.Smith                   3       0   0   0   0   5   0   0.00  E8 F7
S.Kelley WIN(1-0)         2       1   0   0   0   4   0   0.00  F8
Totals                   13      11   4   4   8  18   0

ATTENDANCE- 47,756 DATE- Saturday, October 8th 2016 TIME- Night WEATHER- Bad
T- 5:16
LEFT ON BASE- Green:17  Walkers:13
DOUBLE PLAYS- Green: 1  Walkers: 0
ERRORS- M.Betts, Z.Greinke
DOUBLES- J.Votto(1st), I.Kinsler(1st), M.Gonzalez(1st)
HOME RUNS- D.Wright(1st), T.Pham(1st)
RBIs- L.Cain(1st), M.Cabrera(1st), K.Davis(1st), B.Zobrist(1st), D.Wright(1st),
      T.Pham-3(3rd), M.Cabrera(1st), K.Kiermaier-2(2nd)
STOLEN BASES- L.Cain(1st)
SACRIFICE HITS- B.Zobrist
SACRIFICE FLIES- B.Zobrist, M.Cabrera, K.Kiermaier
WALKS- L.Cain, J.Bautista-3, K.Davis-2, L.Valbuena-2, M.Trout, T.Pham,
       M.Cabrera, M.Betts, M.Gonzalez, C.Correa
HIT BY PITCH- K.Kiermaier
STRIKE OUTS- L.Cain-2, M.Cabrera-3, J.Votto-2, J.Bautista-2, K.Davis-2,
             B.Zobrist-2, L.Valbuena, F.Lindor-2, M.Zunino-2, I.Kinsler,
             M.Trout-3, D.Wright, M.Cabrera-2, M.Betts, C.Casali-2, F.Cervelli,
             J.Turner-2, K.Kiermaier
GIDP- M.Betts
WILD PITCHES- G.Holland
2-out RBI- K.Kiermaier, L.Cain
RLISP 2-out- F.Lindor-3, J.Bautista, I.Kinsler-3, Y.Grandal, K.Davis-2,
             M.Cabrera, L.Valbuena, J.Turner-3, M.Betts, B.Zobrist
TEAM RISP- Green: 3 for 21  Walkers: 5 for 14

2015 End-of-Season Awards Voting

All votes are in for BRASSball's 2015 end-of-season awards. It's almost 2016 as I write this, so let's get right to it!

AL Rookie of the Year:

This race proved to be a two-way battle between Channel Islands outfielder Ender Inciarte (.339/.379/.450, 433 PA) and Brooklyn pitcher Jacob DeGrom (8-8, 2.91 ERA, 142 IP). But with 7 votes for first place versus just 2 for his rival, Inciarte beat out DeGrom for this year's AL Rookie of the Year honor.

AL Cy Young:

Simi Valley couldn't go wrong here, with both Clayton Kershaw (17-6, 2.06 ERA, 201 IP) and David Price (20-10, 3.11 ERA, 246 IP) earning 5 first-place votes apiece. But with much stronger down-ballot support, Kershaw took home this year's AL Cy Young Award.

AL Most Valuable Player:

This race was not particularly close. Timberlake left fielder Michael Brantley (.343/.401/.579, 677 PA) easily outpaced the field with 9 first-place votes to take home the AL Most Valuable Player Award.

NL Rookie of the Year:

North Georgia designated hitter José Abreu (.299/.349/.542, 617 PA) and Metropolis pitcher Collin McHugh (13-5, 2.69 ERA, 161 IP) were the clear front-runners in this race. But with 8 first-place votes versus just 3 for the other, Abreu took home the NL Rookie of the Year crown.

NL Cy Young:

In the most lopsided vote among all awards, Metropolis pitcher Corey Kluber (21-7, 2.56 ERA, 246 IP) was the National League's unanimous choice for the NL Cy Young Award.

NL Most Valuable Player:

This vote could not have been any closer! It came down to a battle of two playoff center fielders: Andrew McCutchen for Metropolis (.316/.398/.534, 659 PA) and Mike Trout for Fleetwood (.279/.378/.559, 713 PA). McCutchen appeared on more ballots (9) than Trout (8), while Trout earned more first place votes (4) than McCutchen (2). Once all votes were tallied (and then double-tallied!), McCutchen compiled 63 total points of balloting (2 first, 5 second, 1 third, 1 forth) versus 64 points for Trout (4 first, 3 second, 1 fourth). So by the absolute slimmest of margins, Trout brought home this year's NL Most Valuable Player Award.

Thanks to everyone for submitting their ballots on time, and congrats to the players (and teams!) noted above. Onward to 2016!

AL Rookie of the Year
Ender Inciarte
Channel Islands

NL Rookie of the Year
José Abreu
North Georgia

AL Cy Young
Clayton Kershaw
Simi Valley

NL Cy Young
Corey Kluber
Metropolis

AL Most Valuable Player
Michael Brantley
Timberlake

NL Most Valuable Player
Mike Trout
Fleetwood

NLDS Game 5: Fleetwood vs. Portsmouth

Game 5 of this National League Divisional Series was the last scheduled to be played at Portsmouth. And unless the Brewers could win the game, it would be Portsmouth's last game of the 2015 season. As such, the home crowd's tension was palpable from the opening pitch.

Each team's aces -- Zack Greinke for Fleetwood, Yu Darvish for Portsmouth -- faced off in this elimination game. Darvish blinked first, throwing back-to-back wild pitches in the 2nd inning to allow Fleetwood to score the game's first run. However, the Brewers responded in the bottom of the same inning with 3 runs on a walk and three singles...all with two outs.

Portsmouth had its share of defensive lapses throughout this series, and the problem reared its ugly head again in the 4th. First baseman Anthony Rizzo committed the error this time, making a bad throw to Darvish covering first and putting runners on 2nd and 3rd. David Wright then followed with a ground ball to Nick Castellanos, who fielded the ball cleanly but airmailed a throw down the right field line. The bad throw allowed both runners to score, tying the game 3-3 through 4 innings.

Neither team would score in the 5th, but Fleetwood rallied in the 6th. Pinch-hitter Francisco Cervelli led off the frame with a hit-by-pitch, and then advanced to second on Darvish's third wild pitch of the game. One out later, Wright doubled to drive in Cervelli and Chase Utley singled to score Wright. Following a strikeout of Robbie Grossman, Darvish walked three consecutive hitters to force home yet another run. All in all, Fleetwood had now found itself with a 6-3 lead.

David Wright tags out Juan Francisco to end 7th inning rally.

But Portsmouth quickly proved itself resilient. In the 7th inning, with two runners on and two outs, Fleetwood called on reliever Tom Wilhelmsen while Portsmouth countered with pinch-hitter Juan Francisco. Francisco, representing the tying run, crushed a Wilhelmsen fastball into the gap in right center. Both runners scored, and Francisco raced to third on the throw home. But, unfortunately for Portsmouth, the Walkers executed the cut-off throw to perfection and nailed Francisco at third to end the rally. While the potential tying run had been thrown out at third base to end the inning, at least the Brewers had cut Fleetwood's lead to just one run.

Mookie Betts homers to lead off 8th inning.

Portsmouth brought in Trevor Rosenthal to pitch, while Fleetwood countered with pinch hitter Mookie Betts. Just minutes after Francisco's big two-run double made it a one-run game, Betts launched a Rosenthal offering deep into the left field grandstand to extend Fleetwood's lead to 7-5.

Wilhelmsen retired Portsmouth with relative ease in the 8th, and was replaced by Roman Mendez in the 9th. Mendez retired the first two Portsmouth batters quickly, bringing Fleetwood to within one out of its sixth NLCS appearance in the last 11 years.

Again, Portsmouth responded with force. Cameron Maybin sliced a hanging Mendez breaking ball down the right field line and past Fleetwood right fielder Kevin Kiermaier. The ball caromed around the corner, allowing Maybin to motor all the way into third base with a triple. The tying run was now at the plate in the form of Andrelton Simmons.

David Wright's diving catch in 9th.

Behind in the count, Mendez fired a fastball to the plate. Simmons squared the pitch up perfectly, lacing a line drive towards left field. But David Wright leaped quickly to his left, snaring the ball before it cleared the infield. With this diving catch, Fleetwood had held on to win both the game and the series.

Fleetwood's next game would indeed be in the National League Championship Series against the winner of the Metropolis/North Georgia divisional series. Meanwhile, Portsmouth's fans headed home for the season, disappointed in the final result but proud of their team's success and perseverance.

Final score: Fleetwood 7, Portsmouth 5.

W: Greinke (1-0). L: Darvish (0-1). SV: Mendez (1). HR: Betts (1).

BOXSCORE: 2015 Fleetwood Walkers At 2015 Portsmouth Brewers        10/14/2015

  Walkers            AB  R  H RBI AVG     Brewers            AB  R  H RBI AVG

  S.Smith DH          3  0  1  0 .333     A.De Aza LF,RF      4  0  0  0 .211  

G-M.Betts PH,DH       1  1  1  1 .250     D.Pedroia 2B        4  0  0  0 .250  

  M.Trout CF          3  0  0  0 .150     A.Rizzo 1B          4  0  1  0 .105  

  K.Kiermaier RF      4  0  0  1 .250     J.Lucroy C          4  0  0  0 .267  

  M.Cabrera 1B        5  2  2  0 .150     M.Saunders RF       1  0  0  0 .300  

  A.Avila C           2  0  0  0 .000   A-S.Rodriguez PH,LF   2  0  0  0 .000  

B-F.Cervelli PH,C     1  1  0  0 .000   H-D.Brown PH          1  0  0  0 .200  

  M.Gonzalez SS       4  1  2  0 .250     M.Napoli DH         3  2  1  0 .067  

D-J.Segura SS         1  0  0  0 .400     N.Castellanos 3B    2  2  1  0 .214  

  D.Wright 3B         5  1  1  1 .118   F-C.Maybin CF         1  0  1  01.000  

  C.Utley 2B          3  1  2  1 .267     A.Simmons SS        4  1  1  1 .111  

  R.Grossman LF       3  0  1  0 .167     I.Suzuki CF         2  0  1  2 .267  

C-D.Jennings LF       1  0  0  0 .111   E-J.Francisco PH,3B   1  0  1  2 .167  

                     -- -- -- ---                            -- -- -- ---      

         Totals      36  7 10  4                 Totals      33  5  7  5

A-Pinch Hit For Saunders In 4th Inning

B-Pinch Hit For Avila In 6th Inning

C-Subbed Defensively (LF) For Grossman In 6th Inning

D-Subbed Defensively (SS) For Gonzalez In 7th Inning

E-Pinch Hit For Suzuki In 7th Inning

F-Subbed Defensively (CF) For Castellanos In 8th Inning

G-Pinch Hit For Smith In 8th Inning

H-Pinch Hit For Rodriguez In 9th Inning

Walkers......... 0 1 0  2 0 3  0 1 0  -  7 10  0

Brewers......... 0 3 0  0 0 0  2 0 0  -  5  7  2

Walkers (4-1)            IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET

Z.Greinke WIN(1-0)        5       3   3   3   1   4   0   2.38  A1 C1

D.Pomeranz HOLD(1st)      1 2/3   1   2   2   1   3   0   6.00  C2 C8

T.Wilhelmsen HOLD(1st)    1 1/3   2   0   0   0   2   0   3.60  C9 D4

R.Mendez SAVE(1st)        1       1   0   0   0   1   0   0.00  D5

Totals                    9       7   5   5   2  10   0

Brewers (1-4)            IP       H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR    ERA  SCORESHEET

Y.Darvish LOSS(0-1)       6 2/3   9   6   4   4   7   0   3.60  A1 D8

D.Farquhar                0 1/3   0   0   0   0   1   0   0.00  D9 D9

T.Rosenthal               0 2/3   1   1   1   0   1   1  36.00  E1 E3

J.Soria                   1 1/3   0   0   0   0   1   0   5.40  E4

Totals                    9      10   7   5   4  10   1

ATTENDANCE- 48,513 DATE- Wednesday, October 14th 2015 TIME- Night WEATHER- Bad

UMPIRES- Gary Cederstrom, Fieldin Culbreth, Jim Reynolds, Tim Timmons

T- 2:52

LEFT ON BASE- Walkers: 9  Brewers: 3

DOUBLE PLAYS- Walkers: 0  Brewers: 1

ERRORS- A.Rizzo, N.Castellanos

DOUBLES- D.Wright(2nd), C.Utley(3rd), J.Francisco(1st)

TRIPLES- C.Maybin(1st)

HOME RUNS- M.Betts(1st)

RBIs- M.Betts(2nd), K.Kiermaier(5th), D.Wright(3rd), C.Utley(1st),

      A.Simmons(1st), I.Suzuki-2(2nd), J.Francisco-2(2nd)

WALKS- S.Smith, M.Trout, K.Kiermaier, F.Cervelli, M.Napoli, N.Castellanos

HIT BY PITCH- M.Trout, F.Cervelli, C.Utley

STRIKE OUTS- S.Smith, K.Kiermaier, A.Avila, F.Cervelli, M.Gonzalez, D.Wright-2,

             R.Grossman-2, D.Jennings, A.De Aza-2, D.Pedroia-2, A.Rizzo-2,

             J.Lucroy, S.Rodriguez, D.Brown, M.Napoli

GIDP- K.Kiermaier

WILD PITCHES- Y.Darvish-3

2-out RBI- A.Simmons, I.Suzuki-2, K.Kiermaier, J.Francisco-2

RLISP 2-out- C.Utley, S.Smith-2, M.Cabrera-2, D.Jennings-2, A.Simmons

TEAM RISP- Walkers: 3 for 10  Brewers: 3 for 5

WEB GEMS- Bot 4th: Mike Trout robbed Sean Rodriguez of an extra base hit.

In a close game it was the Fleetwood Walkers 7, the Portsmouth Brewers 5 at

Wrigley Field.

Fleetwood scored 3 runs in the top of the 6th inning. Fleetwood ended up with

10 hits for the game while Portsmouth had 7.  The victory was credited to

Zack Greinke(1-0) who went 5 innings, allowing 3 runs. Roman Mendez preserved

the game for Greinke, recording his his 1st save.  Yu Darvish(0-1) was the

losing pitcher.  He got hammered, allowing 9 hits and 4 walks in 6 and 2/3

innings.