MAX - 8 RED - 0 F
MAX leads best-of-five series 1-0
W - Pettitte (1-0) L - Buehrle (0-1)
MAX: Pettitte: 7 IP, 0 ER, QS (1)
RED: Buehrle: 3 1/3 IP, 6 ER
MAX: Koskie: HR (1), 2B, 3 RBI (3)
MAX: Ashburn: 3B (1), SB (1), 2 RBI (2)
MAX: Kent: HR (1), 2 2B, 2 RBI (2)
This game was nothing like that the two teams played against each other in the last two games of the season. While those were edge of your seat nail-biters, this one turned into an ugly blowout. At first it seemed as if the Aces were going to strike first, loading the bases with only one out in the bottom of the second. However, Maxion starter and former Cy Young Andy Pettitte got a crucial double play ball from Keith Ginter to put the kibosh on that. It was the fourth inning in which things unraveled for Red Clay starter Mark Buerhle. It started off innocently enough with a Jeff Kent two run homer; ok, Bombers up 2-0. But that was followed by a Tony Clark single, which was followed by a Derek Jeter double which was followed by a Bengie "Don't Make Fun of My Speed" Moline RBI single. Richie Ashburn then struck the real heavy blow with a bases clearing triple, bringing the Bomber lead to 5-0. Buerhle was yanked at that point, but his successor, Travis Harper, couldn't prevent Corey Koskie from bringing home Riche Ashburn with yet another RBI single. When all was said and done, the Bombers had batted around their lineup in the fourth and produced six runs. Harper was beaten again by Koskie in the sixth, when he smashed a home run again bringing home an on base Richie Ashburn. Eight runs was more than enough for Pettitte, although he did struggle somewhat in the sixth and seventh. Credit must be given to the Aces relievers Harper and Myers, who managed to finished the rest of the game and keep the rest of their bullpen available for series to come. An honorable mention to Maxion reliever Shigetohsi Hasegawa, who despite having a rather crummy season, pitched two strong innings of relief to complement Pettitte's scoreless effort. In the aftermath of the loss, immediate criticism was hurled at Red Clay GM Ishmael von Corrin for his choice of Buerhle to start Game 1. In response to the criticism, von Corrin had the following to say: "Obviously Mark has had some rather awful starts during the regular season, but he had been improving as late. My idea was that I would rather play Mark now while he is hot, rather than in a higher pressure Game 3 or 4 situation. Obviously this wasn't the start that any of us envisioned." When reporter Al Leiter pointed out that this meant that Buerhle would have to start a Game 5 if it arose, von Corrin paused a moment before saying "One step at a time." Game 2 will most likely feature the pitching matchup of Ryan Franklin vs. Josh Fogg.
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MMD - 3 ZSY - 7 F
ZSY leads best-of-five series 1-0
W - Rincon (1-0) L - Hammond (0-1)
ZSY: Wells: 6 IP, 3 ER, QS (1)
MMD: Ortiz: 6 IP, 3 ER, QS (1)
ZSY: Pujols: 3-5, 2 RBI
ZSY: Kiner: HR (1), 2 RBI
MMD: Chavez: HR (1), 3 RBI
With the specter of a very emotional murder investigation haunting the background of this game, two Division 1 powerhouses went to battle in what looked to be an epic series. The potent Z-Slayers offense was relentless from the get-go in this one. After a stolen base from leadoff man Carl Crawford, Albert Pujols drew first blood for the Z-Slayers, bringing him home with a base hit. Meow Meow Dui answered right away with a two run shot from their home run king Eric Chavez in the top of the second. The lead didn't last long however, with the Z-Slayers tying it up at 2 in the third, thanks again to good base running from Juan Pierre and another RBI single from Albert Pujols. The lead lurched back in favor of Meow Meow Dui in the top of the fifth, thanks to an Eric Chavez notching his third RBI of the game with a single, but this lead was too short lived, with the Z-Slayers coming up with a Jason Larue single in the bottom of the inning. Nevertheless, it was a disappointing inning for the Z-Slayer offense, who managed to only score one run from a bases loaded and no outs situation. Both starters had an identical by line, going six innings and allowing three runs, just barely squeezing out a quality start. The battle of bullpens thus commenced in the seventh, with Chris Hammonds taking the mound for MMD and Ricardo Rincon stepping up for the Z-Slayers. The Z-Slayers bats welcomed Hammonds to the game with artillery; MVP candidate Ralph Kiner smashed a two run shot, which was followed in the next at bat with a Ken Harvey solo shot. Things went much differently for Rincon, who pitched three shutout innings where the MMD offense never really threatened. The Z-Slayers added another run in the bottom of the eighth off MMD reliver Dan Miceli, thanks to a solo homerun from leadoff man Carl Crawford. After the game, ZSY GM Lord Sinister was quite pleased with the result, but appeared quite irate when asked about the ongoing Taklamente murder investigation, to which he replied by banning the reporter in question from attending games in Tuldaria. Game 2 will feature the pitching matchup of Runelvys Hernandez, season leader in quality starts, against MMD Kenny Rodgers, also taking place at Sinister Industries Stadium.
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