Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

Friday evening the Tyrone Legion took on Park Furniture in a make up game from Tuesday\’s rain out, but apparently no one told Park Furniture\’s pitching staff to show up as the Legion smashed 18 hits for 15 runs in a 15-5 romp.
Thadd Westley, making his Kelly Federation debut with only eight games remaining, went 3-3 with two doubles, three runs batted in, and scored three runs in his first baseball game in three years.
“He did awesome. It\’s good to see him back playing again, and for him to play well is just a bonus,” said head coach John Gummo about Westley.
Park Furniture took an early lead in the top of the first when Legion hurler Barry Gummo hit Ken Brazile with a pitch and Zac Apple doubled him in.
Park Furniture pitcher Garrett Miller got the first two outs in the bottom of the first, but then fell victim to a two out rally that saw nine straight batters reach base. Clint Wilson doubled, and Derrick Soellner walked before Jason Wilson brought both runners home with a double of his own. Tyler Rickards singled in Wilson, and after a Shane Gherrity single, Tyler Hoover brought home Rickards with a bloop single.
That brought up Westley who ripped a double into the right center gap that scored Gherrity and Hoover in his first at bat in three years. Barry Gummo capped off the seven run inning with a single to score Westley.
Gummo struck out the side for Tyrone in the second, and Park Furniture committed two errors in the bottom half of the frame to give the Legion two more runs.
Hoover helped Gummo have an easy third inning by making two great plays at third base to rob Brazile and Miller of singles.
Westley got things going again for the Legion offense in bottom half of the inning with a double to deep center. He scored on a Clint Wilson double, and Wilson came home on a Soellner single.
Leading 11-1, coach Gummo decided to take Barry Gummo off the mound to make him available in Sunday\’s game against Locker Room.
Gherrity came on in relief and did much better than he had in his previous appearance. He struck out two batters and walked four, allowing a run, but got out of the jam by getting Brazile to line out.
The bottom of the fourth featured three straight singles by Gherrity, Hoover and Westley to start the inning. Westley\’s scored Gherrity, and Westley scored on a Ben Gummo sacrifice fly. Tyrone got another run when Clint Wilson\’s pop up was dropped, allowing Barry Gummo to score.
Down 14-2 in the fifth inning, Park Furniture needed to score three runs to stay alive and did just that. Miller singled to start the rally, but was erased on a Travis Gibbons fielder\’s choice. Gibbons moved to second after an Apple walk, and a Chris Sweeney free pass loaded the bases. Gherrity struck out Blake Bauer, but a wild pitch allowed one run to score. An error on a fly ball allowed Apple and Sweeney to score before Gherrity got Craig Hamilton to pop out.
“It was great that Shane was able to get through those two innings, because we didn\’t have anyone available to pitch for Sunday,” said Gummo.
Despite the rally, Park Furniture couldn\’t keep the game going for long. An error allowed Rickards to reach, and Gherrity moved him to second on a single. Hoover singled to center field and Rickards came home to seal the victory for the Legion.
“We are hitting the ball much better, but they did have a different pitcher on the mound,” said Gummo commenting on the Legion\’s 18 hits after collecting only four in a previous victory over Park Furniture.
Tyrone will travel to Martinsburg Saturday to take on Barkman Oil at 5:00 PM.
Legion Notes: The Legion\’s impressive hitting performance pushed their team batting average to .301, up from .280… Every Tyrone starter had at least one hit and one RBI… Barry Gummo improved to 7-0, and his ERA actually went up to 0.89 when he allowed one run in three innings.
Tyrone Legion 15 Park Furniture 5 (5 Innings)
PARK FURNITURE – Brazile, ss-p, 2-1-0; Miller, p-3b, 3-0-1; Gibbons, lf-1b, 3-1-0; Apple, rf, 2-1-1; Sweeney, 3b-ss, 0-2-0; Bauer, c, 2-0-0; Nebelski, 1b-lf, 3-0-0; Mercer, 2b, 2-0-1; Hamilton, cf, 2-0-0. TOTALS 19-5-3.
TYRONE LEGION – Ba. Gummo, p-cf, 4-1-1; Be. Gummo, ss, 3-0-1; C. Wilson, 1b, 4-2-2; Soellner, c, 3-2-2; Morrissey, cr, 0-0-0; J. Wilson, cf-rf, 3-2-2; Rickards, lf, 4-2-1; Gherrity, rf-p, 3-2-3; Hoover, 3b, 4-1-3; Westley, 2b, 3-3-3. TOTALS 31-15-18.
Park Furniture 100 13X X 5-3-6.
Tyrone Legion 722 31X X 15-18-2.

By Rick