Fort Wayne Wizards at Battle Creek Yankees
April 14th, 2004
| Fort Wayne |
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2 |
13 |
2 |
| Battle Creek |
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8 |
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E-Pickens, Klatt, LOB FW-13, BC-6, 2B-Wahlbrink, Pickens, Hogan, Adams, Cabrera 2, Made, HR-Andrus (Gacia/11th/solo), SB-Wahlbrink, Ramos, Adams, Cabrera, Duncan, CS-Treadway
SO-Duncan, Valenzuela, BB-Duncan
U-Tyler Funneman, Scott Jarrad
T-3:02, A-558
Ejection-Mitch Seoane (Funneman) 5th inning
Battle Creek Enquirer
Howie Magner
Battle Creek manager Mitch Seoane didn't see it. In fact, the umpire who'd earlier ejected Seoane didn't really see it. But Erold Andrus really did hit it.
Andrus ended a 1 for 19 slump with his 11th inning walk off home run Wednesday night to give Battle Creek a 3-2 win over Fort Wayne.
It capped an eventful evening, one that saw the Yankees tie things at 2 all on an eighth inning double steal and featured Seoane's first ejection at C.O. Brown Stadium after he was tossed from five road games last season.
"Wow, unbelievable, wow," Andrus said in broken english, though his smile told the story, "I swing the bat and said, "Wow, that's a home run, I feel happy and we won the game."
But Andrus' one out shot to right center field off Fort Wane's Geivy Garcia (0-1) wasn't originally ruled a home run. Though the ball cleared the outfield fence, it bounced off the wall behind that fence and came back into play, forcing Andrus to stop at second base with a apparent double.
Yankees hitting coach Bill Mosiello argued the issue with home plate ump Tyler Funneman, who fifth inning ejection of Seoane promoted Mosiello to the third base coaching box.
"I just told him that the lights are tough to see here and get some help on it." said Mosiello, who wanted to hear the opinion of first base umpire Scott Jarrad. "(Funneman) was good about it and so he did just like good umpires do. They talked amongst each other and picked it up."
Finally, a home run was signaled, and Andrus could trot home to celebrate with his teammates. Moreover, Seoane could laugh about his animated ejection with the win safely in hand.
"Obviously, i didn't see the last half of the game," said Seoane, who team improved to 3-4. "But I guess we hung in there and pitched well and wont he game."
The impetus for Seoane's exit came with the game tied at 1 all, a score reached on third inning RBI singles by Fort Wayne's Fernando Valenzuela Jr. and Battle Creek's Hector Made.
Bryce Kartler led off the fifth with a single and was still at first with two outs when Made laced a double down the third base line and into the Fort Wayne bullpen. Kartler, running with the pitch, was around third and headed home with the go ahead run when Funneman threw his hands up and called a dead ball.
The ruling, which ment Kartler had to return to third base, didn't sit well with Seoane. "The ground rules are if it goes into the bullpen and come out and is visable you play it, and the ball was visable." said Seoane, who briefly argued the call, but not enough to get tossed. "What (Funneman) said was the the ball went behind a trash can and when the player went over there, he moved (the can), and that's why the ball was visable."
Eric Duncan's subsequent strikeout stranded both runners, and while Seoane retrieved Made's batting helmet at second base, Funneman walkd halfway up the third base line. Seoane walked towards his dugout while glaring at Funneman, and as the Yankee manager reached the first base line, the two got into a minute long shouting match that prompted Seoane's ejection.
Now on the hook for a $25 fine, the Yankee manager wanted his money's worth. He charged at Funneman and went nose to nose with the umpire for two or three minutes, much to the delight of the Battle Creek fans, who had only heard second hand stories of Seoane's fiery road ejections in the previous season.
After Seoane finally left, Yankee starting pitcher Chase Wright put the finishing touches on his second straight solid performance. The left hander gave up just one earned run in 5 2/3 innings, a near repeat of his one run six inning outing in the season opener.
Steven Wiseman relieved Wright and Fort Wayne (1-5) got to him for an eighth inning run on catcher Colt Morton's two out RBI single. But the Yanks got the run back in the bottom of the frame.
Melky Cabrera's leadoff double started the rally, aand after Made bunted him to third, Duncan drew a walk. When Andrus popped out, Mosiello got tricky calling for a double steal with John Urick at the plate.
"We had our only really good runner at third base and Duncan's a smart runner at first", Mosiello said, "So we've got to make something happen. This club's not scoring too many runs."
Duncan took off for second, drawing a throw from Morton and the return throw to home plate was off target, allowing Cabrera to slide in with the tying run.
Battle Creek pitcher Paul Thorp then held the Wizards scoreless for two innings before Brandon Harmsen took over int he top of the 11th. Harmsen (2-0) survived a pair of two out hits and stranded runners at the corners when Valenzuela took a called third strike.