Okay, Tom has posted a couple games from the FLCS, so I might as well do the same for the CLCS. December baseball, feel the excitement!
Shiner is trying to return to the WS and avenge their brutal 7-game loss to the universally hated Santa Fe Scum, while Harmony Grove is trying to avenge last year's CLCS loss to Shiner. Both teams are still seeking their first ARBA championships.
Harmony Grove finished at 113-49 to earn home field advantage over Shiner, which was merely 107-55. Shiner went 7 games in their division series against the pesky New Monmouth Mosstroopers, whereas Harmony Grove needed only 6 games to dispatch Wadsworth.
Game 1: Dickey vs. Lohse. Both teams led off the 1st with a double, but only HAR managed to score. SHI rallied to tie in the 4th and added 2 more in the 5th, but squandered several excellent chances to blow the game open. Dickey's knuckeball was dancing, but HAR cut it to 3-2 in the 6th and then $39 million man Shane Victorino popped one into the seats to tie the game in the 7th. In the bottom of the 9th, HAR loaded the bases with help from a defensive flail, but failed to score. Extra innings! The 10th was quick, but SHI found the softer part of the HAR bullpen in the 11th. With 2 runners on, Willingham crushed a 3-run homer and SHI led 6-3. However, they still needed to close it out. Beltre hit a solo shot to make it 6-4, but Axford got the final out.
Game 2: Ogando vs. Kuroda. Neither team scored until the 4th, when SHI ended their inning with Pujols getting thrown out at home and Beltre continued his hot hitting with an RBI single. SHI responded with a 2-out rally in the 5th to tie, but Beltre came through again to make it 2-1 HAR in the 6th. Then the 7th inning happened. With 1 out, Young lifted a deep fly ball that looked playable for Victorino. He leaped at the wall and seemed to have it, but no! It went off his glove and into the seats to tie the game. After the 2nd out, SHI put a pair of runners on base and Pujols faced Mike Adams. BOOM! Just like that, SHI led 5-2, thanks to the wildly improbable Young HR. SHI added a couple insurance runs in the 9th and Lee hit a 2-run HR for HAR, but O'Flaherty closed out the 7-4 SHI win.
So much for home-field advantage! We'll see if Shiner can keep the momentum rolling back at their place. The Harmony Grove offense will get a boost from Hamilton, returning from a CLDS injury. I should feel pretty good about Shiner's chances at this point, but I've suffered way too many excruciating playoff losses over many years. We're scheduled to resume and hopefully wrap it up tonight. Stay tuned...
