Vassallo became the fourth player in league history to hit for the cycle, as he and the Fish Sticks smothered the Caucasians 17-8
Giving them a taste of their own medicine, the Fish Sticks, led by Ivan, mauled the Caucasians 17-8 in a game that was more lopsided than the score indicated.
Hoping to bounce back from a loss to the Ham Slams, the Caucasians sent Frosty to the mound to start the game. Ivan led off the game with a double, and moved to third when when Joey grounded out for the first out of the inning. Blose then singled, scoring Ivan and putting the Sticks up 1-0 early. Frosty held the damage at a single run, however, as Vassallo flew out to the mound to end the inning.
With Dinger out for the week, Joey started for a second consecutive game. He got Frosty to ground out to left to lead off the bottom of the first, but Guthrie followed with a one-out single. He scored when Ron doubled, tying the game at 1-1. Pat A hit a one-out single, moving Ron to third and putting runners on the corners with one out. But Joey escaped the jam, getting Pat P to fly out to the mound to end the inning, stranding two runners.
Tied at 1-1, the Fish Sticks busted open the game in the top of the second. Ivan led off with a single, and scored from first when Joey followed with a double, putting the Fish Sticks back on top 2-1. With Joey on second, Blose hit a two-run homer, scoring Joey and making the score 4-1. The next batter, Vassallo, hit a solo homer, making back-to-back jacks and the score was 5-1. For the second time in week 4, the Fish Sticks would hit back-to-back-to-back homers when Ivan followed with a solo homer of his own, and with no outs in the second, the Sticks had taken a 6-1 lead. Frosty had been hit hard, and the Caucasians pulled him from the mound, turning to Ron to hold the deficit at five runs. He got Joey and Blose to fly out for the first and second outs of the inning, but the damage had been done.
Blose, who tied a single-game record with 3 doubles, hit a two-run homer in the top of the second
Joey got Frosty and Guthrie to fly out in order in the bottom of the second, maintaining the score at 6-1.
Up 5 runs, the Sticks essentially put the game away in the top of the third. Their offensive fury continued, as Vassallo led off the inning with a double. He scored when Ivan followed with a double, making the score 7-1. Joey singled off Ron, and Ivan scored from second pushing the lead to 7 runs. Blose then doubled, but Joey only advanced to third, putting two-runners in scoring positions with no outs for Vassallo. He promptly tripled, scoring Joey and Blose, and making the score 10-1. Vassallo was only a single away from hitting the cycle. Ivan followed with a single, his second hit of the inning, scoring Vassallo. Up 11-1 with Ivan on first and no outs, Joey blasted a two-run bomb, his second hit of the inning, making the score 13-1. Blose followed with a single, and Ron finally recorded an out, when the next batter, Vassallo, grounded out to the mound. With one out and a runner on second, Ivan doubled, his third hit of the inning and third double of the game, scoring Blose from second and extending the Sticks’ lead to 14-1. The inning came to a close when Ron got Joey to ground out to left for the second out. The 8-run inning put the Sticks up 13 through two-and-a-half innings.
Ron led off the bottom of the third with a double, his second in as many at-bats, but Joey stranded him at second, getting Pat A and Pat P to fly out consecutively, ending the third inning scoreless.
Prior to the final two innings, the Sticks fielding was excellent in week 4
The Sticks added a few more runs in the top of fourth, starting when Blose led off the inning with a double. After Vassallo flew out to the mound for the first out, Ivan singled, putting runners on first and third with one out. Joey came to the plate and hit a double into the tree, and Blose and Ivan raced home, making the score 16-1. Fresh from scoring, Blose stepped up and hit a double, scoring Joey from second and pushing the score to 17-1. Vassallo followed with a single, putting runners on the corners with one out for Ivan. The single gave Vassallo the cycle, as he became the fourth player in league history to do so and the second Fish Stick in week 4. Ivan came into the at-bat 7 for 7, but was retired for the first time in the game when Ron got him to ground out to left, ending the inning.
Joey pitched a perfect fourth, retiring Frosty and Guthrie in order.
Joey gave up only 1 run on 4 hits, moving to 2-0 on the week
For the first time in the game, the Caucasians would get through an inning without giving up a run to the Sticks. Ron retired Joey and Blose in order, as each grounded out in the top of the fifth for a scoreless inning.
With a comfortable 16 run lead, the Sticks pulled Joey from the mound and turned to Ivan from the pen in the bottom of the fifth. The first batter he faced, Ron, grounded out to left for the first out, but the Caucasians would rally due to poor fielding by the Sticks. Pat P singled, and moved to second when Frosty followed with another single. With runners on first and second, Guthrie hit a one-out double, aided by fielding errors, as Pat P and Frosty raced home to cut the score to 17-3. The next batter, Ron, hit a two-run blast to left-center field, scoring Guthrie and making the score 17-5. The Sticks pulled Ivan from the game and put Blose on the mound, hoping to escape the inning without further damage. The first batter he faced, Pat, flew out to the mound for the second out, ending the inning.
The Sticks wouldn’t make up the runs in the top of the sixth, as Ron retired Vassallo and Ivan in order to keep the score 17-5.
Blose had a big cushion heading into the bottom of the sixth, but had some difficulties closing out the game. Frosty led off the inning with a single, and scored from first when Guthrie followed with a double. However, the Sticks got the first out of the inning when Guthrie tried to extend the double into a triple, as Blose had the ball on the mound prior to Guthrie reaching third. Ron hit a one-out single, and Pat P followed with a double. Ron raced home from first, and the score was 17-7. With a runner in scoring position, Frosty doubled, scoring Pat P and cutting the deficit to 17-8. The rally ended there, though, as Blose got Guthrie to ground out to Vassallo in left for the second out of the inning, ending the game.
The win moved the Fish Sticks to 5-3 and into sole possession of first place in the standings. The loss, the Caucasians second of the week, dropped them to 4-4 and into a tie for second with the Ham Slams.
W: Joey (3-2)
L: Frosty (0-1)
Game Notes:
– Ivan led the Fish Sticks offensively, going 7 for 9 with 3 singles, 3 doubles, a home run, 6 runs scored, and 4 RBI.
– Vassallo joined Joey, Frosty, and Blose as the only players in league history to hit for the cycle. Joey hit the cycle in the Sticks’ previous game, Frosty hit for the cycle in week 2, and Blose accomplished the feat in 2011.
– The Fish Sticks set the single-game team record for doubles with 9. This broke their own record of 7, which they set in their previous game in week 4.
– Blose and Ivan each hit 3 doubles in the game. Each player tied the single-game record for doubles, which is held by Blose and Morrison, who each hit 3 doubles in a game previously this season.
– The Fish Sticks’ back-to-back-to-back homers were the fifth time this has happened in league history. The Fish Sticks have accomplished the feat 3 of the 5 teams, with Pumice on Slow! and 4 out of 5 Dentists each doing it in 2011.
– Joey pitched 4 innings, earning the win by giving up 1 run on 4 hits.
– Ron led the Caucasians at the plate in the loss, going 4 for 5 with a single, 2 doubles, a homer, 2 runs scored and 3 RBI.
