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Falcons Sweep to lift Scottish Cup
September 30, 2007 --
Report to follow soon.
Check out the awesome photographs from the day at;
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/Strathclyde.Falcons
Many thanks to Glasgow Baseball Association for hosting the tournament.
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Falcons Triumph in Tollcross Thriller
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July 22, 2007 --
Strathclyde Falcons 8 - Glasgow Baseball Association 6
..............1......2......3......4......5......6......7......8.......9...Final
Falcons..1......0......1......0......1......2......3......0......0......8
GBA......1......0......0......0......1......0......4......0......0......6
After a 5-week lay-off because of rain, internationals and call-offs from south of the border, the Falcons took to the diamond in their final league game against GBA for this season. The rain held off during the 3+ hour contest which saw a late surge by GBA held in check.
The game started well offensively for the Falcons with the first 3 men getting on base, with Ben hit by pitch, a single by Dougie moving Ben up to 3rd and an RBI single by Joe. However that ended the scoring, and GBA replied to level the scores.
The second innings was scoreless as the Falcons failed to capitalize on a single by Roy and walks for Colin and Ben. With bases loaded and 2-out, Dougie’s hopes of a grand-slam were dashed. GBA were held with a pick-off at first and 2 ground-outs.
Drama followed in the 3rd with a Falcons score. Joe doubled, Julian popped out to short stop, and Joe stole 3rd as Karl was walked. With men on 1st and 3rd, Slade was out and Karl evaded a tag long enough for Joe to come home and score. 2-1 Falcons.
The fourth saw Roy out on a huge hit, caught at left-field, Tony walked, then hits by Colin (T forced out at 2nd) and Ben. Despite some base stealing, the Falcons again couldn’t turn bases into runs. Ben closed off the fourth with three strikeouts. Both teams scored in the 5th with Julian walked, then making 3rd on Karl’s single, and stealing home on a wild pitch to Slade. GBA answered to keep the game tight.
The offense moved up a gear in the 6th and 7th. Ben showed the target on his back and was hit-by-pitch again, stole second then home. Dougie walked and then was tagged out at home plate as he tried to score on Joe’s hit to outfield. Julian brought Joe home from second. With Ben taking 3 more strikeouts, to hold GBA, the seventh brought tension back to the game.
Slade singled, then Roy was walked. John (in for Tony who had a quiet day) grounded to short-stop, Roy was forced out but John made it to first. Colin sent the ball to short-stop again, but a bobble saw Slade come home on the error with John and Colin safe. With Ben up, John and Colin moved to 2nd and 3rd on a wild pitch. Ben struck out and Dougie brought John and Colin home on a single. The lead was a comfortable 8-2 entering the bottom of the seventh.
However, 4 runs by GBA shifted the momentum and set up the tense final two innings. The Falcons were out quickly and the first GBA batsman was walked. Ben settled in again, taking the next 2 batters on strikeouts. The innings ended with a fly-out to Julian.
The ninth. John popped out to short-stop, Colin and Ben walked, and Dougie was out on a fly ball to centre-field. With Joe at bat, Colin & Ben advanced on a wild pitch. But with two men in scoring position, a ground ball to short-stop was well thrown to first to hold the innings scoreless.
Ben stepped up to the mound. 2 strikeouts settled his nerve but he hit the next batter and the game tying player came to the plate. Ben pitched, GBA attempted to steal, and Karl threw to second for a tight run out. The game was over; Falcons win 8-6.
Although they have swept GBA 4-0 this season (6-5, 7-4, 15-1, 8-6), 3 of the 4 games have been close, and the series could have been very different. With a record of 9-2, play returns to Linwood, with games against the Eagles and Devils. At time of going to press, we await the Edinburgh derby score.
In all the end-of-game excitement, Dougie forgot to hand out the forms for MVP and “Play of the Day” votes. Ben must be strong in the running for MVP with at least 13 strikeouts and an excellent catch of a line drive up the middle and a stop and out with a throw to first. Watch the website for info.
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Falcons Extinguish Devils Fire
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August 5, 2007 --
Edinburgh Devils 14 - Strathclyde Falcons 21
.............1......2......3......4......5.......6......7...Final
Devils....0......2......3......4......0......5......0......14
Falcons..4......1......2......6......2......6......x......21
A game like this you won’t see in the States. Major League Baseball stops for the rain. Not the Scottish National League. The league leading Edinburgh Devils (10-0) travelled to Linwood on Sunday to take on their nearest rivals, the Strathclyde Falcons (9-2). With a double-header to be played and only a month left in the regular season, this was their chance to effectively tie up the league. Rain limited play to a single game, but a gutsy win by the Falcons kept the title race open.
Starting pitchers and Scotland team-mates Jason Derr (Devils) and Dougie “The Bull” Robertson (Falcons) last met in May in a low-scoring 5-2 win for the Devils. The rain played a major part in proceedings with both struggling to find the strike-zone as the game went on.
The Falcons took a 4-0 lead in the first, but the Devils ground their way back outscoring the Falcons in each of the next two innings. At 7-5 for the Falcons, entering the fourth, the weather conditions really started to take their toll. Base running had been difficult from the start, and sliding into base unpalatable. The rain-soaked baseballs were heavy and difficult to grip; control was difficult and curveballs near impossible. Catchers had a raw deal as wild pitches grounding in the mire threw mud up into their faces. The strike zone was elusive and combining walks, steals and fielding errors, the Devils took the lead for the first time going ahead 9-7.
But Derr suffered the same problems as “the Bull” and the Falcons offence replied with a tidal wave of 6 runs to go ahead once more. A change of balls in the fifth inning brought the scoring back down again; the Devils scoreless and the Falcons adding 2 more to take a 15-7 lead.
Ben Williams took over on the mound for the sixth innings, with Robertson moving to third base. After a sterling performance against the Glasgow Baseball Association two weeks ago, he struggled for control in the wet. Edinburgh was on the rampage once more, eating away at the Falcons lead. Heroic efforts in the field literally felled one Devil – stealing for home on a wild pitch, Williams tagged him out sliding in through the mud, both luckily avoiding serious injury. With 2-out in the sixth, and their lead sinking in the mud, the Falcons brought back Robertson, now renamed the “Rainmeister” to finish off their innings.
As the rainfall became heavier, the Falcons took up the offence once more, feeling more like a losing team, with a slender 1-run lead. Ben Williams took to the plate fired up and angry and straightway fired off a base hit. The rest of the offence followed suit, ploughing out another 6-runs.
In the unpredictable conditions, even with a seven run lead could not be considered comfortable as the Falcons took to the diamond on defence for the final innings. Robertson, however, shut down the Devils with ending the game with a strikeout, inflicting on them their first defeat of the season.
The Falcons climb to 10-2, only half a game behind the Devils. A tantalizing, and crowded, fixture list remains for the final weeks of the season, with home and away ties against the Edinburgh Eagles and the second Devils game from Sunday to be rescheduled.
Can the Falcons swoop for the league title at the season’s close?
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