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Welcome to the home of the
Savage Outlaws
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Late Valley Rally Nearly Ruins Gem by Engberg
Outlaws Defeat Cannon Falls in Rain-Shortened Game
Wallace Ends Outlaws Mastery of Blacksox
by 'Nuts' Hanglo
It was the end of a long weekend chalked full of baseball for both Rosemount and Savage on Sunday night. For the first time in quite a while the always fiery series, the Blacksox were able to leave the park victorious. The win ended Savage’s win streak over Rosemount that did sit somewhere around ten games.
Savage struck first in the third inning. Singles by Zack King and Tony Peterson put runners on the corners. With Peterson attempting a steal of second, King raced home to score while Peterson remained in a run down just long enough to plate the run. Rosemount would come back and score single runs in the top of four and five off of starter Brandon Walczak to take a 2-1 lead. In the seventh, a couple hits led to Walczak’s exit and Rosemount was able to take advantage of a few wild pitches and some timely hits to go ahead 4-1. That was all Rosemount starter Justin Wallace would need as he pitched around a few walks but silenced the Outlaw bats in getting the complete game victory. Rosemount out-hit Savage 11-5 on the evening as they moved to 6-2 in league play and dropped Savage to 4-5. This was a rare non-section game as Savage was the home team in the previous meeting, meaning the final section seeding game between the teams will take place when Savage travels to Rosemount High School on Saturday, July 11.
The Outlaws are off until Wednesday when they begin a six game stint away from Alimagnet Park. They will face Cannon Falls in non-league action Wednesday, Apple Valley in a section game Thursday night, and travel to Cold Spring for a doubleheader Saturday afternoon. Start time Wednesday at John Burch Park in Cannon Falls is 7:30pm. Starter on the mound for Savage has yet to be determined.
Outlaws Take Two in New Ulm
by Scooby ChristaDucci
It was a day reminiscent of the Glory Days of 2001 at Burnsville High School as the pitching combination of ’01 grads Travis Peterson and Travis Pugliese led the Savage Outlaws to a two game sweep on their road trip down 169 and Hwy 14 to the New Ulm area on Saturday afternoon. The Outlaws were blessed with another beautiful day for baseball and both starting pitchers made the best of it. In victories over the Essig Bluejays and the New Ulm Kaiserhoff, Peterson and Pugliese tried their best to one-up each other, both tossing complete games on the way to victory in front of larger than usual crowds that resembled one you may see only when Elko and Lonsdale face off on a Saturday evening.
In game one, Peterson allowed five hits and struck out 12 while going the distance. Aside from a single walk and two hit batters, the only blemish came in the ninth when Essig avoided the shutout and scored with two outs, ending the Outlaws pitching staff’s string of 19 innings without allowing a run. Eight of nine starters had a hit in the game, with the biggest blows coming by way of a 2 rbi double by John Means and a 3-run Homerun by Tony Peterson to deep left field. The Savage attack started early and allowed everyone on the lineup card to get an at bat or two as they cruised to an 8-1 win.
In the nightcap, Travis Pugliese did something that no Savage pitcher has ever done, defeat the New Ulm Kaiserhoff. In doing so, he matched Peterson’s complete game earlier in the day and had 11 strikeouts of his own but Pugliese was also able to preserve the shutout. Savage jumped ahead by playing small ball. The game started with a leadoff hit by Zack King, followed by a sacrifice bunt by Evan Walker. Ben Braaten then lined a single to right center that plated the first run. Two innings later, Chris Steenberg doubled and then scored on an Evan Walker base hit to put the Outlaws ahead 2-0. Savage continued to hit the ball hard but couldn’t find many holes. The two runs would turn out to be all Pugliese needed, pitching around two errors but getting strikeouts and double play balls when needed. New Ulm did get two batters on base to start the ninth and after opting to bunt twice, failing the first batter and succeeding the second time, they had runners on 2nd and 3rd with the top of the order up. It seemed all too familiar for the Outlaws who always seem to be snake bit and on the wrong end of a fluky play when traveling to New Ulm, but Pugliese assured it wouldn’t happen this time around and ended the game with a strikeout.
The Outlaws played solid baseball all day long and made the trip worthwhile. They up their record to 13-6 and face Rosemount Sunday night in CVL action. Brandon Walczak will start on the hill for Savage.
The Football Field is That Way >>>
by Scooby ChristaDucci
It didn’t take long for the Savage Outlaws to jump ahead of the Faribault Lakers on Thursday evening. While the weather was warm and skies clear, the game seemed more suited for a mid-November game on the NFL network. On that note…
Special teams captain Evan Walker threw a crushing block that opened a big hole on the opening kickoff, enabling return man Zach King a long kickoff run back that gave the Outlaws excellent field position to start the game. The offense took it from there and a few plays later, Quarterback Anders Engberg hit tight end Tony Peterson for touchdown as he streaked to the back right corner of the endzone. Following two Ben Braaten field goals, the Outlaws led 13-0 at halftime. The Savage defensive was clued in on everything Faribault attempted to throw at them from start to finish. Defensive End Johnny Pohl led the way with 3 sacks on the game and John Means added two of his own. The front seven dominated the run game while the defensive backfield got in on the action with two interceptions, one each from Tyler Peterson and Zach Harazin. Savage called off the dogs and went away from their traditional wide open run-and-shoot offense in favor of a grind it out, ball control game in the second half. The Outlaws concluded the scoring when backup quarterback Luke Anderson scrambled on a broken play and threw left-handed to wide open scat-back Dave ‘the Mexican Missile’ Verduzco who strolled untouched to pay dirt to make the score 20-0.
Savage 20, Faribault 0 7 innings (1 hr, 27 min)
Pohl, Pugliese (6), Engberg (7) and Harazin
Win – Pohl (2-0)
John Pohl was sharp on the hill in his first start of the season. He worked 5 innings, allowing one hit on only 54 pitches. Solid effort all around by Savage as they move to 11-6 on the season. Big weekend ahead as the Outlaws travel to Essig and New Ulm this weekend for a doubleheader on Saturday. Savage has dropped all five meetings with New Ulm in the club’s history. With nearly a full lineup expected for Saturday’s games as opposed to the 11 players who usually roll to New Ulm, hopefully the Outlaws will break that streak. Game times are 2:30 in Essig and 7:30 at Johnson Park in New Ulm against the Kaiserhoff.
Outlaws Begin Search for New Scribe
Yesterday (Thursday, June 10) the Savage Outlaws upper management issued the following press release in regards to their webpage oversight team:
“The Savage Outlaws are announcing the forced resignation of the current website reporter. We thank him for his last two years of service and commend him on a job well done. However, during the 2009 season the writer’s dedication, commitment, and production have failed to meet expectations. We refuse to be a classless team who writes recaps after victories but does not offer post game commentary following a defeat. We will not settle for a story title and an article stating merely “More to follow…” or simply just posting the score. All efforts will be made to find a knowledgeable, experienced, and dedicated scribe who will return class, credibility, and respectability to this team and its webpage. Outlaws management has begun the search and will go above and beyond in an effort to find a game reporter who will do our organization proud and upkeep our website in timely fashion with informative narrative and maintain the fan-friendly web environment.”
Word has already begun to circulate around Outlaws headquarters about who the new hire will be. It has been leaked that Savage brass scoured the phone books for the former Apple Valley Millers scribe Scoops McCracken but he of the “Marty Cordova impersonator” and “Lowly Savage Outlaws” fame, has seemed to have vanished off the face of the Earth since he retired his pen and pad years ago. Calls to renowned reporter Donnie “Dung” Slinger were also turned away as Slinger is under contract and remains happily employed by the Minneapolis Angels. The old ball sage Patrick Reusse, currently of the Star Tribune and KSTP1500, turned the job down citing his unwillingness to accept a pay decrease to move from his professional duties where compensation also includes multiple passes through the media buffet each night at local sporting events to a position that would entitle him to simply however many beers are left in the cooler at the end of post-game parking lot gatherings (usually zero). Three finalists have been named and each will write, report, and recap three consecutive games over the next two weeks. Fans are encouraged to participate and help choose who will become the next Savage Outlaws web reporter by reading the nightly recaps and using the Poll on the home page to vote for their favorite writer. Here is a quick bio of the three finalists:
Scooby ChristaDucci – Scooby was a two-time member of the Italian Olympic baseball team making him very familiar with the games intricacies and nuances. He takes a varied approach to writing, something that can be traced to a well rounded education in written communication. He has studied at prestigious Ivy League universities (Princeton grad ’89) as well traveling the globe to witness and learn from the most indigenous tribes found on Earth in an effort to expand his ability to illustrate a scene with merely a pen and paper. In addition to journalism, ChristaDucci starred in Italian daytime soap operas for a brief time. Personal demons derailed his playing, acting, and journalism career all on separate occasions and Scooby is hoping a gig with the Outlaws may be a stepping stone for him in his effort to get his life back in order and career back on track.
Ricky ‘Nuts’ Hanglo – a freelance journalist, Ricky has never formally studied journalism. He has worked his way up the ranks, the good, hard, honest, American way starting as a paper delivery boy in his native town of Skokie, Ill. The 63 year old Hanglo moved to the Twin Cities in his early twenties after shoulder injuries derailed his big league dreams at the conclusion of his college career at Florida-Panhandle U; he worked and began writing under the tutelage of his idol and hero Sidney Hartman. Hanglo has been an astoot follower of Minnesota amateur baseball for many years, having played 17 seasons himself with the North Side Railroaders. In the process, he set an unconfirmed state record of 13 shattered, cracked, or broken nut cups as a result of catching some of the dirtiest pitchers Minnesota town ball has witnessed, hence the nickname ‘Nuts.”
Annabelle McBride – Baseball is in her blood. She is the daughter of the infamous Bake McBride who was 1974’s NL Rookie of the Year with the St Louis Cardinals. He has also been named to ESPN’s MLB All-Time Hair team. Enough about her old man though, Annabelle possesses a journalism degree from highly regarded Cal-Berkeley and years starring on the athletic field in high school and collegiately playing softball, basketball, and running track allow her to relate closely to what goes through the mind of a fellow amateur athlete. She has written for many small market daily print publications and has also been seen as an occasional stand-in for weekly Perk at Play segments on Kare 11 since moving to the area.
Braaten & Peterson Homer, Boot Sparks Offense as Outlaws Win Big
Savage defeats Hamburg 10-1
Outlaws Fall to Elko, Slide Continues Against Eagan
Outlaws Down DK's, Face Elko Tonight
In Savage's first ever meeting with the Diamond Kings of Inver Grove Heights, the Outlaws came away with a 9-1 victory. Travis Pugliese had another quality start and went 7 innings picking up the victory on the hill. Adam Evanoff, Evan Walker, and Zach Harazin all had multi-hit games to lead the Outlaws offense. Ben Braaten also clubbed his third homerun of the season.
Savage moved to 4-3 in section play and will face the section leader Elko Express tonight at Frederickson Field in Elko. Start time is scheduled for 7:30pm. Sunny skies are expected, meaning the batters and umpires should be able to see the ball by about the fourth or fifth inning but no worries potential fans, beer will be available for purchase. The starter on the hill for Savage is yet to be determined. Hope to see you at the ballpark tonight.
***Heads up to fans who may be traveling to Elko tonight, I-35 will be closing at 8pm in south Lakeville so an alternate route to the ballpark is recommended.
***Outlaws holding Bowl Bust tomorrow night at Cedarvale Lanes***
For $10, you will receive a ticket for a free drink and unlimited bowling between 9-11pm at Cedarvale Lanes in Eagan. All proceeds go directly to the Savage Outlaws. Come and enjoy a drink and a nice Friday night at the bowling alley with friends and support a good cause. Spread the word.
**Outlaws vs DK's - Change of Venue**
Tonight's game (Wed June 3) has been moved to Apple Valley Legion Field due to the high school section tournament at Alimagnet. Start time will now be at 7:45pm.
Tony Peterson Walk-off HR gives Outlaws Win in Extras
With one out in the bottom of the tenth inning, Tony Peterson supplied just enough power on a Cory Vogel fastball to give the Outlaws a 7-6 win over Apple Valley in league/section action. It was Peterson's second homerun of the season and moved the Outlaws to 3-3 in CVL and Sction 5B play.
More to follow.....
Outlaws Suffer Bad Loss to Lakeville in Extras
Lakeville wins 3-2 in ten innings.
Terrific pitching performance by Pugliese wasted. Outlaws blow 2-1 lead in bottom of ninth, lose in bottom of tenth. Braaten hits solo homer. Bats are sleeping. Many at bats look pathetic. Manager not happy. Outlaws much better than this. Tough loss to swallow. Now 2-3 in section games. Ouch.
Walks, Boots Doom Outlaws
Savage dropped a non-league contest with the Shakopee Indians on Wednesday night. It was a slow and boring game. Savage pitchers walked 12 batters and pretty much put the defense to sleep. Five Outlaws errors contributed to at least two of Shakopee's two runs. Give credit to Shakopee though, as they started the game with four straight hits and evened the score at 2-2 after the Outlaws jumped ahead with two runs in their first at bats of the game. Shakopee had many chances to blow the game open but credit to the Outlaws for battling and keeping themselves within striking distance. While the Outlaws were within a run or two all game, the team appeared to be defeated early on.
Luke Anderson started for Savage and takes the loss, battling through three innings on the hill and minimizing damage during his stint on the hill. John Pohl and Danny Hanson threw three and two innings, respectively, of relief. Savage had 7 hits on the night, two of them coming from Anders Engberg.
The Outlaws are back in action tonight against Lakeville. The game will be played at 7:30 at Elko. Scheduled to start on the hill for Savage is Travis Pugliese. After ending a busy week tonight, the Outlaws will have the weekend off before resuming play on June 1 against Apple Valley.
Engberg Shuts Down Rosemount
Outlaws win 5-1
Anders Engberg was sharp in going 8 innings and picking up the win. He looked in control all night. Lance Anderson of Rosemount proved to be a thorn in his side but any damage was minimal as Engberg looked to be in complete control from the first pitch to his last. Ben Turnwall turned in another flawless performance in the 9th inning to nail down the victory.
Zach Harazin led the way offensively with a 3-4 night at the plate, including two doubles and an RBI. Luke Hellquist also had three hits (3-3) for the Outlaws. Other players adding multiple hit games were Tyler Peterson (2-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI) and Zack King (2-4, SB).
Savage jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first inning and that was all the cushion that Engberg would need. Savage added two runs in the 3rd inning and a single run in the 8th frame.
The win puts the Outlaws at 7-2 on the season and back to 2-2 in league/section play. Aside from a tough night on the base paths (2-4 on SBA, 1 pickoff) the Outlaws put together a complete game in getting a big victory. Savage will return to Joe Schleper Stadium, site of last year's state tournament, this evening to face the Shakopee Indians before returning to league/section play Thursday night in a game against Lakeville being played at Elko Field.
**Special thanks to the Rosemount fan in the white hat who did an amazing job retrieving foul balls along the first base side. Much ap[preciated.
**Congratulations to University of St Thomas on winning the D3 World Series. National Champion John Means will be making his Outlaws debut tonight.
Two-hit bid by Walczak Leads Outlaws to a Tight Victory
Savage relied on the left arm of Brandon Walczak to gain their first league & section victory of the 2009 campaign. Walczak went 8 innings and allowed only two hits on the evening in picking up his second win of the summer. Only two balls made it further than the infield dirt against Walczak. A couple of walks and a few Outlaws errors allowed Lakeville to plate two runs.
Offensively, Savage used RBI's from Pat Abbe and Zach King to score twice in the bottom of the fourth, taking a brief lead. Lakeville evened the score in the top of 5 but Zach Harazin led off with a hit in the Outlaws half of the inning, went to third on an Evan Walker single, and raced home on a passed ball to score the eventual game winner. Ben Turnwall struck out all three batters he faced to nail down his third save of the young season.
Savage moves to 1-2 in both league and section play and 6-2 overall. Action continues this week with a home game against the Rosemount Blacksox, who currently sit atop the league standings, tonight at Alimagnet Park. First pitch is scheduled for 7:30pm.
**St Thomas University (John Means, Taylor Rahm) currently lead Wooster in the 9th inning of the D3 National Championship. If the Tommies hold on, they will face Wooster again this afternoon in a winner-take-all game for the National Championship.
**Vanderbilt (Joe Loftus) went 3-1 to finish 2nd place in the SEC tournament over the weekend. The finish was enough to get an at-large bid for Vanderbilt in the Louisville Regional of the D1 National Tournament.
Savage Rebounds With 11-6 Win
The Outlaws were not sharp early but showed some guts by responding from a 6-1 deficit with a 6 run fourth inning, highlighted by a go-ahead homerun by Ben Braaten, and went on to win 11-6 on Wednesday night. Luke Anderson started for Savage and gave way to John Pohl who threw 3 2/3 outstanding innings to pick up the win.
The Outlaws moved to 5-0 in non-league games but are currently sitting at 0-2 in the all important section standings. The local nine will be very busy next week with big games against Lakeville, Rosemount, and Shakopee. Savage will play section games against Lakeville on Monday night at Alimagnet as well as Thursday (game will be played at Elko). Rosemount comes to Alimagnet for a section game on Tuesday night and Savage will travel to Shakopee for a non-league matchup Wednesday night.
Bobcats Sink Outlaws to 0-2 in CVL Play
Outlaws fall 6-4. Details to follow...
Outlaws Drop Opener Against Eagan
6-3
Outlaws Defeat Angels In Extras
The Outlaws were fortunate yet again and Mother Nature cooperated allowing a Friday evening game against the Minneapolis Angels to be played in it's entirity. In fact, the Outlaws and Angels decided that it was a nice enough night to play some bonus baseball. In the end, Savage came away with a 8-4 victory in ten innings over a very solid Minneapolis Angels ball club.
Ryan Rodeck started on the hill for the Outlaws and settled in nicely after the first inning. The Outlaws scratched back from a 3-0 deficit after the first frame to take a 4-3 lead by the time Rodeck exited the game after 5 innings of work. Danny Hanson pitched the sixth and seventh inning, allowing one unearned run that tied the game in the seventh. After hanson, John Pohl worked 1 1/3 innings. Brandon Walczak came in with one one and a runner on first base in the bottom of the ninth and induced a pop-up bunt which he caught and doubled the runner off of first base to escape the inning. Walczak ended up with the victory after throwing all of two pitches after Savage broke the game open in the top of the tenth. Savage was opportunistic in combining some big hits and some flukey plays to score four in the extra frame. Ben Turnwall pitched a scoreless tenth inning to preserve the 8-4 victory.
Zach Harazin had two hits in his Outlaws debut. Next up is the CVL League Opener on Sunday at 1pm against the Eagan Bandits.
Bats Heat Up, Outlaws Pound Belle Plaine 22-2
Tony Peterson nearly toppled the left centerfield scoreboard with a mammoth homerun in the first inning that set the tone and started an offensive barrage from the Outlaws. After the bats struggled in the season’s opening two games facing live action for the first time, the bats awoke in a big way Wednesday night in Belle Plaine. The entire order got in on the action as Savage belted out over 20 hits in the game on their way to a 22-2 victory. The Outlaws scored early and often, plating 2 runs in the first inning and 3 more in the second to open a 5-0 lead. Luke Anderson pitched well in his return start with the Outlaws after taking a one year hiatus. Anderson worked out of a couple minor jams but kept the Outlaws comfortably in the lead throughout his five innings on the hill. Anderson, who was 7-0 for the DCTC Blue Knights this spring, gained his first win of the Outlaws season - departing after five innings of work and with Savage holding an 8-1 lead. He has yet to drop a start in 2009. Travis Peterson came on in relief and threw the final two innings as the game came to a premature conclusion. The reason for the early ending was a 14-run 7th inning for Savage. The inning was highlighted by Chris Steenberg’s 3 run homer off the light stand in right field. The blast was estimated at a meaty 305 feet. To Steenberg’s credit, it was hit into the teeth of a deadening wind. The three RBI on that swing accounted for less than half of Steenberg’s 8+ RBI on the evening (official stats are yet to be tallied). Overall, it was a solid night of pitching, defense, and good at bats all throughout the Savage roster.
Savage returns to action Friday evening in a rare 6:30pm start time at Parade Stadium in Minneapolis against the Minneapolis Angels. The game should mark the debut of several new Outlaws who will be returning from college earlier in the day. It will be Savage’s final tune up before kicking off CVL league play Sunday afternoon against the Eagan Bandits.
**Taylor Rahm hits a leadoff, walk off homerun in the bottom of the 17th inning for St Thomas as they defeat UW-Stevens Point in the opening round of the Midwest D3 Regional tournament in Oshkosh, WI.
Pitching Paves the Way, Outlaws Start 2-0
Three Outlaws pitchers combined to strike out 15 batters in a five-hit shut out of the Carver Black Sox. Travis Pugliese was sharp through six innings in picking up his second win of the young season. Tony Peteron was solid in his first mound action of the season and Ben Turnwall notched his second save of the summer by retiring the side in the ninth, all on strikeouts. While the pitching has looked terrific, the Outlaws' bats have yet to ignite. Two RBI from Tony Peterson provided enough to lead Savage past Carver. Up next for the Outlaws is a Belle Plaine Tigers squad that is currently 4-0 and should provide a tougher test. This is the Outlaws first time facing Belle Plaine in team history. Start time is 7:30pm in Belle Plaine.
Good luck to the guys at St Thomas who begin regional play this afternoon against Hawk's old Pointer squad.
Outlaws Open with Win, One-hit Webster
The Savage Outlaws opened the 2009 campaign with a 4-3 win over Webster on a beautiful night for baseball. It was a good night for the Outlaws pitching staff as they held Webster to a single hit and three unearned runs while striking out a combined 13 batters and working out of a few sticky situations. These were not the same Outlaws who racked up 35 hits in three state tournament games last summer but that was to be expected playing without several regulars and facing live pitching for the first time since last season. The six hits and a few stolen bases provided the Outlaws with just enough offense to earn the season opening win. The game wasnt without it's share of follies. Fans at the opener may have witnessed one of the worst plays in Outlaws history in the 8th inning. Next up: Carver Sox next Tuesday at Alimagnet.
Tr Peterson, Pugliese(4), Hanson(7), Turnwall(9) and Evanoff.
W - Pugliese (1-0), S - Turnwall (1)
2B - Evanoff (1), Anderson (1)
SB - King (1), Smith (1), To Peterson (1) CS - Anderson
Outlaws Set to Open Season Tonight
Weather permitting, the Savage Outlaws will open their tenth season of amateur baseball this evening against the Webster Sox. The game will be played at Elko at 7:30PM. Savage will be short-handed early in the season until a handful of players return from post-season play with their respective college teams and until the conclusion of final exams. For the time being, veterans Tony Peterson and Adam Evanoff will carry the load for the Outlaws. Veteran Travis Peterson will take the ball to open the season for Savage. Travis Pugliese and Danny Hanson are also slated to pitch tonight. The probable lineup for tonight's opener is as follows:
CF Zach King
3B Chris Steenberg
SS Tony Peterson
C Adam Evanoff
RF Pat Abbe
1B Luke Anderson
LF Luke Smith
2B Dave Verduzco
DH ?????
P Travis Peterson
Travis Pugliese, Danny Hanson, Ben Turnwall, Ryan Rodeck, and Zach Howland will round out the roster for opening night.
2009 Season Brings New Faces, Challenges
Preperation is under way for the 2009 season of Savage Outlaws baseball. This year will mark the 10th season since amateur baseball returned to Savage. The Outlaws will be seeking to make their 3rd state tournament appearance in the last four years (2006 & 2008).
The CVL will take on a new look this year. Some familiar faces have retired, some have shifted roles, and a strong 2008 class of south metro ballplayers is sure to bring an infusion of new blood to the league. The CVL has also added a new member, the Inver Grove Heights Diamond Kings. They will also play in Section 5B for playoffs. In addition to Inver Grove Heights, the MBA state board has also placed the defending Class C State Champion Elko Express in Section 5B for the upcoming season. With 7 teams in the CVL and 8 teams vying to represent Section 5B in the state tournament, things will look a little different this year but surely games will remain competetive, intense, and hard fought each night.
Check back in the next few weeks to view the 2009 Savage Outlaws schedule, as finishing touches are still being made. This years schedule will take the Outlaws to a number of prestigious ballparks in the area and will find them squaring off against many of the state's top teams and perennial powers.
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