Martin Oil and Park Furniture played a long time at Prospect Park on Tuesday evening, yet although Martin Oil was ahead by six runs when all was said and done, neither team was able to claim a victory.
Martin Oil (11-4) jumped way out in front, leading at one time 15-2. Nobody told the Park Furniture team (5-11) the game was over however. They limited Martin Oil to just a single run in their final two at bats and came alive on offense to send 18 batters to the plate in the fifth and sixth innings to slice the lead to 16-9. Instead of running away with a mercy-rule win, Martin Oil will have some time to think about what went far wrong over the last two innings and attempt to simply escape with a win when the game is continued at a later date.
“We are very young this year, with very little experience in George B. Kelley Federation baseball,” said Martin Oil manager Ed Davis. “Our coaches have repeatedly our youngsters that in this league anytime you get a chance to put a team away, you better do it. When you don’t, they will come back to hurt you, guaranteed. We hit the ball hard the entire game and were having one of our best days on offense of the year, but we stopped and allowed Park to get back into the ballgame.
“Earnie Kelley pitched a beautiful game over the first four innings for us, but he tired a bit in the fifth. We will just have to try to get a win when we finish this game and be glad if we can.”
Martin Oil powered 17 hits, including five doubles and three triples. Brandon Beech had a walk, single and double and drove in four runs. Earnie Kelley doubled and tripled and had three RBI. Troy Brunner was a home run away from hitting for the cycle with a single, double and triple and drove in two runs and Chris Alley slammed a pair of doubles and a triple. Dustin Harris enjoyed a perfect night at the plate with two singles and two walks. Everybody in the starting lineup had at least one base hit.
Martin Oil began with two scores in the first and then added three in the second, two more in the third and eight in the fourth to jump up to a 15-2 advantage.
Kelley limited Park Furniture to two runs and four hits over the first four innings with two strikeouts and one walk, but got himself into trouble when Park led off the bottom of the fifth with two walks and two doubles, including a bases-loaded two bagger by Garrett Miller, who also drove in another tally in the sixth inning with a sacrifice fly to lead Park Furniture back to make a respectable score of the contest and make sure the decision would have to be decided on another day.
The two teams are not scheduled to play again, so the time and place for this game to be finished will have to be decided by Kelley Federation president Tom Stout.
Martin Oil continues their season today with a game against first place ReMax. The game will be played at Geesey Park and will begin at 6 p.m.
