Sugar Factory Elephants @ Spice District Roosters
Pitching for Sugar Factory: LHP Lawrence Fick (15-11, 4.66 ERA)
Pitching for Spice District: RHP Max Steel (26-6, 2.29 ERA)
Is there an answer for Max Steel?
The Sugar Factory Elephants had nothing as Steel dismissed the lot of them in 100 pitches. It didn't matter what he threw: fastball, curveball, slider, splitter. Chances were you either miss it completely or it glides softly -- like a dream -- into the hands of a Rooster fielder.
In the end. Steel got a complete game shutout, 3 hits, no walks (but 2 hit by pitches), and 8 K's.
Not that it without some difficulty. Two of the hits and one of the hit by pitches came at the top of the 2nd. Steel would have faced a bases loaded, no outs scenario if RF Patrick Wright hadn't tried his luck -- and failed -- against the arm of Rooster RF Roman Karabanov with a dash from third to home. Steel stayed calm and 8 pitches later, had the three outs with no damage done to the scoreboard.
That would be the last time the Elephants posed a threat. From that point on, the top of each inning belonged to Steel.
The Roosters will keep the scoreboard turning over throughout. 2B Curtis Ripley pounced on Lawrence Fick's first pitch of the day for a double, advanced to third when 3B Tommy Glass made it on an error and scuttled on home when 1B Neil Spurrier grounded into a double play.
They'd break through again in the 4th. A Tommy Glass single, followed by a Neil Spurrier double put the pair in scoring position. RF Roman Karabanov will send a hit to the Center Fielder that'll give enough time for the pair to make it home for a 3-0 lead.
The 8th saw the Roosters secure their final run of the night when Curtis Ripley, on base via a walk and advanced to second through a Tommy Glass single, made the run from second to home after another Roman Karabanov hit to Center Field. The throw from CF Sean Newton not arriving in time.
