Game Day Gazette
October 16, 2025
The combination of injuries, illness, out of town tournament play, vacation and other personal reasons resulted in the highest percentage of mercenary play that we have seen all season. A total of eight players were selected in the first game and twelve in the second for a total of 44.44% for the day. Oh well, just another day at the ballpark!
Game 1 8:00 a.m. Pioneers (0-1-1) vs. Sultans (3-0-0)
First & Second Inning Recap:
Pioneers– Jack Adams led off the game with a clean single to left. He was forced out at 2B on Sal Lopez’ grounder to short. Tim H. singled to put runners on 1B and 2B but Mickey Poole bounced into a 6-4-3 double play started by the Sultan’s slick fielding shortstop Adam Gordon, to end the inning. 2nd– Bubba Barnett opened the 2nd with a groundout to 3B. Larry King popped a double down the left field line to start the Pioneers rally. Chris Hurst lined a run-scoring single to right field to plate the 1st run of the game. Jim Aaron ripped a single to right center to advance Chris’ pinch runner to 3B. Patrick Schmidt grounded a single up the middle to drive in the 2nd run. Denny Malloy looped a Tommy DeLeon sky ball over Peter Atkins head in CF to drive in Jim. Johnny went down swinging, but Alex Valles smacked a line single to CF to score Patrick with the 4th run. Jack grounded into a fielder’s choice to retire the side.
Sultans-the undisputed session leader after Monday’s beatdown of the Keystones, the Sultans were looking to maintain their perfect record for the session. Donnie Janac opened the game with a single past 2B. Peter Atkins popped out to short for the 1st out. Ray Pilgrim grounded into a fielder’s choice for the 2nd out. Jeff Broussard lined a double to right center to put runners on 2B and 3B. Adam Gordon had an infield single to the right side, but Ray was out at home trying to score on a nice throw from Chris Hurst to end the frame. 2nd– P Sal Lopez continued to stymie the Sultan batters as he threw his 2nd consecutive shutout inning in the 2nd. Jack Kelly lined out to short to start the inning. Lucky Hoffman laced a single to left to get the first runner aboard. Raul DeLeon smacked a single up the middle. To put runners on 1B and 2B. Bobby Hawthorne grounded to short, and Jim Aaron made the play to get a force at 2B for the 2nd out. Tommy DeLeon line out to short to retire the side.
End of 2nd Score: Pioneers 4 Sultans 0
Third Inning Recap:
Pioneers– managed to scratch out a run on three hits to extend their lead to five runs. Sal flew out to left to start the frame. Tim H. lined a single to left and Mickey followed with a base hit up the middle to put two men on. Bubba grounded back to the pitcher and the Sultans got the force at 2B. Larry hit a slow roller to short and somehow Jeff was unable to handle Adam’s toss to 2B as Larry reached base and the runner from 3B scored the only run of the inning.
Sultans- must have been that 2nd cup of coffee as the Sultans woke up their bats in the 3rd and pounded out seven hits on their way to a five-run inning. Morris Carter led off with a single as Adam beat the throw to 1B on the play. Donnie doubled to right center on a ball that just fell out of Mickey’s reach. Peter followed with a two-run triple to right center and the Sultans were finally on the board. Ray ripped a single to left to score Peter to keep things going. Jeff and Adam had back-to-back singles to plate the 4th run. Jack lined out to short and Lucky popped out to the catcher for two quick outs. Raul finished off the inning with a single to left for the 5th run to knot the score at 5-5.
End of 3rd Score: Sultans 5 Pioneers 5
Fourth Inning Recap:
Pioneers-Jim led off the 4th with a booming double to right center but was left stranded as Jack Kelly wriggled his way out of the jam. Patrick bounced out to short and Denny followed with a single to CF to move Jim to 3B. Johnny fouled out and Alex popped out to 3B to end the threat.
Sultans– picked up right where they left off with another five-run outburst in the 4th. The mercenaries got this rally started and Bobby singled to right center and moved to 3B on Tommy’s line drive double to right. Morris (or his pinch runner) reached on an infield single to load the bases with nobody out. Donnie drove in the 1st run with a line shot to CF. Peter followed with a double to left center to drive in two more runs. Ray finished off the inning with a sizzler up the middle to score two more runs and stake the Sultans to a five-run lead.
End of 4th Score: Sultans 10 Pioneers 5
Fifth Inning Recap:
Pioneers– Jack was able to shut down the Pioneers in the 5th on three flyballs to Peter in center field (another tip for you kids out there, if you want to get on base, don’t hit groundballs to Ken Brown or flyballs to Peter!)
Sultans– failed to extend their lead as Sal held them scoreless in the 5th. Jeff led off inning with a single, but Sal retired the next three batters to keep the Sultan’s lead at five runs.
End of 5th Score: Sultans 10 Pioneers 5
Sixth “Open” Inning Recap:
Pioneers- trailing by five runs, the Pioneers stormed back in the buffet to tie the game. Bubba fouled out to start the frame. Larry and Chris came through with back-to-back singles. Both runners scored on Jim’s screaming line drive to CF that Peter was unable to secure and resulted in a three-base hit. Patrick singled to drive in Jim and Denny crossed up the scouting report with a drive to left center that found a gap as he ended up on 3B with the 2nd triple of the inning. He scored on Johnny’s ground out to 2B. Alex singled, and Jack doubled to put runners on 2B and 3B. Sal reached on an infield hit to leave the bases loaded but Adam made a nice running catch to retire Tim on a line drive to left to end the inning.
Sultans– only needing one run to win the game, the Sultans opened the inning with back-to-back hits from Raul and Bobby. Tommy drew a walk to load the bases. Sal was unable to find the strike zone as he walked Morris on three pitches to force in the winning run and maintain the Sultans perfect record for the session.
Final Score: Sultans 11 Pioneers 10
Game 2 9:30 a.m. Senators (0-2-0) vs. Braves (0-1-1)
In what may have been the lowest turnout of the season, the Braves only had three of their own players (Paul Rubin, Dave Berra and Brian Rider) available for this tilt. Drawing seven plus a pitcher typically does not bode well for a team and that was certainly the case in this one.
On the flip side, the Senators welcomed back Tim Coles and only had to draw four players to fill their roster. Having first pick helped as they added Jim Aaron, Patrick Schmidt, Jack Adams and Ray Pilgrim to their lineup for this game.
First & Second Inning Recap:
Senators– Denny Malloy (one of the hottest hitters in the league) led off the game with a double. Henry Flores ground out to short for the 1st out. Raul DeLeon and Tim Coles followed with back-to-back ringing singles to drive in the 1st run. Not to be out done, the next five hitters reached base as the Senators slugged their way to a five-run 1st inning. Jerry Mylius, Will Scheerer and Rick Parker brought in two more runs. The mercenaries did their part as Jim Aaron and Patrick chipped in with run-scoring singles of their own. 2nd– kept on hitting in the 2nd as successive hits by Jack Adams, Ray Pilgrim and Denny led to the first run. Henry drove in the 2nd run with a sacrifice fly to center field. Raul grounded into a fielder’s choice but singles by Tim and Jerry (not to be confused with the famous cat & mouse duo of Tom and Jerry!) resulted in the 3rd run as the Senators raced out to an eight-run lead.
Braves-got off to an auspicious start as Paul Rubin lined two balls just outside the right field line for the 1st out. Dave Berra singled but was erased at 2B on Brian’s fielder’s choice ground out. Now, on to the mercenaries… Peter Atkins smacked a double to left and scored on Donnie Janac’s singe. Jeff Broussard bounced out to 2B to retire the side. 2nd– back-to-back doubles from Tommy DeLeon and Sal Lopez brought in the 1st run in the 2nd. Lucky Hoffman lined out to 3B on a nice catch by Jim Aaron for the 1st out. Bubba Barnett singled to drive in Sal with the 2nd run. Johnny reached on a single to right and Paul lined a single up the middle to drive in the 3rd run. Dave followed with a sharp line drive to 2B that was gloved for the final out of the frame.
End of 2nd Score: Senators 8 Braves 4
Third Inning Recap:
Senators- took command of this game with their 2nd five-run inning. Rick grounded out to SS to lead off the inning. The four mercenaries (Jim, Patrick, Jack and Ray) all singled to produce the first two runs. Denny ‘s singled brought in another run. Henry bounced into a fielder’s choice but the Senator’s 1-2 punch of Raul and Tim both singled to complete the five-run inning.
Braves- failed to score in the 3rd. Brian started the inning with a line drive over short for a single. Peter flew out to deep left for the 1st out. Donnie banged a single up the middle to put runners on 1B and 2B. Jeff lined a shot up the middle that ticked off Ray’s glove and went right to Tim, who proceeded to make the catch and step on 2B for an inning ending double play as the pinch runner (me) was off with the hit.
End of 3rd Score: Senators 13 Braves 4
Fourth Inning Recap:
Senators– Tommy was able to shut down the potent Senators attack in the 4th. Jerry led off with a single, but Will lined a ball up the middle that Tommy speared and threw to 1B to complete the double play. Rick went down on strikes to end the inning.
Braves– fought their way back into the game with a three-run outburst in the 4th. Tommy led off the inning with a double to right (should have been a triple but I stumbled coming around 1B and had to stop at 2B.) Sal flew out to left for the 1st out. Singles by Lucky Bubba and Johnny loaded the bases after one run was scored. Paul hit a hard grounder to Raul that bounced away but he was able to recover and get the force at 2B as the 2nd run scored. Dave singled to bring in the 3rd run. Brian kept the rally going with an infield hit but Peter grounded back to Raul for the final out of the frame.
End of 4th Score: Senators 13 Braves 7
Fifth “Open” Inning Recap:
Senators– put up a single run in the buffet as singles by Jim and Jack put runners on 1B and 2B and Denny completed his perfect 4-4 day at the plate with an RBI single to drive in the run.
Braves- after pulling a calf muscle going down the line in the previous inning, I wasn’t really paying attention in the bottom half of the buffet (trailing by seven runs will do that to you). I think the Braves were able to score a run in the inning to make the final score 14-8 but not 100% sure of that. In any case, the Senators got their first win of the session and the Braves still have not tasted the sweet fruit of victory this session.
Final Score: Senators 14 Braves 8
Session Five Standings:
|
|
ASSL C league 2025 5th Session |
|||||||
|
|
Win |
Loss |
Ties |
Win % |
Scored |
Given up |
Diff. |
Games Behind |
|
Sultans |
4 |
0 |
0 |
1.000 |
50 |
31 |
19 |
– |
|
Keystones |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0.667 |
32 |
30 |
2 |
1.50 |
|
Senators |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0.333 |
31 |
33 |
-2 |
2.50 |
|
Braves |
0 |
2 |
1 |
0.000 |
25 |
37 |
-12 |
3.00 |
|
Pioneers |
0 |
2 |
1 |
0.000 |
29 |
36 |
-7 |
3.00 |
Full Session Standings:
|
|
ASSL C league 2025 Season To-date Standings |
|||||||
|
|
Win |
Loss |
Ties |
Win % |
Scored |
Given up |
Diff. |
Games Behind |
|
Braves |
30 |
17 |
1 |
0.635 |
655 |
540 |
115 |
– |
|
Keystones |
24 |
23 |
0 |
0.511 |
556 |
554 |
2 |
6.00 |
|
Sultans |
21 |
24 |
3 |
0.469 |
553 |
586 |
-33 |
8.00 |
|
Senators |
20 |
24 |
2 |
0.457 |
562 |
587 |
-25 |
8.50 |
|
Pioneers |
18 |
25 |
4 |
0.426 |
479 |
538 |
-59 |
10.00 |
The Braves loss cuts their lead over the idle Keystones to six games. Each team has nine games to play so anything can happen. They face off in the early game on Monday, so the race is on!
News & Notes:
Bobby Fund Burger Cook-out & Reunion- bring your appetite and your wallet along with your ball bag on Monday as Bruce will be firing up the grill for the next fund raiser for the Bobby Fund on Monday October 20th. He will be providing the main course but please bring side dishes, desserts, chips etc. to share. This is a bring your own beverage party as well. Great food and fun for a great cause, don’t miss it.
Next Monday’s Games:
8:30 a.m. (H) Braves (0-2-1) vs. (V) Keystones (2-1-0)
9:30 a.m. (H) Senators (1-2-0) vs. (V) Pioneers (0-2-1)
Come early for the showdown between the top two teams as far as overall season records go. This one will go a long way in deciding which team will wear the crown (or in this case, the T shirt) for the 2025 season.
Hopefully most of the guys will be back from the Huntsman games and the teams will be closer to full strength, but all will be revealed on Monday.
Sultans will have a bye, and their players will have priority in the draw.
Have a great weekend!
Paul