Oh look, another Backyard Baseball 2003 post.
Facing the winless San Diego Padres in our seventh game, the obstacle was to try to win while using every power-up the moment we get them.
In the Backyard Baseball games, you can earn power-ups in a few different ways. Pitchers get them (usually crazy/weird trick pitches, sometimes a juice box that lets them replenish their stamina) for recording strikeouts, while offensive power-ups are earned by turning a double play or getting a hit against a power-up pitch.
As fun and helpful as the pitching power-ups are, they do come at a cost. They’ll drain your pitcher’s energy far more quickly than the regular pitches. With this in mind, I knew it would be hard for the Humongous Melonheads to throw their sixth complete game of the season.
While I was ultimately right, Lisa Crocket managed to hang in there for a while despite being completely gassed. She got into the seventh inning before finally allowing a run on a Mickey O’Connor solo homer, and with five runs of support by that time, it was more than enough to ensure a win to reach the halfway point of the season at 5-2.
The offense finally got going against O’Connor with four runs in the bottom of the fourth. Maria Luna and Jocinda Smith led off with singles, San Diego (0-7) wouldn’t manage to record an out at all when Crocket hit a fielder’s choice to O’Connor, who tried to get the lead runner, and Billy Jean Blackwood’s single pushed across the first run. Ashley Webber followed with a grounder to shortstop Trent Sizemore, and not only did he overthrow catcher Luanne Lui in an attempt to get the out at the plate, he threw the ball out of play entirely, making it a 3-0 game. A Gretchen Hasselhoff infield hit with two outs would make it a four-run rally, and the Melonheads would tack on another in the sixth as Ricky Johnson emulated Rickey Henderson, stealing both second and third after an infield hit, then scoring on a Reese Worthington groundout.
Although she was taxed heavily by the powerups, Lisa lasted 6+ innings while allowing just two hits and the one run on the solo homer, striking out seven without issuing a walk. In fact, the Padres had only reached base via an error until Marianna Rauf broke up the no-hitter with a single to left to lead off the top of the sixth. Hasselhoff recorded the final nine outs for her first save, and she got an extra run of support from the offense in the eighth as Worthington singled and went on to score after a Luna single and Crocket fielder’s choice.
WP: Lisa Crocket (3-1) LP: Mickey O’Connor (0-2) SV: Gretchen Hasselhoff (1)
Combine the win with Montreal's loss to the unbeaten Arizona Diamondbacks (our first opponent of the second half), and your Melonheads hit the halfway mark tied for first place!
As for Backyard Soccer 2004, the Melonheads opened the second half of the B Division season with a 4-0 win over the Junior Giants (not to be confused with the charitable organization that allows underprivileged children in the Bay Area and surrounding regions to play baseball). Jocinda Smith scored all four goals. With six games left, we're six points clear of second place.
I’m not sure when the next stream will be as I’m about to hit the road for a week, but whenever that opportunity does roll around, come join me on Twitch to waste some time!
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