Milleteers Walk Off The Five Peat
Posted August 2, 2013
After a barn burner in game 1, the Holden Blue Jays and Leduc Milleteers topped it in the finale of the closest PBL final in years. On the mound tonight for the Holden Blue Jays was all star Logan Skori. Opposing him for the Milleteers was veteran chucker Steven Pahl, who going into the contest was 10-1 all time in PBL playoff games.
The Blue Jays would get on the board early as they used a one out walk and back to back hits to score one in the first. The Milleteers would answer back as CF Greg Zilkie led off with a walk and a steal before scoring on a Jon Anstey single. Another hit would setup a first and second with two outs, when Mark Walker got a clutch two out single and Anstey beat the throw at home to give the Milleteers a one run lead.
Pahl would keep the Blue Jays in check for the next three innings as he had the curve and slider working tonight as he would collect nine strikeouts. The Milleteers would threaten again in the third inning as Anstey mashed a knuckle ball that would have been a bomb in any other park in the league, but had to settle for a double. Pahl then helped his own cause with an infield single, but Skori would buckle down and get a strikeout to end the threat.
In the fourth the Milleteers looked like they would break it open after the lead off man got on with a dropped third strike. After a sac bunt and two walks the Milleteers had the bases loaded with the meat of the order coming up. Again Skori would wriggle out of it as he got a big strikeout, and an even bigger ground out to third as Colten Zeigler was a highlight reel over there for the Blue Jays all night as he took away at least three hits.
That seemed to get the Blue Jays fired up as they tied it up in the fifth after Grayson Suprovich lined a two out single, then stole second, before being singled in by LF Alan Zeigler. The Milleteers looked primed to answer back in the sixth as 1B Chad Soucy led off with a single, but the Milleteers would strand two to send it to the seventh tied.
Pahl got two strikeouts to start the seventh, but Suprovich again hit a two out single to get something going. On the first pitch he took off again for another stolen base, but catcher Brad Engel gunned him out to end the threat and setup the dramatic finish.
After Skori got Anstey to pop out to left, Steven Pahl stepped in to help his on cause as he ripped a one hopper that knee capped short stop Grayson Suprovich and Pahl rumbled into first. After a big strikeout Mark Walker would collect his second hit of the night to setup a first and second with two out. Then the Milleteers went to the bench and brought in pinch hitter Trevor Pahl with his blown out hamstring. Like Kirk Gibson thirty years before, Trevor only had about one swing left in his injured leg, and like Gibson he delivered the clutch hit with a soft liner up the middle. Steven Pahl got a great jump on the swing and was chugging as hard as he could to beat the throw, but the center fielder muffed the pick up and the Milleteers poured out of the dug out to celebrate.
This one was especially sweet as it took a total team effort and the young Blue Jays gave the Milleteers all they could handle. With two thirds of the regular starting lineup out of commission the Milleteers got contributions from everyone, and finally showed the defense that earned them the first four championships as they were flawless in the field with an error free game. After the game the cup took its annual journey to Leanne`s where the mayor of Millet looked on with pride as the boys drank out of it till the sun came up.
