NALB 2009 World Championship Series

K. Fields
2010-10-30T12:40:12-04:00
Baseball

2009 World Championship Series - Nashville Firecats (84-78) vs. Phoenix Rattlers (85-77)

Game 1: Nashville 5, Phoenix 2
Game 2: Nashville 12, Phoenix 5
Game 3: Nashville 9, Phoenix 2
Game 4: Phoenix 16, Nashville 3
Game 5: Phoenix 7, Nashville 3
Game 6: Nashville 8, Phoenix 5

The Firecats and Rattlers overcame the odds to play for the NALB World Championship. Both teams were down three games to one in their respective League Series before rallying to win. Although potent offensively, these two teams were among the league’s worst fielding clubs.

Game 1: Terrance Steinman (16-9, 2.72 ERA) vs. Rey Wilkins (17-9, 3.51 ERA). Both starters pitched six innings and gave up only two runs. Steinman helped his own cause by hitting a double and scoring a run. In the top of the seventh inning, Charles Difranco put the Firecats ahead with a two-run homer. The Firecats added another run in the eighth when Atlee Deleon was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Nashville played a surprisingly strong defensive game and turned four double plays.

Game 2: Robert Givens (13-7, 5.78 ERA) vs. Cipri Henriquez (9-6, 3.53 ERA). The Firecats showed their muscle with a 17-hit assault on Rattlers’ pitching, led by Paul Lyons’ four hits. Gene Noke and Paul Lyons went deep. Nashvile’s Givens pitched into the seventh and gave up three runs, one of them unearned. With a 12-3 lead in the ninth, the Firecats gave up two more runs but it hardly mattered.

Game 3: Simon Sanchez (5-8, 5.49 ERA) vs. Francisco Rodil (10-10, 4.22 ERA). Back home in Nashville, the Firecats felt comfortable with a 2-0 series lead and the designated hitter back in play. Rodil gave them a fine five innings, with seven strikeouts and only one run surrendered. Phoenix got on the board first but Nashville came right back with a five-run burst to take a 5-1 first inning lead. The home runs kept coming for the Firecats, as Paul Lyons and Clay Robson both hit balls out of the park.

Game 4: Rey Wilkins (17-9, 3.51 ERA) vs. Buddy Lake (12-15, 5.81 ERA). Winless after three games, the Rattlers were desperate for a win. Facing a hostile Nashville crowd, they turned to their game one starter, Rey Wilkins. With their backs to the wall, Phoenix needed a breakthrough game and they got one. Wilkins frustrated Nashville’s hitters while the Rattlers destroyed Firecats’ pitching. They scored six runs in the first, two runs in the second, and another two runs in the third. Despite leaving 14 men on base, the Rattlers scored 16 runs on 18 hits. Josh Martinez led the charge for Phoenix with three hits, including a three-run home run. The game was a disaster for the Firecats. They committed six errors, three of them by first baseman Paul Lyons. Phoenix’s decisive win came with a price, however. Their star shortstop, Steamboat Schultz, fractured a rib while sliding head-first into third base.

Game 5: Don Jordan (15-8, 3.31 ERA) vs. Terrance Steinman (16-9, 2.72 ERA). Nashville hoped to wrap up the series at home behind their staff ace. It was not to be, however. The Rattlers clung to a 1-0 lead after six innings. Nashville went to its bullpen in the sixth but things only got worse. Phoenix had several hits, including a triple by Josh Martinez, to highlight a three-run sixth inning. The Rattlers went up 5-0 when Chuck Yeabsley hit a solo home run to right field in the seventh inning. The Nashville crowd came alive in the bottom of the eighth when Paul Lyons delivered once again, this time with a three-run homer. Unfortunately for the Firecats, their hopes were dashed as the Rattlers scored twice in the ninth. Josh Martinez hit his second triple of the game to seal a 7-3 win and send the series back to Phoenix.

Game 6: Robert Givens (13-7, 5.78 ERA) vs. Cipri Henriquez (9-6, 3.53 ERA). The pitching duel was a rematch between the game two starters. Phoenix got a disappointing performance from Henriquez. Lasting only three innings, he gave up two runs in the first, one run in the second, and a run in the third. Nashville’s 4-0 lead came by way of home runs by Charles Difranco and Gene Noke. Givens faltered in the bottom of the fifth. He hit a batter, walked two, and gave up three hits. The energy in the stadium was electric as the Rattlers evened the score, 4-4. Gene Noke’s RBI double in the seventh had the potential to be the game winner. However, Wayne Flanagan scored on a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the eighth. Neither team was able to win in regulation, so the game went into extra innings tied at five runs apiece. The Firecats won the game in the 11th inning. Just as they had throughout the playoffs, they used their power to deliver the win. Atlee Deleon hit a two-run homer and Charles Difranco hit a solo shot. Jack Smith closed out the 8-5 win to give the Firecats their first NALB World Championship!