Fans who attended Saturday night’s George B. Kelley Federation game between the Tyrone Legion and Dick’s Pharmacy witnessed 25 errors, 28 runs and 23 hits in a game that lasted more than three hours.
But for Tyrone Legion Manager Mike Boytim, only one statistic mattered once the game finally ended just after 11 p.m.
“Whether we are winning 1-0 or 20-19 against a team like Dick’s Pharmacy or a team like ReMax Realty doesn’t matter,” Boytim said. “In the end, a 16-12 victory in a game which we made nine errors still counts the same in the standings.”
The three hour marathon began with a first inning that saw Dick’s Pharmacy and the Tyrone Legion combine to commit 10 errors. Tyrone scored three in the top of the first inning, but left the bases loaded, and Dick’s responded by putting five on the board in the bottom half of the inning.
Dick’s Pharmacy notched their second five-run inning in the third to take an 11-9 lead off Tyrone hurler Brock Anders, making his first start of the season. Anders, who struck out four in his three innings of work, was a victim of shoddy defense under the lights of Vet’s Field. Only four of his 11 allowed runs were earned.
Shayne Tate and Tyler Hoover, who each had three hits Saturday night, began the fourth inning with singles and eventually scored to even the game and take Anders off the hook.
“In the bottom of the fourth inning with the game tied at 11 and Brock’s pitch count getting pretty high, we decided to try and take control of the game and went to Tyler Golden, who has been our go-to guy on the mound this year,” Boytim said. “Brock did a nice job, but unfortunately we couldn’t provide the defense behind him.”
Golden looked sharp on the mound, striking out the first two batters he faced, but three straight walks loaded the bases, and a wild pitch just before he struck out Tyler Stiffler to end the inning allowed Dick’s Pharmacy to capture a 12-11 lead.
Dick’s then turned to their stopper on the mound, Shane Gillmen, who recorded the first scoreless half-inning of the game, but Golden answered with a zero in the bottom of the frame to keep Tyrone close.
Jesse Hertzler greeted Gillmen with a triple leading off the sixth, and Anders tied the game with a RBI single to left.
“Brock had been struggling a little bit offensively, but that’s his spot right there,” Boytim said. “He is starting to earn a reputation as being a very clutch hitter.”
With emotions flaring up as the night wore on, Golden once again kept Dick’s off the scoreboard in the bottom of the sixth, and Boytim called his players in for a meeting just before the top of the seventh.
“I just told them that we had fought too long against a lot of stuff to lose this game, and that there was no way we were going to let anyone take this win from us,” Boytim said. “I asked for six or seven runs, but four were just fine.”
Tyler Gillmen began the inning by tripling, a hit that fired up both the Legion bench and the team’s supporters, who were growing restless after a long night of back-and-forth baseball.
Jamie Levinson hit a sacrifice fly that was dropped, and he reached second on the error. Tate reached on another error, and Hoover singled in a run before a failed pickoff throw landed him at third. Cory Perry brought home Hoover with a fielder’s choice ground out to put Tyrone up four.
Golden walked the leadoff batter in the bottom of the seventh, but Dick’s rally would end there as Golden struck out two batters and got another on a fly out.
Sunday, the Tyrone Legion returned to action less than 15 hours after they recorded the final out against Dick’s Pharmacy against one of the top teams in the Kelley Federation, Barkman Oil.
Tyrone jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when Golden walked in the first, went to third on a Gillmen single and scored on a Tate single.
Legion starter Jamie Levinson retired the first six Barkman Oil batters in order without letting a ball leave the infield, and Tyrone struck again in the bottom of the second inning.
With one out, Anders doubled into the left-center gap and Tyler Conrad worked a walk. A passed ball moved both runners up, and a Justin Schopp ground out scored Anders.
Barkman Oil got their first hit and run an inning later when Ryan Blough hit a swinging bunt for a single, the first of four swinging bunt singles in the game for Barkman Oil, and Jordan Hardy followed with a double to score Blough. A throwing miscue gave Hardy a chance to score, but Hoover threw him out at home plate.
Instead of sliding, Hardy tried to jar the ball loose from Anders and injured the Tyrone catcher.
“We are going to be without Brock for awhile,” Boytim said. “He’s been such an asset to this team defensively and offensively when it came to clutch hits. We can only hope he heals and we can somehow fill his void.”
Barkman Oil pitcher Nate Detwiler found the groove he used to shut down the Tyrone Legion offense in Barkman’s 10-1 win earlier this season, and held Tyrone scoreless over the next three innings.
Meanwhile, Barkman scored three runs in the fourth with two swinging bunts and a pop up that fell for a double. After manufacturing a run with a infield single, stolen base, bunt and sacrifice fly in the fifth inning, Barkman Oil led 5-2.
Tyrone scored their final run in the sixth to cut the lead to 5-3 on a Hertzler sacrifice fly, but Barkman Oil finally got to Levinson in the seventh, scoring three more to make the final 8-3.
“For most of the day Barkman hit these little bouncers right in front of the plate for singles, and we crushed the ball into double plays or right at people,” Boytim said. “Barkman Oil is a very good team, but we are definitely in their class. We just didn’t get anything to go our way today, and that’s just how baseball works sometimes.”
Tyrone will head to Mansion Park short-handed Monday, playing their fourth game in as many days as they attempt to complete a season sweep of 8-1 ReMax Realty. The first pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Tyrone Legion 16 Dick’s Pharmacy 12
TYRONE LEGION – Schopp, cf, 4-3-2; Golden, ss-p, 6-2-1; Gillmen, lf, 4-1-1; Levinson, c-ss, 4-2-1; Tate, 2b, 5-4-3; Hoover, 1b, 4-2-3; Hertzler, 3b, 5-1-2; Anders, p-c, 4-0-1; Perry, rf, 5-1-1. TOTALS 41-16-15.
DICK’S PHARMACY – Rudy, 2b, 3-3-2; Harkins, p-cf, 4-2-2; Stiffler, ss, 4-2-1; McMillen, 3b, 4-1-1; Gillmen, cf-p, 5-1-1; McCaulley, c, 3-1-0; Yon, dh, 4-0-1; Barnes, 1b, 0-0-0; Baskin, rf, 2-0-0; Riggleman, rf, 2-0-0; Kutruff, lf, 2-2-0. TOTALS 33-12-8.
Tyrone Legion 342 201 4 16-15-9
Dick’s Pharmacy 515 100 0 12-8-15
3B: Harkins, Hertzler, T. Gillmen
RBI: Harkins 3, Stiffler, McMillen, S. Gillmen, McCaulley, Hoover 3, Golden 2, Schopp, Levinson, Anders, Perry.
SO: Golden 9, Anders 4, S. Gillmen 3.
BB: Golden 5, Anders 3, Harkins 1, S. Gillmen 1.
WP: Golden LP: S. Gillmen
Barkman Oil 8 Tyrone Legion 3
BARKMAN OIL – Dick, 2b, 3-2-1; Snowberger, ss, 3-1-1; Johnson, c, 3-2-2; Detwiler, p, 3-0-1; A. Blough, cr, 0-1-0; Nash, 1b, 4-1-1; Greenleaf, lf, 4-0-3; Stiffey, cf, 2-0-0; R. Blough, rf, 2-1-1; Brumbaugh, ph, 1-0-0; Hardy, 3b, 2-0-1; Hill, ph, 1-0-0. TOTALS 28-8-11.
TYRONE LEGION – Schopp, cf-c, 4-0-2; Golden, ss, 3-1-0; Gillmen, lf-cf, 2-0-1; Levinson, p, 3-0-0; Tate, 2b, 3-1-2; Hoover, 1b, 3-0-0; Hertzler, 3b, 2-0-0; Anders, c, 1-1-1; Rodland, rf, 2-0-0; T. Conrad, rf-lf, 1-0-0; Oswalt, ph, 1-0-0. TOTALS 25-3-6.
Barkman Oil 001 310 3 8-11-2
Tyrone Legion 110 001 0 3- 6-1
3B: Johnson
2B: Nash, Greenleaf, Hardy, Anders
RBI: Johnson, Detwiler, Greenleaf, Hardy, Tate, Schopp, Hertzler
SO: Detwiler 8, Levinson 6.
BB: Detwiler 3, Levinson 3.
WP: Detwiler LP: Levinson
