Derby day drama

There’s nothing quite like the atmosphere of a derby day, especially towards the end of a long season, battling for the top spot. Sunday’s series between the Newcastle Nighthawks’ Talons and Wings was a fiery affair and one of the best derbies in recent memory.

Going into Sunday, the Talons were on the top of the leaderboard sitting at a comfortable 12-4 record. The Wings, in second with an 8-4 record, were desperate to bring themselves closer to first place. Just one win would have guaranteed the Talons’ regular season pennant, but it wasn’t in the cards as the Wings swept the series, taking game one 14-1 and game two 10-9.

Game one was an intense start to the afternoon. The Wings selected Zachary Lau, who has been dominant in the last few weeks, to take the mound against the Talons. In the Talons’ one spot for the top of the first was Ryota Kawase. One of the league’s best hitters versus one of the league’s best pitchers made for an intense spectacle. Kawase drew out the at-bat, foul ball after foul ball with a 1-2 count, but ended by popping out to shortstop. Adrian Medina followed suit, fighting hard but popped out as well. Lau’s well placed low fastball had Sam Read, on loan to the Talons for the day, swinging into a quick grounder to second for the final out. Despite the 1-2-3 finish, it was a draining half inning for both sides.

The bottom of the first was a more one sided affair. With the Talons’ ace pitcher Paul Brown likely out for the season, rookie Kawase was brought in as the opener. The half-inning started with two walks, and although Kawase was able to strike out Lau, a wild pitch brought in leadoff hitter Aaron Rook for the first score. Another walk and a hit-by-pitch followed, and it was Pasquale Lavorgna who got the first hit of the game, a two-RBI single. The Wings went around the order with four more walks, and as the Talons struggled to get the final out, an RBI hit by Lau brought in the seventh run to trigger a new inning.

The top of the second went by more quickly. An early walk brought the Talons’ hopes up, but an infield fly, strikeout and grounder brought the inning to a close and preserved Lau’s pitch count. The bottom of the second was also more easygoing. Kawase struggled to locate pitches early on, walking two batters and allowing two runs on a wild pitch. Read pulled off a fake throw trick to tag out P. Lavorgna on third to get the first out, and a strikeout and grounder finished the inning.

In the top of the third inning, Lau notched two strikeouts and induced a ground-out to second to preserve the Wings’ 9-0 lead. The Talons made a pitching change, bringing in new talent Alejandro Medina to relieve Kawase. Medina’s lightning-speed fastball had the Wings swinging late, striking out Winter and Rook. A line-out to third base ended the inning with the Wings failing to score any additional runs.

This momentum shift benefited the Talons going into the fourth. Read launched the ball into the outfield for a double, stole third and brought in the Talons’ first run of the game on a wild pitch. Sneddon and Al. Medina were able to reach base on a single and error respectively, but Lau struck out three to cut off the Talons’ comeback.

In the bottom of the fourth the Wings set out to secure the victory. The Wings figured out Al. Medina was hanging offspeed pitches in the zone and exploited it. P. Lavorgna opened the inning with a hard hit double, and Gianluca Lavorgna hit a two RBI single to extend the Wings’ lead. Rook brought in another run on a single, and a pair of wild pitches allowed in a further two runs as the two hour time limit ended the game.

Game one: Talons 1 - 14 Wings

Game two was much more evenly fought. The Talons’ momentum from game one carried over nicely, while the Wings reached into their deep reserve of pitching talent to ensure a close competition. The wind kicked up during the break, blowing back towards home plate past the home team dugout, making fielding a challenge at left field and third base.

Estil Peniche was selected as the starting pitcher for the Wings. Kawase reached base due to an error at shortstop, throwing over the head of Taylor at first base. Read sent Kawase home to open the scoring with an infield single. Peniche locked in, striking out Himelfield and forcing two ground outs to bring up the Wings’ batters.

The Talons’ starting outfielder Russell Phillips took the mound for the Talons. Despite walking the first batter, a ground out settled the nerves. Three solid hits by the middle of the lineup and a walk brought in four runs for the Wings. A tag out on the basepath and a grounder to first closed the inning.

The pressure increased in the top of the second as Sneddon notched a hit early on and Dixon followed with a tense full count walk. Worries that Cal Distin’s injured thumb would prevent him from hitting were quickly dismissed as he hit a single. Kawase brought two runs home with another solid hit. The Wings decided to play smart ball, intentionally walking Read to load the bases, and a strikeout and ground out prevented the Talons from closing the gap.

The bottom of the second opened in explosive fashion as P. Lavorgna and Francisco hit back to back doubles. Lavorgna stole home to continue the Wings’ scoring efforts. A hit by Peniche sent Francisco home for the second run of the inning. But a baserunning mistake and an out at first kept the game tight at only 3-6.

In the top of the third, the Wings got two quick outs but struggled to secure the final one. The back of the Talons’ lineup showed their strength. Dixon walked for the second inning in a row and an infield single by Hetherington allowed the runner to reach third. Cal Distin brought the run home with another single. Unfortunately for the Talons, one of the hardest hit balls of the day by Kawase landed straight in the left fielder’s glove to halt their comeback.

The Wings made solid efforts to extend their lead in the bottom of the third. A walk and two passed balls allowed G. Lavorgna to reach third base, and Thomson sent him home with a single. The key to the Wings' game was small ball, and three successive hits brought in the third run of the inning. Another ground ball ended their progress.

For the fourth inning the Wings brought in their fastest pitcher, Joksan Martinez, to relieve Peniche. Read reached base with a hit, and Himelfied extended his season-long hit-by-pitch streak. With two outs and two on base, Sneddon launched a single to drive in the runners, and the Talons didn’t stop there. Dixon’s patience at the plate netted him his third consecutive walk of the game, and Hetherington slapped down another infield single to bring in Sneddon and narrow the score to 7-9.

Another base hit for Lau opened the bottom of the fourth for the Wings’ offense, and two quick stolen bases set the home team up to bulk the lead. Phillips locked down the first out with a formidable strikeout. A grounder by G. Lavorgna marked the second out for the Wings. Thomson hit an RBI single, though it wasn’t enough, as Eltis hit the ball straight to Kawase at third base for the final out.

And so came the fifth and final inning, the last chance for the Talons to claim victory not only for the day but also for the pennant. Kawase started things off with a colossal double and a hit-by-pitch brought on a second runner. Tensions increased as Himelfield struck out looking. Phillips, after a respectable day on the mound, tapped one into the infield to bring in the two runners but was out at first. With one run needed to tie the game and no runners on base, rookie Hector stepped up to the plate for the Talons. Martinez racked up two strikes, and after a lengthy battle, Hector hit the ball to the infield for the final out.

Game two: Talons 9 - 10 Wings

The Wings, by sweeping the Talons, preserved their chances to take the top spot on the ladder. The Talons have only two games left against the Edinburgh Rays to find that last win. Regardless of the outcome, the final at the end of the season will be once more competed between our two Newcastle Nighthawks teams.