Double elimination round – Renegades take on the Taiwan Home Run
Tyler made his first WS stop in this game as Chris scored a pair and made two stops
The Renegades and Home Run would face off in an elimination game for one team. The Home Run had a tough day as they had to play the Minnesota Millers at 6 am, and then they had to get in the car and change to a different complex to face the Renegades. The Home Run had not been to the World Series since the 2018 season. COVID and the financial costs had held them back. Their roster included a lot of new players and a few all-star veterans including one of the league’s best pitchers in Leo Lin. Taiwan was the 7 seed and in pool play had beaten Atlanta 16-6 and Tyler 21-9. They lost to Gateway 14-5. They then lost to Austin 9-6 in a controversial loss. The controversy was because the game was called due to the heat index. Instead of restarting it, they awarded the win to Austin. While the Renegades were getting out of bed, the Home Run beat the Millers by the score of 10-3.
First inning
With the added rest of not running baselines, Joe McCormick was back in the lineup for this game and Rob Dias would be healthy enough to play defense. Ron Cochran and Hunter Weissman would pitch in this game. Christian Thaxton led things off with a high fly ball to left field and scored running toward first base. Tyler Mireault hit a weak grounder and Andy Tsai was able to drop on the ball, roll over and make the first out. Joe McCormick then worked a full count and scored the second run of the inning with a hard grounder. Shawn Devenish hit a hard grounder into the deep layer of the Home Run defense and would be introduced to Vincent Chui (one of the best deep men in the sport) for the second out. Shayne Cantan then ended the inning with a first pitch swing and was stopped by Rock Kuo after missing a base to end the inning.
Calling the defense for the Renegades in this game would be Bryan Grillo on the left side and Gina Devenish on the right side. Vincent Chui, who had struggled earlier in the week (2-12 with 6 K’s in last three games) was back in the leadoff spot and started the game with a line drive past Rob Dias into center field for Taiwan. Wolf Liang then hit a fly ball to the center of the field. Rob Dias (playing in the 2nd layer) moved to his right and then heard the ball land where he started. He had to pivot and return to that spot, dove and by the time he collected it Wolf scored the tying run. Dias was playing a position he had not played in a while as he normally plays up front. On the play he and Chris Kimball bumped into each other. Andy Tsai, the left hander was next and hit a bouncer to the right side. McCormick, playing up front, laid out and made it look easy for the first out. Rock Kou then hit a hard grounder into left field. Shayne Cantan had a chance but could not stop it. Tyler Mireault backed him up and also missed it and Taiwan took a 3-2 lead. Istasipal Luang struck out and Hank Ho hit a grounder right to Shawn Devenish who was getting just his third start of his career at the left short position to end the inning. The Home Run led 3-2.
Second inning
With Hunter Weissman on the mound, Chris Kimball fouled off two pitches and then hit a grounder up the middle. The Home Run defense would struggle to get it with Kimball’s speed and Boston had tied it up. Christian Thaxton then hit another high fly ball into left field and scored his second run of the game for the lead. Tyler Mireault then hit a bomb into Right field that went over the 170 line and was punished for hitting it as the ball was dead, meaning the play had to be re-done. On the 7th pitch of the at bat, he scored on a grounder up the middle. Joe McCormick then hit a line drive off the end of his bat and scored his second run of the game. Shawn Devenish hit a laser into left field with three strikes and took a bad line to first base, running in fair territory for 95 feet before realizing he was off line. Vincent Chui made a nice play but that poor line was the difference in the play. Shayne Cantan struck out. Chris Kimball then hit a hard grounder on the first pitch from Hunter to Vincent Chui, but at the same time as Chui got the ball, one of his teammates ran into him and Kimball scored. Thaxton then hit a hard grounder into left field and Vincent Chui made the stop with his glove. Boston’s lead swelled to 7-3 with this five run inning.
Vincent Chui led off the inning and hit a foul ball and then the ball died. There were no other balls at the field. After a five minute break, play resumed. He lifted a fly ball up the middle landing in front of Rob Dias. Rob dropped to his knees and stopped it right before it rolled under his legs for the first out. The eventual rookie of the year, Wolf Liang then hit a fly ball to the right side. Chris Kimball slid to his left, dove feet first and stopped the ball in his torso for the second out. Taiwan went to the bench and brought in Shao Hao Huang (to improve their defense) who was hitless in the series. He struck out. Boston led 7-3.
Third inning
Tyler Mireault started things off with a line drive off the end of his bat. Vincent Chui laid out in the deep layer and the ball rolled right into his glove. Joe McCormick then took a full count pitch and grounded out to the new left shorty Shoa Hao Huang. Shawn Devenish then hit some epic foul balls, fouling off four in a row before hitting a shot past Chui in left field for a run. The Renegades decided to make a change at this point and Brought Hunter Weissman in to pitch to Shayne Cantan as Shayne had some success against Shayne locally and he was not comfortable with his timing. Hunter’s first pitch was high, his second pitch low. The third pitch was fouled back to Rob Weissman and the fourth, Cantan seemed a little early. The result was a whiff. Boston led 8-3.
Rock Kou led off with a hard grounder to the left side. Devenish laid out and it went right by his fingers, but Shayne Cantan was there and made the stop as Devenish made a great call to help him. A nice play by the rookie left shorty. Istasipal Luang then lined his second pitch into left field. Cantan dove and almost made the play, but instead called dead ball. It was dead, the second of the game and first off a Taiwan bat. After working the count full Luang hit a grounder and was stopped by Devenish up front. Hank Ho then hit a line drive past Devenish who screamed “left”. Rob Dias came over, dove and came up short. Tyler Mireault had it lined up but was late to the ground and as he went to the turf, it rolled over his forearms and Hank Ho scored. That theme played out for the next hitter, Vincent Chui who hit a line drive right at Rob Dias. Dias lined it up but was late to the ground and it went right under his arms as well as Chui scored. Wolf Liang then hit a fly ball to the left side. Tyler Mireault lined it up. It bounced and when Tyler pursued it while on his knees, he kicked it with a knee and Wolf was safe. Shao Hao Huang then grounded to the left side and Devenish dove for it moving to his right. The ball hit his hands and rolled over them. Shayne Cantan played it well, staying on his feet and creeping forward and was there to back up Devenish and make the play to end the inning. Taiwan cut the Renegade lead to 8-6.
Fourth inning
Chris Kimball would lead things off against Hunter Weissman and killed the third ball of the game, the second of his career. On the next pitch, he hit a slow roller down the third base line. Huang shuffled over and made the play about 15 feet before Kimball hit third base. Thaxton then launched a line drive into center field and scored with ease for his third run of the contest. Mireault then lined a shot into left field and Chui laid out and stopped another ball in his glove. McCormick grounded one up the middle and Rock Kou stopped him for the last out of the inning. Boston got one and led 9-6.
Rock Kou led off and worked the count full before hitting a weak grounder that rolled just over the 40 foot arc. Joe McCormick and Shawn Devenish communicated perfectly and McCormick slid in and picked it clean with his hand for the first out. Istasipal Luang then laced a line drive into left field. Rob Dias dove, missed it and Tyler Mireault was there, laid out and made a clean stop for the second out of the inning and his first defensive stop of the World Series. Hank Ho worked the count full against Leo Lin. He hit a fly ball to center field. Dias was there, waited for two bounces and then laid out but was short of the ball. He had to scoot forward, reached out like he was swimming, missed on the first attempt as it rolled under him and Ho was safe. A huge play that could have ended the inning for Boston. Vincent Chui then lifted the first pitch in the air to the right side. Kimball took a step in and it bounced by him. As he went back on it, Rob Dias was there and neither could pick it clean. Wolf Liang then hit a grounder to the left side. Devenish was late to lay out and it rolled thru his arms. Cantan was on his feet, crept in and appeared to make the stop but the umpire said it was not off the ground and Liang tied the game on a bang-bang play. Andy Tsai re-entered the game and hit a line drive up the middle to Rob Dias who laid out and stopped it with is chest. The game was tied 9-9.
Fifth inning
Shawn Devenish would see four pitches, waive at all of them and strike out for just the Renegade’s third strike out of the game. David Sanchez then came off the bench to hit for Cantan. He fouled off three pitches and then hit a grounder off the bottom of his bat up the middle and Rock Kou stopped him. Hunter and Kimball came back to the plate. Kimball connected on the first pitch and hit a line drive past the first two layers and on a bang-bang play Vincent Chui stopped him.
Drew Crook entered the game at Third base on defense for Sanchez. Rock Kuo hit a fly ball to the center of the field and screamed as he hit it. The ball landed in front of McCormick as he was floating backwards. By the time he could recover , Kou was safe. The Renegades argued that Rock was not allow to scream when the ball was put in play. However, instead of calling him out, he was warned and the go ahead run counted. Istasipal Luang then hit a short pop into the corner of the third base line and forty foot arc. Devenish chased in, slid and as he went to the ground his left hand touched the ball and he picked it fast. The rookie shorty looked like a seasoned veteran. Hank Ho worked another full count and Leo took him to right field where the Renegades had nobody and Ho scored with ease. Vincent Chui then worked a full count and hit a grounder to the right side. McCormick lined it up but it was dead. Kimball still heard it rolling and flew over, dove and the ball hit him in the legs and he made a stop on a dead ball (the 4th of the game). Wolf Liang hit a grounder to the left side. Devenish dove, and it rolled over his hands. This time Drew Crook was there and he was on the ground too early and there was no chance to make the play and another big run scored. Andy Tsai would hit a weak pop to the left side with a little spin. Devenish chased and picked it fast to end the inning. Taiwan led 12-9.
Sixth inning
Christian Thaxton always gives a team hope with his bat and the Renegades needed hope down three in their last at bat. On the second pitch he hit a bomb that landed just foul. He would foul off the next pitch but the result would be a strike out. Tyler Mireault then hit a high fly to the left side. Tsai had no chance but Rock Kou slid over between Tsai and a charging Vincent Chui to make a great play for the second out. Joe McCormick was next. He swung and missed at the first three pitches and on the 11th pitch of the at bat hit a fly ball to left field and Rock Kuo stopped the Renegades. The Final score was 12-9
Wrap Up
The player of this game would by Vicenta Chui who scored 3 runs and made 6 stops in the deep layer of the defense. For the Renegades, Christian Thaxton paced the offense with three runs and Shawn Devenish paced the defense with 4 stops as six different Renegade defenders made stops (5 of them made more than one). The Renegades were eliminated and sent to the 9-12 bracket for the second year in a row. This one felt different as this was a great game played by both teams. Taiwan would eventually be eliminated in the next game in a 10-9 loss to the Chicago Comets.
9/12 Placement Bracket – Renegades take on the heat at night
Two dejected teams would travel to the reineger complex to kick off games in the 9-12 bracket as both teams were coming off elimination losses. The Heat entered the tourney as the six seed. They inched by Minnesota 6-5, beat New York 14-3 and then lost to New Jersey 17-12 in pool play. They were then a victim of one of the biggest upsets at the series when Cleveland defeated them 12-3 giving them their first loss. After crushing Tyler 23-3, they were eliminated by Chicago 6-5.
Both teams planned to play their benches in this contest. For some reason, the fields were mowed earlier that day and would play lightning fast. The Renegades would win the coin toss and be the home team.
First inning
For the Renegades Bryan Grillo and Gina Devenish started as the callers. At the start of this game only third base was working, so the game would start with just one operational base. Noah Fenney started things off with a first pitch fly ball into left field that kicked off Joe McCormick who was playing in the third layer for a run. Rookie, Jacob Kamaunu was next, batting from the right side. He also hit the first pitch up the middle of the field on a fly. Elana Regan had it bounce next to her and then Tyler Mireault pulled up short of the ball as the ball’s beep cut in and out and the Renegades could not pick it. Dylan Pleasants was next, formerly of the Seattle South King Sluggers and he struck out. Next was Bee Yang. Bee got his beepball start with the Renegades during the 2011 season when he lived in Fitchburg. However, shortly after he started practicing, he moved to the Seattle area and then moved to California. Yang, playing with a new batting stance hit a dribbler up the middle causing his pitcher, Fonzie to leap in the air. Shawn Devenish charged it and went to the ground but was not in the right zone. He got to his knees and as he crawled to the ball, he put his hand on it and pushed it away allowing Yang to score. Denis Lynch hit a slow grounder on the fast grass that Shawn Devenish over ran and Joe Yee missed as Lynch scored. The next hitter, rookie Eric Rivera Gonzalez, joining the team from Puerto Rico as a rookie. He hit a hard grounder to the right side as Tyler Mireault slid over and dove, Elana Regan went to the ground without taking an angle backwards and it went under her and the Heat batted thru the order. The inning would end with two strike outs from Fenney and Kamanu. The Heat plated five runs.
Leading off this game would be Tyler Mireault with just third base working with Ron Cochran on the mound. He hit a high fly ball to the right side. Pleasant dropped to the ground and laid out but the ball was a good 10 feet in front of him and Tyler scored. McCormick laced a line drive down the third base line past the third layer of the defense for a run. Devenish hit a pop fly that landing right in front of Richie Flores who dropped, laid his chest on the ball and picked it clean for the out. Drew Crook was next and hit a bouncer up the middle. Bee Yang made a nice, quick stop for the second out. This brought Hunter to the mound and Chris Kimball to the dish. Kimball hit a line drive up the middle but Noah Fenney got his body in front of it and that ended the inning. After one, the Heat held a 5-2 lead.
2nd Inning
At the start of this inning, a new base arrived and both bases would be in play for the rest of the game. Pleasants led off the inning with a weak grounder up the middle. Devenish raced to the middle of the field, dove head first and stopped the ball quick and clean for the first out. Bee Yang and Dennis Lynch ended the inning with strike outs.
Leading off the second inning would be Joe Yee, hitting off Hunter. He hit the first pitch thrown on the fly up the middle but Richie Flores stopped him quickly for the first out. Mireault then grounded to the right side and Dylan Pleasants stopped him for the second out. Joe McCormick hit the first pitch he saw to Richie Flores who made the stop. Boston went down 1-2-3 on just four pitches. The Heat led 5-2.
3rd inning
To start the inning, Luis Rodriguez subbed in for Joe McCormick and went to deep left. The Heat also switched catchers as LJ Rodriguez was on the bench and John Fenney subbed in. The inning started with a strike out by Gonzalez and a whiff by Noah Fenney. Kamanu hit a fly ball to the left side. Joe Yee chased and dove but came up short. Rodriguez was listening to the ball instead of moving to the spot and by the time he got there, Kamanu scored his second run. Pleasants ended the inning with a hard grounder down the third base line. Yee adapted to the field on this play and dove and made a great stab for the out. The Heat led 6-2
Devenish led off and hit a high fly ball to left field. Lynch laid out and on a bang-bang play made the stop on a call that could have gone either way. A great play by Lynch. Crook was next and on the second pitch hit a weak roller to the coffin corner on the left side which Richie Flores stopped. Chris Kimball took the first ball he saw on a line up the middle and scored. Joe Yee would see as many pitches as the first three hitters in the lineup (6) and end the at bat with a whiff to end the inning. Boston got one back but still trailed by three 6-3.
4th inning
After a designated break, Luis Soto subbed into the game to replace Tyler Mireault. Nick Morin-Tylock also subbed in for Gina as the right side caller. The Heat came back to the plate and went down 1-2-3 with three strike outs by Yang, Cousins and Lynch.
Luis Soto would lead off for the Renegades in the 4th with Hunter pitching. He hit a fly ball to the right side but ran to third base when first was going off. He was about to cut across the field to change direction when he was stopped by his coach and the play was called dead as Pleasants was credited with the out. Luis Rodriguez was next facing Ron Cochran and he struck out. At this point, Guy Zuccarello subbed in for Devenish. He worked the count to the 5th pitch and hit a grounder that Richie Flores stopped to end the inning. The Heat held their 6-3 lead.
5th inning
As the Renegades took the field, Jen Morin-Tylock subbed in for Luis Rodriguez and went to first base. Luis Soto would go to the deep rover spot. Noah Fenney led off the frame with a weak grounder to the left side. Zuccarello sauntered forward and made the play quickly for the first out. Kamanu then lofted a high fly ball to the center of the field. Zuccarello and Kimball chased it as Kamanu took a bad line toward first as he ran in fair territory for all 100 feet and then missed the base. The original call was safe, but after contenting it, the play was changed to an out and Zuccarello was credited with the stop. Pleasants was next and laced a line drive to the left side. The call was off by about a zone off and Yee had no chance. Soto gave chase but could not get there in time and the run scored. Yang then grounded to the left side right at Yee. Joe laid out but bobbled it when he went to pick it and that bobble was enough for Yang to score on a bang-bang play heading to first base. Cousins then went right back to Yee, who laid out to his left and made a clean stop to end the inning. The Heat swelled their lead to 8-3.
Michael Donovan checked into the game and pinch hit for Drew Crook. He struck out. Hunter Weissman came back to the mound to face Kimball and had the same result with a strike out. Joe Yee ended the trend with a pop fly to the right side. Pleasants came in on his stomach and laid out as Yee started to slow up as he got to the base and Pleasants made the stop.
6th inning
Raysa Corsliz Yamairs Rondon Aviles popped off the bench to pinch hit. The second Puerto Rico player to enter this game hit a line drive right at Guy Zuccarello and it hit him hard in the cup as the hollow cup sound could be heard on the bench. Zuccarello recovered and chased it down for the stop. Noah Fenney struck out for the 3rd time and the second out. Kamanu then lofted a high fly ball up the middle. Regan laid out and came up short but Yee was there to back her up and picked it clean but Kamanu beat it out for a run. Pleasants ended the inning with a whiff. The Heat held a 9-3 lead.
Luis Soto would lead off the 6th and strike out. Jen Morin Tylock was next up for her first at bat of the game. She hit the first pitch up the middle and Richie Flores stopped her. Guy Zuccarello hit the 5th pitch of the at bat at who else, Richie Flores who made his 7th stop of the game and that was ball game. The final score was 9-3.
Summary
The player of this game would be Jakob Kamanu with three runs and Richie Flores with 7 stops on defense. For Boston, Guy Zuccarello would be the player of the game as he made three stops on defense in half a game.