2017 – NATIONAL LEAGUE DIVISION SERIES #1

Both teams match up very closely with a very slight edge going to the ‘Coots with its rotation of Rich Hill,  John Lackey, Jake Arrieta & Miguel Gonzalez versus Sacramento’s Max Scherzer, Chris Sale, Danny Duffy & Steven Matz, but the Capitals bullpen easily outclasses Bethesda’s with Mark Melancon, Tyler Thornburg and Nate Jones.

The key to success in this series will be in scoring more runs in each game than the opponent.

After a bit of a flirtation with using TeamViewer, the GM’s of both teams decided to go the JoinMe route which proved to be much simpler.

 Game #1: John Lackey (14-5  2.21) vs. Max Scherzer (24-8 2.49)

Shockingly this game proved to be a pitching duel …
After an uneventful 1st inning the Bandicoots Adrian Gonzalez (i his last gasp potentially at being good) reach on a pitch that just missed the strike zone. Scherzer didn’t miss with the next batter as he mowed down Trevor Story. Brad Miller then came to the plate and reliving the glory days of the first few weeks of the season in which power came easy blasted the pitch deep and over Hunter Pence’s head to put Bethesda ahead 2-0.
The next few innings featured a whole lot of good pitching with nothing much going on until the 6th.
Aledmys Diaz led things off for Bethesda against Scherzer with a line drive single to right field. Tyler Naquin followed with another liner to right that Giancarlo was a little dozy on and not only did Diaz race over to 3rd, but Naquin was allowed to advance to 2nd base on the throw. Up next was Gonzalez again and once again he reached base by virtue of the base on balls. Trevor Story then came to the plate and with all the power he could muster connected on a ball … probably one of the faster grounders ever hit in Sacremento … which in turn made it for an easy double play, but Diaz was allowed to float in from 3rd to make it 3-0.
Lackey was brilliant the rest of the way pitching through the 8th and allowed just a couple of hits and a couple of walks, but that was it. Chris Withrow tossed a scoreless 9th to nail down the 4-0 series opener win with Miller smacking a solo shot off Pedro Strop in the top of the 9th for his 2nd tater of the game.

  Game #2: Rich Hill (16-0  1.57) vs. Chris Sale (25-6 2.82)

 Rich Hill (BET) vs Chris Sale (SAC)
Not exactly the kind of start expected from Hill who was perfect in the regular season with a 16-0 record. Hill started things off by getting Mr. Lindor to strike out swinging, but then went a little “berserk” walking Giancarlo Stanton and then Albert Pujols. Evan Longoria struck out, but then the big W came around again and Yadier Molina took a leisurely stroll to 1st base to fill the bases for the ever-dangerous Danny Valencia. Valencia made great contact, smashing the ball down the first base line but Adrian Gonzalez was up to the task and underhanded the ball to Hill covering 1st to end the threat.
The Capitals opened the next inning with Hunter Pence jumping on a Hill pitch and sending into the gap for a stand-up double. Wilmer Flores struck out and then Chris Sale put a scare into everyone with a deep flyball to right field. Berserkitude crept in once again and Hill walked his 4th batter of the game in Lindor and then followed it up with a literal crowning touch nailing Giancarlo in the skull and putting him out of commission for the next five days. A really lousy blow to the Caps and another bases loaded situation for Hill to climb out of … which they did as Albert Pujols popped out harmlessly to Aledmys Diaz just behind 2nd base.
Buoyed by the near decapitation of Sacramento’s scariest hitter, veteran backstop Carlos Ruiz opened the 3rd when he got jammed on Sale’s pitch but hit it hard enough to take it over the infield for a cheap single – Bethesda’s first hit of the game. Sale mowed down Anthony Rendon and got Hill to bounce out advancing Ruiz to 2nd base. Plucky slap hitter Jon Jay then did what he does best and put one over the heads of the infielders just weakly enough so that Valencia couldn’t nail Ruiz at the plate as he scored on a nice slide around Molina’s tag. Bethesda leads 1-0. Jay advanced to 2nd on the throw which turned out to be pretty lucky as Diaz hit a seeing-eye single into right field allowing Jay to race home and make it 2-0.
Mr. Pence brought the Capitals right back into the thick of things with a long, long blast into the upper deck in left field with the only saving grace for Bethesda being that no one was on base. 2-1 Bethesda after four.
Emotions got a little high the next inning when Sale did a little bit of payback nailing Jay in the noggin’ … fortunately not a vital area for the outfielder and he was able to take 1st base without assistance.
Sale stuck until the 7th inning when with two outs and Rendon on 2nd base, the ball was handed to Nate Jones. Jones made it all ho-hum by striking out Jay to end the inning.
Hill lasted about an inning longer when he and his 12 strikeouts went packing after Longoria golfed a ball down the left field line for an easy double. Ryan Madson came in with Bethesda fans cringing remembering how in the latter half of the season the Nationals’ reliever turned into a homer factory and had his ERA pretty much triple within a few months. No need to worry of course … Molina hit the ball pretty deep but it was caught easily by Jay to end the 8th and preserve at least temporarily the one-run lead.
The injury bug again came into play and bit the Capitals with reliever Tyler Thornburg going down to injury in the top of the 9th with a minor shoulder problem that only had him out of action the rest of the game.
Steve Cishek was called upon to nail down the win for Bethesda and he did just that ending things with a very deep fly ball by Chris Dickerson to David Peralta. Sacramento’s offense improved only slightly in this game with three hits but Bethesda was lucky clumping most of its six hits in the one inning to score the pair of runs.

  Game #3: Danny Duffy (21-5 2.54) vs. Jake Arrieta (15-7 2.83) 

Arrieta started the game like he meant business while Duffy was more like he had stepped into someone’s business and gotten it all over his shoes.
The Capitals went down in the first two innings one-two-three while Bethesda made some noise in the 1st with a single and a stolen base by Aledmys Diaz and then a little more noise in the 2nd when the Bandicoots loaded the bases on an error by Yadier Molina that allowed the speedy Carlos Ruiz to reach 1st and then singles by Anthony Rendon and Arrieta. The sight of Jon Jay at the plate apparently terrified more than Bandicoot fans as Duffy lobbed a pitch back to the screen that allowed Ruiz to race home and give the home team the early 1-0 lead.
Arrieta followed with a perfect 3rd inning – Duffy did not. Diaz opened the inning with a single – his 5th hit of the series – and then scored easily on Trevor Story’s triple into the right field corner. Story then scored on Lorenzo Cain’s one-out grounder to make it 3-0.
Duffy lasted until the top of the 5th when he was yanked in favor of pinch hitter Danny Valencia after Brandon Phillips was walked with Molina on 2nd base. Molina had doubled to open the inning. Valencia popped out to Diaz though to end the inning.
Duffy gave up seven hits in the short time he was on the mound, but the bullpen was downright stingy with only harmless hit for Bethesda the rest of the way. With Arrieta in command though Bethesdans were confident (ha!) no more hits would be needed.
Uh … fast forward to the 9th inning.
Pence started things off with a shot down the right field line that David Peralta was lucky to keep to a single. Pujols then gets jammed on the pitch but the rolling ball bamboozled the Bandicoots’ infield and that made it 1st and 2nd with none out and Longoria coming up. As often had been the case to this point, the Bethesda pitchers were somehow able to get a good hitter to hit a harmless popup. Molina was up next and not so harmless … his grounder through short loaded up the bases for Mr. Dickerson. Dickerson grounded out to Story for a fielder’s choice at 2nd but it brought in Pence to make it 3-1.
Josh Reddick decided to make things uncomfortably interesting by bopping the ball into right field allowing grampy Pujols to score easily with Dickerson chomping at the bit at 2nd base and the score down to 3-2.
Sorry Jake … no complete game. Manager Skiles subbed in speedy Terence Gore for Dickerson at 2nd base leaving things up to Brandon Phillips as he faced closer Steve Cishek. Cishek’s offering just caught the plate and Bethesda inched closer to advancing to the division final with a 3-2 win.
Kudos to Cravy in this one allowing just one hit while striking out four in three innings of relief for Sacramento.

Sacramento’s Scherzer had his started moved up to create a wee bit of a pitching mismatch as he faced junkballer Miggy Gonzalez.
The Capitals began hitting early with Longoria lacing one into the gap for a two-out standup double, but that’s all that they would get in the first inning.
Aledmys Diaz started things going for Bethesda with a one-out single and then stopped things when he was nailed trying to steal. Tyler Naquin kept the inning alive with a double into the right field alley. Adrian Gonzalez took Scherzer’s first pitch and lined it up the middle over 2nd base setting the stage for a big collision at home plate as Naquin just beat the ball to the plate and knocked Yadier Molina out of action for a day. Bethesda up 1-0.
Cameron Rupp replaced Molina behind the plate and singled in his first at bat the next inning only to be erased on Brandon Phillips’ ground out into an inning ending double play.
Scherzer started the 2nd inning by striking out Brad Miller, but then walked Anthony Rendon who advanced to 3rd base on a nice hit and run single by Eric Fryer. Miguel Gonzalez then got to play early hero by laying down a perfect suicide squeeze bunt that allowed Rendon to extend the Bandicoots’ lead to 2-0.
The Capitals wasted no time in getting back the run though when in the next inning with one out Francisco Lindor singled, stole 2nd base and scored on Hunter Pence’s double to the wall.
With Gonzalez clinging to life in the 5th inning, Phillips doubled and advanced to 3rd base on Josh Reddick’s groundout leaving the tying run only 90 feet away. Up next was Scherzer who decided to don his “Be Like Miguel” t-shirt and try the old squeezeroo. You need to hit the ball though Max … Scherzer missed the high fastball and Phillips was a dead duck at home. Scherzer then grounded out to short to end the inning.
The 6th inning’s excitement came when Adrian Gonzalez opened the Pandora’s Swearbox after being called out on a strike and was ejected from the game.
Dickerson opened the 7th with a solid single to left field off Gonzalez. That was it for Gonzalez, enter Chris Withrow. Withrow jammed Pujols into a second base ground out and Dickerson advanced. Rupp came within a few inches of his second hit of the game then bouncing a ball up the middle that Diaz was just able to reach and then nail the plodding catcher at 1st. Phillips always seemed to be in the middle of the action so of course he was the next hitter and he made no mistake this time with a single between short and 3rd that allowed Dickerson to score easily and tie the game.
With one out in the 8th and Fernando Salas pitching for Bethesda, Lindor smashed the ball off the wall in centre field for a standup double. Tempting fate once more, Bethesda’s manager handed the ball to Ryan Madson with Hunter Pence waiting his turn to hit. Of course … the dreaded pop out to 3rd base to leave it up to Longoria. Longoria was not up to the task though and struck out swinging on three pitches. Points for being keen though!
Pujols gave the home team a scare in the top of the 9th when his fly ball just missed leaving the park in fair territory, but neither team could bring a runner around and it was 2-2 heading into extra innings.
Top of the 10th – Steve Cishek on the mound for Bethesda gets Reddick, Ramiro Pena and Lindor 1-2-3.
Bottom of the 10th – Mark Melancon doing the job for Sacramento strikes out Peralta, but allows Carlos Ruiz to reach on a single through the infield. Diaz and Naquin had no interest in making waves however and the hit was wasted. On to the 11th.
Cishek struck out Pence and then got bailed out big time by Rendon who made two sweet plays on grounders to 3rd base to keep the Capitals off the bases in an eventful 3 up, 3 down 11th.
Jitters got to Melancon as he opened the bottom of the 11th walking Trevor Story. Game one hero Brad Miller was the next hitter up and he ripped a ball to right centre that went to the wall sending Reddick in hot pursuit, but it was not to be as Story raced around 3rd base to score and give Bethesda the 3-2 extra inning win and the berth in the division final.