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The Washington Sea Dogs, behind inspired pitching performances by aces Chuck Finley and Bobby Ayala, beat the Larimer Knights in 12 innings, 1-0 on a home run by Chuck Knoblauch.
"You might not see a better pitched PVBL game all year," said exuberant manager Aaron Weiner. "Chuck and Bobby really pulled out all the stops in this one."
Finley went 9.2 scoreless innings before giving way to Bobby Ayala, who pitched 2.1 hitless innings. Then, in the bottom of the 12th, Chuck Knoblauch, who had come in for Pokey Reese in the ninth inning, blasted a 2-2 pitch over the Green Monster off of Chris Haney to seal the win for the Sea Dogs.
"He hung a changeup to me, and I got enough loft on it to get it out," said Knoblauch. "But I knew it was gone all the way."
The story, here, was pitching. Chuck Finley, who is renowned for his endurance, was one of the only pitchers to go over 9 innings in this inagural season of the PVBL.
"Aaron came out in the middle of the ninth and asked me how I felt, and I answered fine, which I was. He told me to signal him when I was ready to come out, and I really wore down in the 10th inning when they got a couple of baserunners on."
The jam that Finley incurred was a first-and-second threat with two outs when Jim Edmonds singled to left and Orlando Merced walked. But Ayala came in and jammed Villaneuva, who grounded out to the third baseman, Bill Mueller, to end the inning.
"He came out swinging at the first pitch, a slider on the outside corner, and tried to pull it...he managed to pull it some, but right at Mueller," said Ayala.
The win ends what was a six-game losing string for the Sea Dogs, but it hasn't ended their offensive woes.
"With Chuck hurting," Weiner said, "we're hurting too, for offense. Lots of credit to the Larimer pitching staff, but we just haven't been hitting worth a darn recently."
The win puts the Sea Dogs back at .500, and with Phoenix winning also, they stand at 5.5 games back. The Sea Dogs will play the rubber match against Larimer tomorrow at the XRAY.
Notes and Quotes:
GM Aaron Weiner has finally gone on record as saying that Chuck Knoblauch will almost certainly be saved from the fire sale that's gone on in Washington over the last few weeks.
"We don't think we're going to trade Knoblauch," said Weiner. "In fact, the players have really responded to his leadership in the absence of Cal Ripken. We think he's perhaps one of our three franchise players."
The other franchise players that Weiner mentioned were outfielder Don Coker and draftee Mackenzee Leefenhaufenhauz.
He did add, however, that AAA closer Dino Rigopolous might be moved for the right offer.
"We know that lots of teams around the league need solid relief pitching, and Rigopolous has been lighting them up at AAA. Despite his age, we're thinking of bringing him up very soon, but he might be dealt somewhere if somebody is willing to give up a quality starter," said Weiner.
The Sea Dogs aren't too unhappy to see the DC United move to Montreal, as it gives them the profitable Washington, D. C. area all to themselves. However, the GM did have some regrets.
"Washington, for a while, was the only place in the league where you could see both leagues come through. You could see both Gary Sheffield and Mark McGwire, Roger Clemens and Randy Johnson. It was great for baseball," said the GM. "I'm personally going to miss going over to the Bomb Shelter on days off."
Second-round pick Jack Whitehurst got lit up yesterday, giving up 5 runs on six hits and four walks in four innings in his first A-ball start, though he did strike out six.
GM Aaron Weiner was still optimistic about the youngster.
"He's used to being able to just get a guy out," said Weiner. "What he hasn't learned is that he's not playing in college anymore. He's got a really live arm, though, and if we can get his control up to par, he might be in the majors as soon as 1998 or 1999."
Written by Aaron Weiner