Division One
- 7/03/10
WTBC 20 def H&G 2 (round abandoned)
WTBC 18 def Norths 1
| Noting the odds were against us to make the finals the boys did what was asked of them over the weekend, trouncing inferior opposition comprehensively both Saturday and Sunday. In an unfortunate hand played by the baseball gods, the round on Saturday was abandoned due to bad weather despite our game versus Henley and Grange being completed. This effectively extinguished our chances of making the six, being 2 games out before the final 2 rounds.
On Saturday we travelled to Bartley Tce and from the first dig played aggressively and without mercy surviving a mid game rain delay to post 20 runs in 6 innings. D Redden pitched well again only allowing 1 earned run in a complete game effort. Our hitting was excellent with the perfect balance of patience and aggressiveness.
Returning to Lockleys and despite knowing our season would end after Sundays game, the boys did not relent, scoring 18 runs in 5 innings to mercy Norths in 2 hours. Tom Fiebig took to the hill and pitched well to record a complete game and scatter 3 hits in his last start before heading to Germany in the offseason. Good luck Tom! The bats were slightly slow to start recording only 1 run in each of the first 2 frames before the floodgates opened in the next 3 with 16 runners crossing the plate. It was pleasing to see the aggressive approach from Saturday carried over to Sunday irrespective of the team’s disappointment of not making the playoffs.
As it sunk in our season was over I’m confident the players have made a mental note to strive to play finals baseball next year. This will require a commitment and resolve to improve in all areas, commencing with strength and fitness in the offseason and leading into skill work in our preseason. I’m looking forward to seeing who puts in the work to stake their claim on Division One positions.
A big thank you to Chris Falls for his contributions both on and off the field this season. Chris was a great fit at the club and became part of our team unit seamlessly. He is travelling to Italy to continue his endless baseball summer. Good Luck Chris, I hope you can return to help us again next season.
Another big thanks to Clive Fiebig for all his help as my assistant this year. His experience helped me immensely in my first year of coaching. We both have ideas on how to improve for next year which we will begin to implement in the offseason.
Thanks to other assistant coaches who helped during the year – Wazza Bullen, Ken Kobyashi and Steve O’Connor with the pitchers. Having such experience and assistance made my job much easier.
A final thank you to Di Hambly and Deirdre Burgess for scoring this season too. We will use more of your green and less of your red on our scoresheet next season.
Most other teams are seeing finals action in both Juniors and Seniors in the coming weekends, so get down to cheer them on to more premierships for this great Club. |
Sam Tibbits
- 28/02/10
In the hands of the baseball gods
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 3 | |
| Woodville Div 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 3 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 1 | ||
| Port Adelaide Div 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 11 | 1 |
Another split weekend has made the Div 1 side’s chances of reaching the playoffs remote at best. Along with winning both games this weekend, several other results now have to go our way for the Eagles to advance.
Saturday’s game vs Woodville was a thriller, a tenth inning win courtesy of a clutch 2rbi base knock from Jesse Duval – his 4th hit of the day in an outstanding performance. Daniel Redden threw masterfully for 7 innings leaving the game holding a 4 run lead. Rexy hit a speed bump relieving giving up a 3 run bomb, but showed character to steady and see things out bottom 10. Good hitting contributions across the board from Moose Falls, A Lewis, A Spence and T Fiebig to name a few.
Sunday versus Port was another close affair, but this time the cards did not fall our way. The tying run at the plate top 9 was as close as we got, going down by three runs in the end. Earlier fireballer Mitch Fienemann got us off to a good start, leaving the game after 3 innings due to his pitch count, holding a 2 run lead. Good luck to Mitchell who has now returned to the States to persue his professional career.
From then we were unfortunately unable to keep the Port bats quiet, diverting from our intended game plan against their stronger hitters. 6 runs were recorded against us in the next 2 frames, a 3 run home run adding to the damage. Another solo shot against us bottom 8 made it a tough ask, but showing spirit top 9 we rallied to get close, but not close enough. Solid hitting contributions from Jesse Duval and Moose Falls again were highlights.
We still have 2 games to win this weekend against what would seem much weaker opponents on paper – Henley and Grange at H&G on Saturday and Norths at home on Sunday. Even though our chances of advancing are slim, expect the boys to come out all guns blazing to prove a point. Hang around the club for a drink after the game on Sunday in what will be Div 1’s final home game irrespective of results. Hope to see you there.
Sam Tibbits
- 21/02/10
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
| Southern Dist Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | |||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | |||||
Finals hopes still alive
A gritty come from behind win against Souths on Sunday has kept the gate open for a berth in this year’s finals.
The Eagles responded magnificently to a 5 run deficit mid way through the game to run out eventual winners 9-8.
With Steve-O starting in command, the Eagles hitters got on the scoreboard immediately bottom 1 courtesy of a hit to ‘pinch’ leadoff Chris Henry, a HPB to Moose Falls, a laced LD to T Fiebig and a base hit to S Tibbits on his return from injury. 2-0 to the Eagles.
The scoreboard then stayed stagnant until the fourth, where after a strong start Steve-O lost the lower part of the zone to be stung by 4 consecutive base hits, the final hit a 3 run HR effectively ending his outing. Steve-O was replaced by Div 1 debutant Sam Bawden who, after recording a PO3 was unable to find command of the zone and left the game same inning, albeit on a higher note, recording a strikeout. Enter the 3rd pitcher of the innings D Redden who retired the next hitter to end the innings, but 7 runs later the damage was done.
However, the boys responded immediately bottom 4 knowing the season was on the line. A leadoff base knock to Nathan Vanderlinden, a HPB to A Lewis and a liner to RF courtesy of Moose loaded the bags. A picked BB to T Fiebig gave him a RBI and a double down the LF line to Tibbits plated another 2. D Forbes added another with a RF base hit which ended the South’s starters day. A wild throw recorded against the Souths receiver saw the go ahead run cross before the inning was done.
After a fourth inning that took close to an hour Reds took charge to establish an excellent rhythm. He was able to scatter hits, keeping a dangerous hitting team off balance with good location and effective use of both fastballs and offspeed. However the Souths hitters were not to give up, plating another in the 6th to tie the game after a hit, a walk and another safe hit.
Showing determination the Eagles responded again with a smoked leadoff double to T Fiebig. A groundball with eyes to Tibbits and smart, aggressive baserunning by Fiebig saw him get over to third and after a pass ball the Eagles were in the lead again.
Reds sat them down in order in the 7th and 8th, continuing his great day out. The boys were unable to score in the bottom half of both digs and therefore entered top 9 holding a 1 run lead and needing three outs for the game. After recording the first out, a base knock and a walk left runners at 1st and 2nd. But Reds stayed firm to induce a hopper up the middle that was calmly scooped by Vanderlinden for a PO6, 6-3 double play to end the game. An exciting finish to great team effort.
The feeling amongst the boys is positive and the team will be ready to take on Woodville away and Port away this weekend to keep our finals aspirations alive. Get down and help us over the line.
- 14/02/10
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
| Adelaide Div 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 13 | 5 | ||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 20 | 15 | 0 | ||||
”Progress always involves risks. You can’t steal second base and keep your foot on first.” ~Frederick B. Wilcox A split weekend has made our equation of making the finals simple. Win our five remaining games and hope the cards fall in our favour in regard to the teams currently above us. In another topsy-turvy 2 games we scored 25 runs and gave up 25. On Saturday Tom Fiebig recovered well after giving up 2 early home runs to get stronger as the outing went on. He delivered 3 consecutive donuts to finish his first start of the season. On our side it took our hitters 2 innings to adjust to the Adelaide pitching, after which we poured on 14 runs over the next 3 innings. Some good execution and patient hitting were the highlights. Adelaide re-entered the game in the 6th and seventh scoring 8 runs, 5 of which were unearned in a disappointing blow to our much needed percentage. In the 8th we put the game beyond doubt to mercy with 6 further runs, albeit helped along by some poor opposition fielding. Although the game went longer than expected the positives included a perfect day in the field with no errors and several multi-hit games. The standout was the veteran David Forbes delivering his second consecutive 3 hit game. On Sunday we travelled to Glenelg determined to take a win and keep our momentum going. However the Glenelg bats had other ideas, the Tigers scoring twice in the first, second and third frames. Steve-O appeared to be pitching well, but the scoreboard told another story. Even slight mistakes against better hitting sides are more often capitalised on and this was the case here. Whilst Steve-O continued to toil, our bats gave us some hope top 3 with a second base hit to Moose Falls followed by an RBI double to Tom Fiebig, and in the next dig a leadoff solo moonshot to Tim Holland. But the Glenelg bats were not to tire adding another in the fifth and then breaking the game open in the 7th and 8th to extinguish all hope of an Eagle come from behind win. In a credit to our boys, the final score did not reflect the game situation. In the 7th and 8th good hitting including a ground rule double from Adam Lewis kept our hopes alive. As late as top 8 with runners on we were only 2 or 3 good hits from being right in it. Another pleasing aspect of the game was aggressive baserunning with 4 stolen bags putting runners in scoring position on different occasions. Although the result was disappointing we remain positive and will look to keep our hopes alive against Souths this weekend at home, starting at 3pm. In an aside, as we have the bye this coming Saturday, all Div 1 and 2 players are required to come down to the club Saturday afternoon to support the Div 3 and Div 4 boys, starting at 12:30pm. The club will be putting on a BBQ for us, so get down and show some voice for the teams that have supported us during the year. |
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- 7/02/10
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
| Sturt Div 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 3 | |||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 19 | 19 | 2 | |||||
Eagles’ bats come to life
The Eagles put on a hitting display in a comprehensive trouncing of Sturt on Sunday. The 4th placed Saints were no match for a superior offence that combined for 19 hits against 3 different pitchers. Multiple hit games abounded with Moose Falls, Jesse Duval, David Forbes and Adam Spencer all recording 3 hits apiece. A-Spence sprayed line drives to all parts of the field and with a single, double and triple was literally a few feet short of hitting for the cycle in a great day out.
After Sturt scored twice in the top of the first from an unlucky helmet ricochet and then an error, Reds combined well with A-Chap to settle into a commanding rhythm to never give the Sturt hitters a chance. Getting ahead early by establishing his fastball and keeping hitters off balance with good location and offspeed was the key to his dominating performance.
The Eagles responded magnificently in the bottom of the first frame by scoring 4, clutch hitting with 2 out bringing in 3 runs. Effectively this run support gave Reds the confidence he needed to pitch to his strengths thus shutting down the Sturt hitters for the next 5 innings.
After 2 run 3rd and 4th digs established a commanding lead, the Eagle hitters could have been forgiven for taking their foot off the pedal somewhat. But they did exactly the opposite busting out a 9 run 5th and a 2 run sixth, the game called under the mercy rule mid-inning with more runners in scoring position. The run production from a collectively aggressive approach is sure to give our hitters a confidence boost heading into a big double header this weekend. Saturday we take on 12th placed Adelaide at home starting at 4:30pm. Sunday we take on 2nd placed Glenelg at Glenelg at 3pm. 2 wins will keep our finals hopes well and truly alive.
Congratulations to Nathan Van der Linden who displayed composure and maturity beyond his years in his first Div 1 start on Sunday. He never looked daunted making every play that came his way at shortstop, including a great play up the middle. At the plate he made solid contact several times and got on base twice, including his first Division 1 hit in his final at bat of the game. Well done Nathan, you are player of the future who no doubt has many more Division 1 games to play for West Torrens Baseball Club.
Sam Tibbits
- 24/01/10
Oi Oi Oi!
West Torrens 8 def East Torrens 5
The Div 1’s got back on the winning side of the ledger on Sunday with a gutsy pre-Australia Day performance versus the Redsox.
After a disapointing start to the calander year, the Eagles proved they can beat teams above them, defeating the ET import starter for the second time this season. Momentum swung several times during the game with the good guys scoring first courtesy of a T Fiebig sacrifice. However the Redsox responded with a 2 run home run the very next frame. The Eagles answered in the 5th to tie the score at 2 all before ET went ahead again in the bottom frame.
Not to be outdone the Eagles persisted to eventually see off the Redsox starter and break out in the top of the 7th . Execution under pressure at the plate has been lacking in recent weeks, but in this situation our hitters responded magnificently scoring 5 earned runs in a massive 2 out rally. Weathering an attemted ET comback bottom 7 we executed again top 9 and put out the fire in the bottom frame to run out eventual winners 8-5.
From our guys it was immensley pleasing to see quality at bats return against a strong pitcher. Mulitple hit games abounded , from A-Chap, A-Spence, Lewy, Jedi, Fiebig and Moose Falls to name a few . The confidence and self belief required to succeed in Division One have returned to our hitters. Hopefully it remains with more tough pitching to come our way in the coming weeks.
Defensively Steve-O was strong, pushing through 6 digs and was relieved well by Reds and Rexy who had tough assignments against a floating strike zone. A-Chap was solid behind the dish taking charge and calling a good game. Overall a sound effort in the field allowed us to move ahead in the second half of the game.
It was also excellent to have vital contribution from our young bench with Mitchell Harvey, Sam Burgess and Nathan VanderLinden all getting involved in the game at various points. Division One opportunities will continue to come the way of bench players who are willing and able to assist when called upon.
Good Luck to the SA boys in the Claxton Semi Final series starting Friday night versus NSW this weekend. Get down to Norwood at some stage over the weekend to see SA push for it’s first title since 1980.
The Div 1 Saturday Game versus Adelaide has been postponed due to the Claxton format. If the Semi Final series is over in 2 games we will travel to Woodville to play the Senators in another must win game this Sunday at 3pm. If the Claxton series goes into Sunday we will have the weekend off with both games to be made up at later dates to be announced. Check the SABL website www.sa.baseball.com.au Saturday night/Sunday morning to find out if we visit the Senators on Sunday or at a date TBA…
Sam Tibbits
- 9/01/10
Finals hopes dented
Round 14 West Torrens 1 Kensington 8
Round 15 Goodwood 10 West Torrens 3
The Division 1 side’s chances of making the finals took a severe blow with 2 losses over the weekend.
On Saturday several defensive blunders and a lack of aggression at the plate resulted in a painful defeat against a team who before the weekend were ranked below us. Our overall approach on the day raised questions surrounding the level of commitment and desire of some to play Division 1 baseball for this club. Amongst some scattered hitting the standout was Tom Fiebig who was one of few to make the necessary adjustments against Kensington’s knuckleball starter.
Sunday versus Goodwood was an improved showing with better hitting and defence in general. Luck did not go our way with more than several line drives going straight to fielders including 3 in a row off the bat of Jedi Morgan. However, to be in a situation where luck could determine our fate was always going to be dangerous. To score only 3 runs off a weak starter was never going to be good enough against a line-up boasting 4 state representatives.
To play hard nosed baseball and come up short against better quality opposition would be acceptable. To underachieve and lose as a result of physical and mental errors and general passiveness is not acceptable. It may be a cliché, but it’s high time our players did some soul searching and ask themselves if they are giving their best to West Torrens Baseball Club.
Sam Tibbits
- 23/12/09
Eagles See Red
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
West Torrens Div 1
0 1 0 0 0 1 1 2 5 10 10 3
Northern Dist Div 1
0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 1 4 7 6
A late surge by the Eagles saw us defeat Norths at Walkleys Reserve on Sunday. The bats never woke up against their LH starter who was probably a little better than expected. His stats certainly suggested so with 13k’s and only 3 hits over 6 innings. However erratic pitching was his downfall with an elevated pitch count seeing him leave the game after those 6 digs. But the lack of adjustment by the Eagles hitters before he was done was still frustrating. Against better quality pitching we still need to put the ball in play to at least apply pressure to the opposing defence.
The boys led 2-1 middle 6 courtesy of an Adam ‘Is it footy season yet?’ Spence RBI in the 2nd and the Norths battery sharing 2 wild throws to plate Moose Falls in the 5th. Early Norths baserunning threats were hosed down by slick picks from Rexy at 2b and 1b and 3 consecutive donuts to begin the game.However after Dutchy Holland saw red allowing Oswald on board, Rexy clearly exceeded his pick off quota for the weekend with the 3rd pick in under 4 seconds going wild to let L.H.O 180degs to 3b. Big hitting Drew Miller then bounced a hard grounder to 1b and despite playing shallow RF Tibbo still used the opportunity to dispense with the 1B glove and attempt to utilise long gone catching skills instead. The result being an RBI PO3 and stitches tattooed on the wrist.
The Reds got going bottom 6 with a HPB to L.H.O which incensed the little man despite being a 2-2 change piece. An (un)intentional walk to Miller and a base hit to Whelan not only plated L.H.O but led to a mini circus in the Eagles infield with 2 wt’s resulting in Miller also scoring. Result: Eagles down 3-2 going into top 7.
Not to be found in the Joe Torre managers handbook was the Norths LH starter moving to 2b to begin the 7th. It may have been described a masterstroke if not for 3E’s executed the first 3 times he touched the ball. Adding insult to injury a TBone liner almost castrated him and resulted in the plating of T Fiebig to tie the game. Although juicing the sacks the Eagles didn’t convert again but the shift in momentum had begun.
Steve-O took over hurling duties bottom 7 and immediately took charge retiring the next 4 and inducing a GBDP to end the 8th. Previously, in the top half of the 8th a lead off thumbs WTP to RF for David ‘Wags’ Forbes, a HPB to Spence and consecutive sacs to Jesse Grey Guns Duval and Angry Adam Lewis resulted in another run. Clearly showing he has no concept of the discipline required to be a HR hitter, a laced double to Moose off the LF fence resulted in another.
Top 9 a sea of green including singles to Bone, Moose and DF, a double to Spence and a HR to the short RF porch to Tibbo resulted in a further 5 crossing the dish. The result beyond doubt Steve-O commenced bottom 9 with the spirit of the season in his heart, offering a first pitch kris kringle to Miller that was duely launched to the same part of the field as Tibbo’s previous HR, although juuuuuuuuust a little bit deeper. Christmas cheer completed, the next 3 were sat down in order and the game was over.
An at times topsy turvey game to round out a rocky first half that sees us at 6 and 6. However there’s no doubt the boys are looking positively to the second half and a run at the playoffs. If we continue to keep the defence sound, the pitching strong and increase our application and output with the sticks we will see action in March.
On a final note thanks to the big ginga ninja TBone for his help over the last 2 weeks. His big bat, solid glove and presence in general were a huge help to the 1’s and 2’s. I hope some of our players learned from his example of controlled aggression and passion for the game. Good luck in the June draft and we hope to see you back at the Lockleys Dome soon Bone.
- 13/12/09
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | ||||
| Henley Grange Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 17 |
The Eagles did what was required to steady the ship with a resounding victory over Henley and Grange on Sunday. In a much needed percentage boost, the boys piled on 17 runs, 16 of them earned. The victory sends a clear message to the league that we are not about to roll over as we head into a challenging second half of the draw.
Although H&G were much weaker on paper, a victory was never an automatic certainty, and with the scores locked at 1 all going into the 4th, a W was far from being a forgone conclusion.
But the bats came to life bottom 4 eventually plating 7 runs. After a leadoff double (Wags) from Tibbo, he was moved to third by a right side fly courtesy of T Holland, but didn’t have the wheels to try for the dish on another RF fly from D Forbes. What followed was a huge 2 out rally sparked by an A Spencer triple, singles to Jesse D and Lewy, free passes to Moose Falls and Tom Fiebig and completed by a line drive Grand Slam onto the Footy Club from T-Bone. In his return to the Lockleys Dome, Bone had a huge day across both grades with a combined 5 hits, 3 home runs and 13 rbi’s. The only sour note was a complaint from a Rutland Avenue resident who was almost killed by a missile whilst tending to his backyard agapanthus during the division 2 fixture.
Not satisfied with a commanding lead, to their credit the boys kept up the intensity and piled on 9 more runs bottom 6 to put the result beyond doubt. The inning yielded 4 doubles – from Moose, Holland, Fiebig and Tibbo and singles to A Spence and D Forbes. In his final AB of the day, the bat was taken out of Bone’s hands with an intentional walk by order of the Lockleys Police who had come down to investigate the unidentified blips showing up on the Adelaide Airport radar.
Pitching wise Steve-O was the first to admit he didn’t have his A game on the day, but to his credit he toiled to complete 6 innings giving up just 2 hits. Rexy came in to put out the lights with a manner akin to an excited schoolboy on Christmas eve. Either that or he was in a hurry to get to the Ramsgate.
Some solid support and voice from the bench players was not forgotten on a day where we still needed to get the runs on the board. It was pleasing to see every starting player hit safely and we will look to take this form into another must win game versus Norths at Walkleys Park next Sunday. Come and support the boys in their last game before the break.
Sam Tibbits
- 6/12/09
|
An improvement in attitude and intensity were not enough to bring Division 1 a much needed victory on Sunday. Again it was a lack of firepower offensively that made the difference. Frustratingly runners were left in scoring positions on 4 occasions. Port Adelaide broke open the scoring with a 3 run 4th, but a sacrifice fly to David Forbes brought one run across the plate bottom 4 to get the Eagles on board. This seemed to swing momentum back in our favour, but despite some good hitting, the next three innings resulted in no runs in spite of numerous baserunners. A situation of lost opportunities once more.
In the face of 2 more runs by Port top 8, the Eagles remained positive, with a towering blast off the bat of David Forbes keeping hopes of a comeback alive. However we were unable to deliver bottom nine, with 3 up 3 down ending the game.
Despite 2 patches of trouble the collective pitching effort from Steve-O, Rexy and Reds was solid against a strong hitting lineup. All season the pitchers have shown resolve in the face of minimal run support and deserve commendation for this.
It was also pleasing to see a return to form from Chris Falls who was extremely unlucky not to have a multi hit game, with three hard line drives jumping from his bat.
Notwithstanding the loss, the collective approach on the day was an improvement from recent weeks with more focus and noise in the dugout. The side remains positive and will take this approach into the game versus Henley and Grange at home this weekend.
Sam Tibbits
- 29/11/09
Div 1 stumble down south
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | ||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||
| Southern Dist Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
It turned out to be a missed opportunity to steal a victory down south on Sunday. Leading from the 3rd until bottom eight the Eagles hitters did not make the necessary adjustments against the South’s starter Adam Widdison to apply further scoreboard pressure. 2 runs were scored by the home team bottom 8 on 2 hits and a wild pitch and 3 outs later it was all over.
Jono Rex pitched 7 complete innings for only 1 hit in what was a masterful performance. However the lack of support given to him by the hitters was nothing short of embarrassing. It was unlikely that one run was going to be enough against a side that scraps ’til the end, but reflected in the lack of intensity on our bench and lack of concentration at the plate, that’s exactly how we approached it. On three occasions runners were stranded in scoring position again highlighting our lack of execution.
At 4 wins and 5 losses before taking on Port Adelaide this coming Sunday It’s fair to say that if we want to play finals baseball, we have to improve our attitude, intensity and concentration immensely. This team exists to play finals baseball and to win premierships, not to merely to field a Div 1 team any given weekend. It’s time we started thinking about that goal collectively and how we are going to achieve it.
- 22/11/09
Tigers Tame Eagles
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | |||||
| Glenelg Div 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | ||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
A tough loss to Glenelg on Sunday saw the Division 1 side drop out of the top six on percentage. Again it was the opposition who scored first and got momentum on their side before our hitters began to make any impact. Reds had the start but ultimately would have been disappointed with his outing against a side he has dominated in recent years. Rexy relieved but was tagged for a HR before he settled into his rhythm to quiet the bay’s bats putting up 3 consecutive donuts. Steve-O came in to finish duties by adding another in the 9th. To risk sounding like a broken record again it was missed opportunities of execution early in the game that set the tone of what followed. To our credit we continued to battle resulting in scoreboard pressure and were very unlucky in the 7th with a none out bases juiced double play from a line drive. A return to some form from Tom Fiebig with 2 hits was pleasing and Tim Holland also got the green pen out twice. Almost as entertaining was TH’s snag of a high pop up in the 7th effectively making a routine play into a play of the week.
A tough task taking on the 2nd placed Hawks at the always picturesque Peregrine Park this Sunday. The Hawks will be coming off facing Glenelg on the Saturday while we have the bye. The boys need your support so make the trip down south to see us knock them off.
- 15/11/09
Eagles Stifle Saints
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | ||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||||||
| Sturt Div 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
Another dominating combined pitching performance between Steve-O and Rexy set the platform for a solid win over Sturt on Sunday.
In a shortened format of 7 digs due to the SABL heat policy Steve-O never looked troubled against some dangerous hitters, cruising through 4 innings in his signature nonchalant style. Rexy relieved and immediately pounded the zone with good variation to keep the Saints bats quiet. A walk and a couple of hits strung together in the bottom final frame by the home team was not enough to trouble the Eagle lead and eventual W.
Some good hitting was spread throughout the game, with contributions from Lewy, Jedi and A Spence to name a few. But head and shoulders above the rest was Jesse Duval who had a perfect day at the plate going 3 for 3 with a walk. His 2 out rip down the 3b line was the result of a fantastic ab which plated 2 runs and got the Eagles started. This was followed up by a textbook bunt which gave the Sturt pitcher and 3b no chance. Showing patience he drew a walk next at bat before blasting a line drive up the middle to cap off a great day with the bat. Most unlucky on the day was Chris Falls who made solid contact everyone of his at bats for no reward.
Some more work to do both execution and defence wise with 9 runners left on base and a couple of costly fumbles in the outfield. We need to set these pieces in place this coming Sunday when Glenelg fly in to the Lockleys Dome and we play for the Burgess-Elkson Cup. A win will solidify our place in the top 6, so make sure you get down to support the boys.
- 7+8/11/09
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | ||||
| Adelaide Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | ||
| Woodville Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
A tight come from behind win Saturday backed up by a disappointing home stand Sunday saw our ledger stay even at 3-3.
Against Adelaide on Saturday we got the ball rolling early with some big hitting courtesy of leadoff slugger Lewy only to see Adelaide even it up after a wayward inning. The Angels then went ahead but to the boys credit we rallied immediately to regain the lead. We could have slammed the gate but frustratingly juiced bags were stranded both top 8 and top 9. Bottom 9 the Angels threatened once more, but Reds stayed firm to ensure the win. A fantastic effort from Reds to steady the ship after DChap was unable to go as deep as he would have liked. Some good hitting and good execution at times highlighted by Timothy Holland and Jesse Duval.
We returned to the Eagle Dome Sunday afternoon looking flat. The lads were unable to get going early despite a commanding start from Jono Rex. A 3 run HR to the Senators failed to wake up our bats and we continued to be bogged down at the plate. Steve-O took over duties and also looked strong, but again a 2 run HR increased the Senators’ lead. Another visit to the footy club roof this time by leadoff Lewy finally broke the shackles and had the doping authorities raising eyebrows. Expect a knock on the door by a man holding a cup this week Adam. A smashed double from Fiebig gave a glimmer of hope for a bottom 9 steal but a K2 recorded against the Coach ended a lacklustre game. Overall solid efforts from our arms apart from 2 big hits. Sound defence was again pleasing, but obviously a lack of execution and more importantly adjustment at the plate by the hitters meant we were never in the game. Something we will address on the track this week before taking on Sturt (at Sturt) and most likely Paul Mildren next Sunday in what will be another challenge.
Hope to see you there.
- 1/11/09
| East Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | ||||
| West Torrens Div 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
- 25/10/09
- 18/10/09
Division 1 – Round 2, 18 Oct 2009
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