The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Interleague play continues
It had the makings of a blow-out of epic proportions Monday night as Mountain Fireplace Specialists of Gunnison traveled to Crested Butte (Specialists player Brian St. George by bike) to face Nuts & Honeys at Tommy V Field.
Mountain Fireplace was a few players short and at the expansive Tommy V Field, that can be disastrous. Fortunately, they managed to pick up a couple right before the game but still were missing one player in the field.
Adding to the potential for pummelage, Nuts & Honeys are the highest scoring team in the league with every single batter possessing the potential for extra base power.
The game opened as expected, with Nuts & Honeys scoring six runs in the bottom of the first inning. Daniel Hargrove singled and scored on a base hit by Ashley Chahine. Mike Stanley followed up by exploiting the acreage in the outfield with a two-run inside-the-park home run (ITPHR) and doubles from Rask Dietrich and Rick Barnard pushed a Nut and a Honey home for a 6-0 lead.
At this point, it was looking to turn ugly as Mountain Fireplace was held scoreless once again and the top of the order stepping up to hit for the Nuts & Honeys.
Hargrove stepped up to the plate with all the intention of the world of slapping a base hit to the gap in right center. Unfortunately, his swing came through a bit early and Fran Wilson was in place to make a leaping grab in center. Chahine turned a single into an error-assisted triple and scored on a sac fly RBI by Stanley.
A series of hits then loaded the bases for Barnard and Nuts & Honeys were positioned to blow the game wide open.
But St. George took a hot grounder off his pec to keep the ball in front of him, allowing one run and Mountain Fireplace turned the next out to hold off the onslaught.
Mountain Fireplace had the top of their order in place to open a third inning rally but their bats remained surprisingly silent. About the only offense to that point in the game came from Bo Thomsen in his cameo performance and Abby Harris, who is notoriously solid at the plate.
The drought even had Wilson wondering if the team made the right call showing up for the game.
“I think we should have just drank beer at Alpenglow,” said Wilson as the team took the field in the bottom of the fourth.
But Mountain Fireplace hung in there, retiring the side and finally scored when Wilson caught the Nuts & Honeys outfield playing in and drove the ball to the fence for a solo ITPHR.
The top of the fifth inning proved even more fruitful for the Mountain Fireplace offense and the team was one hit away, and one amazing grab by Hargrove, from the beginnings of a comeback.
St. George doubled with Harris on deck. Harris drove another line drive to left field bound for extra bases but this time Hargrove was ready, stretching as high as he could off the deck to make the grab and come down on his side with the ball.
Mike Neustedter reignited the Mountain Fireplace flame with a RBI double off the handle and scored on a single by Tesse Maciejko to pull within five, and when Wilson singled, the ingredients were in place for a two-out rally.
But Nuts & Honeys had seen enough and shut down the next hitter for the third out and responded in the bottom of the fifth inning, scoring four more runs.
Barnard connected for a RBI triple to right center and Ella Fahrlander blooped a RBI single to shallow left field. Hargrove capped the surge, finding his opposite field swing for a two-run ITPHR and Nuts & Honeys were sitting on a 12-3 lead heading into the sixth inning.
Mountain Fireplace were set up for another comeback when Thomsen led off with a double and Jess Wilson cracked a line drive to center. Unaware of Stanley’s arm in centerfield, Thomsen was waved home, only to get tossed out at the plate. St. George tapped a RBI triple but the team’s stoke was dashed by the previous play and they again fell shy of a rally.
Stephanie Dietrich brought the Nuts & Honeys fan base—i.e., her family—to a feverish pitch with a double and scoring on a power bunt single by Jocelyn Wallace. Barnard pushed a Honey home with another base hit, capping the 14-5 Nuts & Honeys win.
Mountain Fireplace would go on to avenge the loss in their second game that night, as they crushed the Wine-O’s 24-8.
