Div 4 Black Match Reports 09/10

Round 13 (Jan 17 10) Chelsea 20 – St Kilda 19
We showed we can compete with the best…
There will always be a 1 in the loss column for this game, as there is for the last time these teams met. But even though the result was the same, the performance of the St Kilda Black team couldn’t be more different. The top team in the league was hosting us at Edith Vale reserve and the memory of the 13-0 drubbing Chelsea gave us in November was at the front of our minds as we warmed up in the 38-degree heat with a hairdryer wind. There were a few team changes from that sad November day, with Ben Roberts and Brett Renton gracing us with their presence from the fourths, and thirds pitcher Ben Muldoon continuing his comeback on the mound for us. Muldoon had a heavy head from a big night with a Tequila ending at Andy Zs birthday bash, but he was confident it wouldn’t effect his pitching. And it didn’t, as we got the first two batters out quickly in the bottom of the first, and we looked like going into the second inning with a 3-0 lead.  The final out however was hard to come by, and the middle of the Chelsea order – who have dominated pitchers all year – started to knock the ball around the park. They put on six runs which was a recurring theme for the rest of the game, as the Blacks gave away too many unearned runs from heat-effected errors in the field.
Two of these errors deserve a special mention as they enabled one of the Chelsea hitters - rumoured to be in his 70s – to score a lung-busting infield home run. The hit to left field looked like being a double, but Dean Teniswoods throw with the runner struggling to get to second base, went through to right field. The right fielder was very deep because of the strong winds, so second baseman Brett Renton had to get back to field the ball and sent it home to try and get the out. The Chelsea first baseman slid into home plate and emerged from the cloud of red dust with a well-deserved run.
The main difference from November though was heads never dropped during the energy sapping sun-drenched game, and we entered the final inning at 2.50pm 18-11 down. The team had a real belief however, and the talk in the dugout was, ‘we’ve come back before, we can do this again‘, and we did. We took the lead with everyone hitting the ball in whopping a nine run inning. It could’ve been more - but the combined error of the Welsh prop forward player manager trying to get home from second base, and the naive third base coach Brett Renton sending him to a certain out at home plate – meant we went in to the final inning defending a one run lead. Scott Meltzer took over from Ben ‘tequila head’ Muldoon, and it was big ask against the top of the league opposition. They scored two runs to win what was an exhausting, but very exciting game. A special mention should go to the endeavours of Ben Muldoon and Matt White who worked tirelessly pitching and catching on a very hot day on the diamond.

Round 13 (Jan 17 10) St Kilda Black 18 Melton Mustangs 1
 The first Melton batter scored at it looked like being a long day for the St Kilda Black team in their first game after the Christmas break. Ben Muldoon was pitching for St Kilda, in his long awaited return to the Mound, and it looked like it was going to take more than WD40 to get rid of the rust. The Blacks replied to Melton’s first inning run with a few of their own. The ever reliable Ben Tan, Scott Meltzer and Ben Muldoon scoring to create a first inning lead of 3-1. After sculling the WD40, Muldoon really started to find the zone. He dominated the Melton batters for the rest of the game, giving up one hit and a walk in total. In that time The Blacks batters just got better and better, everyone scored a run and most got RBIs, finishing with a nine run inning to make the final score 18-1. The team were buoyant at the end, and although a few players are away next Sunday, they still believe they can win the second derby game of the season v St Kilda Reds...

Round 10 (Dec 06 09)
St Kilda 7, Cheltenham 2

As easy as A,B,Sea...1,2,3
The St Kilda Black team returned to the opening game venue of the season to play Cheltenham again.
There was a few changes to the team, with the Reds playing on the Saturday, and Sea Ainsley dropping down from the thirds outfield for some pitching practice.
The first inning started well as the first five batters got on base. Lead off Sea Ainsely, short stop Ben Tan and rookie Dean Teniswood all scored, as Josh Kerr and Neil Bennett were left on base. Cheltenham replied with a run of their own, but Sea's pitching was starting to become the dominant force in the game.
He had definitely warmed up for the second inning, and through seven consecutive strikes, a ball, and two more strikes, for a three up three down inning with three Ks to his name.
The hitting kept ticking over and some sharp base running meant the St Kilda team took a 6-1 lead into the bottom of what became a remarkable fourth inning.
Sea had his first pitch hit to left field for a single. The second pitch was hit straight to him, and he quickly threw the ball to first for a double play. That was two out, off two pitches, surely the next batter was going to be patient at the plate. No, was the answer, as he hoisted the pitchers third pitch of the inning into the air to be caught by Sea himself. Three batters came up, three pitches were thrown, and three outs were registered. The manager asked him not to 'hog the outs', as they hustled off the field to start the fifth inning.
The score was 7-2 going in to the sixth inning and the Black team found there batting mojo again, as Peter McCourt, Al Meyer and Stephen Carter all scored. Crackers Carlyon was the first out of the inning, and the umpire called a merciful time and game.
These runs didn't count in the end, so the final score remained at 7-2. It was a great win for the St Kilda Black team, but more importantly the team only had a couple of errors in the field, and proved they could support a good pitcher on the mound.

Round 7 (Nov 15 09)
St Kilda 6, Blackburn B 12

Made in Taiwan...
The St Kilda Black team was up for the challenge against Blackburn B, seeking to improve after last week’s disappointing effort versus Chelsea. They arrived in Billabong Park with a spring in their step - and the recent memory of a win on the same ground  - gave them real hope of an improved performance. Blackburn B is the official name of Ripken's (from Ausball Sports Equipment) tenacious Taiwanese team, who looked very focused and well-drilled in the warm up, it was clear why they had seven wins from seven starts this season. This however didn't put off the first two batters for St Kilda, who got on base, and were then brought home with a mighty hit out of the park from the Blacks third baseman Scott Meltzer. It was a great start from the top of the order and showed the Taiwan terrors that St Kilda were there to play ball. Player Manager Neil Bennett replied on the mound for the Blacks - and after hitting the first batter with his fourth pitch - he then struck out the next three. The teams traded scores over the next couple of innings and the game was tied at 6-6, with all St Kilda's runs coming from the top of the order, Ben Tan, Dean Teniswood and Scotty 'boom boom' Meltzer. Blackburn got ahead in the fourth inning, and then the Blacks from the Bay got two quick outs, with a pick-off at third and another K from the recently married pitcher. With one more out to get and Blackburn only up by a run confidence was high on the field in the Blacks team. Then the old Welsh arm started to wilt. A couple more Taiwan batters got hit by non curving curve balls, and some great hitting from the big guns at the top of the Blackburn order saw the game slip away from the Blacks. The inning ended at 12-6 to the home team, and their relief pitcher through harder and faster than anything St Kilda had seen for a few weeks, closing them down without reply. The umpire called 'time and game', and the records will always show loss to the St Kilda Black team for Sunday. But that doesn't tell the whole story - the future definitely looks bright for this group of players - they have proven they can compete with the best in the league, but more importantly they bounced back from a demoralizing loss the previous week. The great American football coach Vince Lombardi once said, "Winning isn't everything, but the will to win is the only thing", and that's what St Kilda showed on Sunday.

Round 6 (Nov 8 09)

Baseball players, Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun. It was a tough day at the office for St Kilda Black on Sunday. The signs weren't good from 11am, when erecting the new fence bamboozled most of the team. This was only solved when Ben Muldoon arrived as our saviour to assist us. The visitors from Chelsea were 5 for 5 in the win column, and they were always going to be a difficult challenge. The legendary Geoff Leonard started on the mound for St Kilda -  a real treat - and he threw a great variety of his off speed pitches.He simply wasn't supported, the defense made many errors and allowed Chelsea to supplement their lead every inning. The errors weren't made behind home plate though, where catcher Al Meyer had a storming game. Unfortunately the Albert Park heat seemed to effect the Blacks much more than their opponents, and the offense wasn't as productive as it had been in previous weeks. The St Kilda heads dropped, the errors, the lack of hitting, and the hot Spring day added up to a demoralising couple of hours. It was 0-6 after three innings, and the length of time in the field was definitely sapping the players of any inspiration. The coach always asks for the team to above all else, enjoy the game, and even this was difficult for most on Sunday.  The final score was 0-13, and heads remained low as the field was raked and everything was put away.  The new fence was rolled up, still not breached, and maybe not worth the hassle next time


Round 5 (Nov 1 09)

St.Kilda Black 24, St Kilda Red 10

Last Sunday the Division 4 Derby made its return, but this time both teams were playing for premiership points, as opposed to bragging rights and Luke Richard’s notorious “B-Tard Cup”. In the absence of manager, Neil Bennett, Craig O’Hare has done a stellar job in being the Div 4 Black interim manager. An excellent pep talk from Craig before the game had everyone focused for the game. And it was very pleasing that everyone responded to Craig’s words of wisdom and contributed well both with the bat and with their gloves in the field. Scott Meltzer pitched his best game thus far. He was consistent in finding the zone and showed some command when towing the rubber. Scott was also given the honour of pitching to club legend, Tom O’Halloran, who pinch hit late in the game for his annual 10 year AB. It was terrific to see good ol’ Tommy connect with Scott’s first pitch and put one into play. Al Meyer was the relief pitcher for Scott for his second pitching appearance. This time Al seemed more composed on the hill than last week and didn’t commit any balks. Not having “the balk calling machine” and Jonny Sagorin’s level headed umpiring seemed to help his situation a lot more. Also, Stephen Carter is starting to play a pivotal role for the team as a catcher. He was very solid for both Scott and Al’s pitching. And Stephen’s hitting is proving to be a strong part of his game as well. One of the highlights of the game was his great hustling three-bagger. Who said catchers can’t run! After only having 8 players on the field last week at Melton, we were blessed with having 10 fully fit men. The return of Dean Tenniswood and a couple of new inclusions to the team, Duncan van der Mijl and Josh Kerr, really helped strengthen the team. Ben Tan is also proving to be an excellent lead off hitter and is continuing to show promise at short stop. But a sound performance and a much needed win has helped put St.Kilda Black’s season back on track.

Round 4 (Oct 25 09)

St Kilda 11, Melton 13

By the time we arrived in Melton, the winds picked up, the skies darkened and there wasn't a tram in sight. We were well outside of Zone 1.

Ben Tan led us off with a walk, followed by a walk to Sean Condon. Scott Meltzer was put out at first but with loaded bases, the Saints crossed the plate and got on the board. Condon and Stephen Carter came home on a hit to centre field by Al Meyer. A strike out by Ross and a ridiculously non-strategic walk by Josh Kinal meant that our ninth player, Eliyahu HaNovi, was up. An automatic out finished the first. We held our lead with a strong defensive first, with Melton leaving two on base and scoreless. By the middle of the second inning, StK Black was up 8 to nothing, The bottom of the second was our undoing. After a walk, a double, a strike out and a single, Scott Meltzer was replaced by Al Meyer - his debut on the mound. While Meyer's pitching was an impressive start to what will be a great pitching career, it was marred by an overly eager professional umpire calling baulks for crimes as heinous as breathing. No amount of "it's his first time" or "hey, pal, this is division 4" could encourage the ump to ease up on his calls. Two baulks in a row helped Melton raise their score to 7. Two strike outs by Condon and Stephen Carter felt like an awkward start to the third but an error going Meltzer's way followed by a hit each from Al Meyer, Craig O'Hare and Ross Dougall and 3 more runs were added to our total. But the baulk-eager umpire wielded his melodrama again at the bottom of the third. Meyer's honed curve ball was no match for the umpire's baulk-calling machine. Six more runs scored putting Melton ahead by two. Meyer ended the inning earning his first ever K. Starting the fourth with one out, thanks to Elijah the Prophet, Ben Tan struck out when Melton brought on their closer whose pitches came fast and scary. Condon up next swung at an inside pitch with the ball hitting him on the hand. Only two strikes in, Condon had to retire, hurt, making our third out.

A loss by two runs with only 8 players, we were glad to see the skyline coming up over to the right side of the Westgate.