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August 16, 2011 Tyler, Texas, grinds out a wet one over Talbot, Md.
An all-night rain that continued through the morning delayed the start of the game more than two hours, then caused several delays, the longest of which lasted more than three hours. The first pitch was scheduled for 10 a.m., but didn’t occur until 12:16 p.m. Easton/Home Run Baker starting pitcher B Schultz began the game strong, not allowing a Rose Capital East hit until the fourth inning while his teammates steadily built him a 6-0 lead, scoring two runs in each of the first three innings. But Rose Capital East touched him for four runs in the top of the fourth on three hits, a hit by pitch, a walk, and an Easton/Home Run Baker error. Then, with momentum swinging Rose Capital East’s way, the umpires halted play after four complete innings, as the steady rain had become too much for the Mansfield Stadium grounds crew to keep up with. After reviewing weather reports and radar, World Series officials sent the two teams back to their hotel shortly before 3 p.m. When play resumed in the top of the fifth inning at about 6:30 p.m., Brady Jackson replaced Schultz on the mound and made short work of the U.S. Southwest champ, facing only four batters while walking one. For Rose Capital East, Seth Gibson replaced Schultz on the mound and set down the U.S. East champ’s lineup in order. The momentum Rose Capital East lost in the fifth inning upon resumption of play showed signs of coming back in the sixth, when Sawyer Dorsey hit a one-out double. A wild pitch by Jackson sent Sawyer to third, where he stayed after Jackson recorded two consecutive strikeouts to end the top of the sixth.
Jackson left the mound in favor of fellow reliever Tayvon Blake after the three-run double. After Mason Mallard grounded out to shortstop, advancing Reed to third, Jacob Wadle reached on an error by Blake, enabling Reed to score to make it 8-6 in Rose Capital East’s favor. Blake retired the next two batters to end the inning. Easton/Home Run Baker tried to rally in the bottom of the seventh, getting Dustin Jones on base with a lead-off single and Blake on after an error by the second baseman. However, Blake got caught in a rundown on a double-steal attempt with Taylor Slaughenhoupt batting. Jones made it to third on the play. After Slaughenhoupt struck out for the inning’s second out, Justus Mills reached on a fielder’s choice that kept Jones at third. Mills stole second with Dylan Rabbitt at the plate. Rabbitt ended the game by hitting a chopper in front of the catcher and being thrown out at first. For Rose Capital East, now 2-0, Gibson was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored from the lead-off spot in the batting order. Reed was 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, two runs scored, and three runs batted in. For Easton/Home Run Baker, Jones was 3-for-4 with one RBI, Chance Crissinger was 2-for-4 with an RBI, and Blake was 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored. Post game audio: Rose Capital East Aruba’s Helder flirts with perfection as Aruba triumphs over Michigan
Helder kept the U.S. Central champ’s batters off-balance throughout the night, mixing in hard fastballs with curveballs and the occasional change-up. He lost his perfect game bid when Matt Somers hit a hard grounder just inside the third-base bag for a single on an 0-1 pitch. Aruba South manager Milton Croes lifted Helder after 5 1/3 innings with Helder’s pitch-count at 60 so Helder can pitch again Thursday. Helder threw 43 of his 60 pitches for strikes (72 percent). Helder drove in the first run of the game in the third inning, hitting a one-out double that drove home Jason Gysbertha, who had singled with one out. He scored himself on a wild pitch after taking third on a wild pitch, to make it 2-0 in favor of the Latin Americans. Although not as overpowering as Helder, Northeast/Fraternal Northwest starting pitcher Matt Somers held the aggressive Arubans in check at two runs through four innings. Aruba South added a third run in the fifth inning when Northeast/Fraternal Northwest center fielder Logan Madill misplayed a single by Helder, enabling JoseLuis Madero to score after advancing to third on the hit. Madero had entered the game as a special pinch-runner for Jomark Flannegin, who had singled leading off. Somers limited the damage to only one run, stranding three Aruba South runners on base at the end of the half-inning. After Aruba South threatened to score in the top of the sixth off Northeast/Fraternal Northwest reliever Jonathan Hentschel but couldn’t, leaving two runners on base, the U.S. Central champ broke through with a run in the bottom of the inning. With two outs, Michael Wright hit an infield single on a 3-2 pitch from Raypatrick Didder, who had relieved Helder when Helder reached 60 pitches. Wright reached second when the shortstop’s throw was wild and scored on an errant throw by the third baseman after a Thomas Smith grounder. Smith made it to second on the error and then went to third on a Didder wild pitch. Didder, however, got Logan Madill to ground out to him to end the inning, strand Smith at third, and keep the score 3-1 in Aruba South’s favor.
Didder had reached on a one-out single. After Petronia’s two-run single, Wilmer Imperator singled, sending Petronia to third. Pinch-hitter Alvaro Rodriguez was then hit by a pitch to load the bases for Marvin Brown. Brown flied out to right, though, to end the inning and leave the bases loaded. Northeast/Fraternal Northwest loaded the bases itself in the bottom of the seventh, on back-to-back singles by Somers and Travis Walker and a single by pinch-hitter Elliot Digison. Imperator relieved Didder after Didder’s 25th pitch and got Chase Toland to fly out to center before ending the game with a strikeout of Cody Maier. For Aruba South, Helder was 2-for-3 with a walk, an RBI, and a run scored from the lead-off spot in the batting order. Imperator was 2-for-3 with a walk. Pitching, Helder gave up only one hit in 5 1/3 innings, striking out five and walking none. For Northeast/Fraternal Northwest at the plate, Somers was 2-for-3. He pitched five innings, allowing three runs on five hits and three walks while striking out two. Post game audio: Northeast/Fraternal Northwest  Printer friendly version
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In a game that took only 2 hours, 15 minutes to play, but more than seven hours to complete,
Rose Capital East (Tyler, Texas) rallied for four runs in the top of the seventh to defeat
Easton/Home Run Baker (Talbot County, Md.) 8-6 today.
In the seventh, four consecutive Rose Capital East batters recorded hits to chase Jackson from the
mound. Tanner Bandel opened the inning with a single, Seth Gibson followed with a double,
putting runners at third and second. Next, Jacob Spitzer reached on an infield single, on which
neither Bandel or Gibson could advance. With two strikes, Trace Reed lined a double about 40
feet inside the left-field line and about 315 from the plate. Bandel, Gibson, and Spitzer all scored,
erasing Rose Capital’s 6-4 deficit and giving the team from Tyler, Texas, a 7-6 lead.
Eugene Helder pitched four perfect innings in leading Aruba South (San Nicolas, Aruba) to a 5-1
win over Northeast/Fraternal Northwest (Midland, Mich.) Tuesday night in a game originally
scheduled for 1 p.m.
In the seventh, Aruba pounded out four hits and scored two more runs to increase its lead to 5-1.
Miklos Petronia drove in Chadwick Tromp and Marc Danies with a single. Tromp had singled
and Danies had reached on a fielder’s choice when Didder was thrown out in a rundown between
third and home. The force of Danies’ grounder to Ryan Singer, Northeast/Fraternal Northwest’s
third pitcher of the night, had ripped Singer’s glove off. The ball rebounded toward the third-base
line, where Singer alertly grabbed it barehanded and ran at Didder before throwing to the catcher.