(Currently on the bus heading to Missoula as i write
this)
I wish we could get a population on the gnats in attendance to tonight's game. They must have enjoyed the action they caught because a good group of them are on the bus with us to Missoula. Thankfully this is only a three hour trip.
I am always thankful as I watch the players spend every second in between each pitch swatting away the insects. For the most part, I stay out of harms way in the box, although for the past few weeks, I get about two big bees per game joining me for a few pitches. Now, I am right along with the guys swatting away these freakin' things. Not conducive for a relaxing environment. Dealing with this after a win makes it much better.
Anyway...at the bottom of this post is a small little video I made which honors Jamaal Hollis and Jeffer Patino, the winners of the "Championship Belt" awarded to the hardest winning pitcher and position player at each level, as decided on by Strength and Conditioning Coach, Tim Rodmaker, the field staff, and Strength and Conditioning Instructor, Dale Torborg. As you will see below, the belts are exactly like those you see awarded to wrestling champions or boxing champions. Of course, Dale, formerly known as the Demon, used to be a professional wrestler.
Before we get into tonight's game, let's backtrack a bit...
To close out the season, the team won 9 of their final 11 games, highlighted by an 8-game winning streak, including a big sweep of Missoula on the road and two huge wins over Billings to claim a two-game division lead. Despite the streak, those buggers from Billings wouldn't lose and the Voyagers could not increase their lead beyond 2 games. Eventually, after losing back-to-back games, first Helena and then to Missoula, the Voyagers found their lead down to one game with one to play. It was tough to consider that the Voyagers, the hottest team in the league just a few days before, was in jeopardy of losing their playoff berth. But they pulled it together and clinched the division with the win over Missoula in the finale. It was neat how the game developed because I believe it was a microcosm of the season.
After the first inning the Voyagers trailed 3-0. Right away, the Voyagers came back to get two runs to cut the deficit to one and then, while they had an opportunity to tie the score and maybe even take the lead with some base runners, they settled for just the two runs in the inning. After falling behind 4-2, the Voyagers tied it up in the fourth only to see Missoula immediately reclaim the lead, 5-4. Sure enough, the Voyagers took a lead, 6-5 but, once again, they immediately gave it right back, falling behind 8-6. So, what do the Voyagers do? They score five runs in the top of the sixth to lead 11-8. The final few innings were by no means relaxing. Missoula threatened in both the eighth and ninth only to have Kevin Vance shut the door on both occasions. Ultimately, the Voyagers won 11-8.
So...let's think about this.
On a larger scale, the Voyagers put themselves behind the eight ball pretty early on in the season. While they were never out of the division until the end of their Utah trip, specifically the series in Orem, they were constantly fighting from behind. On a more specific scale, the Voyagers, in the early part of the season, would fall behind in individual games, fight back, but just come up short, kind of like the top of 2nd where they came to within one, had an opportunity to put more on the board, but fell short.
Let's go to the innings 4 and 5, which, to me, symbolizes a first-half trend on inconsistency that represented the anchor preventing the team from taking off. The Voyagers tied the game in the fourth only to give the lead right back. They then took the lead and lost the lead all in the 5th. In the first half of the season, the Voyagers were unable to put together a three-game winning streak. Even Casper, the worst team in the first half by a decent amount, had two streaks of three wins or more. But, the Voyagers would trade a win with a loss and another win with two losses then a win and a loss, two wins, and then a loss, etc etc etc. While they never let it all fall apart (throughout the regular season, the Voyagers, quite remarkably if you ask me, had losing streaks of four games twice and three games just once), they were unable to get on a roll. But then, right when the second half got going, in the case of this game, the top of the sixth inning, the Voyagers started to pull it together. In the five run inning, the Voyagers got three runs to take a one run lead. Instead of stopping there--like the inability to win three straight in the first half or settling in the first part of the game--the Voyagers added two more big runs, kind of like how they were finally able to win three or more and give themselves an opportunity to separate. What happened next? The Voyagers battled. Their inability to score the rest of the way was not as much due to struggles at the plate as it was good pitching from Missoula. And Missoula's continued pressure was not because of poor pitching from the Voyagers, just the inevitable of a very strong lineup trying to get back in the game. This is all parallel, to me, to how Billings would not just bow down to the Voyagers and continued to hand around and hang around. Ultimately, in the end of the game, the Voyagers pulled through, just like they did in the division. And how did they get it done? For one, Michael Earley's huge double with the bases loaded gave them the lead. Fitting that it was Earley, one of the leaders in the clubhouse and, in my opinion, an unsung hero of the offensive attack, who got the eventual game-winning hit. Earley's consitent production was overshadowed by Kevan Smith's tear and Mark Haddow's power surge, but Earley was a consistent force in the middle-to-bottom part of the lineup. Secondly, the bullpen. They brought it home in the game and they were huge in the second half. Great Falls' bullpen ERA, which was around 2.70 in the second half, was the best in the league. Not even really close. Oh, and how could I forget. The team that made their mark coming from behind--including a five-game winning streak in the second half featuring five comeback wins--won their most important game...coming from behind.
If that was a stretch, I am sorry...but I just couldn't let it go.
Now let's talk playoffs...
I said in my introductory blog that, among my few singular passions, is competing or the idea of competition. I am a competitive son of a gun. Yet, I never won a state championship or, in college, working for the USC baseball team, never made the post season. As a media member at USC, I never witnessed the powerhouse Trojans make a National Championship game, despite, my first two years, having the most talented team in the country--you can argue with me, but I will win. I mean, jeez...until this recent year, my favorite teams struggled to bring home the bacon. Nonetheless, I cannot tell you how excited I am that, in my first professional season, I get to broadcast playoff baseball. I love being a part of sports on a big stage. Is this the World Series? No. But for the Great Falls Voyagers and every team in the Pioneer League, this is what is at stake. It is awesome to be a part of a team that is winning and I am so thankful to all the players and field staff for providing me this opportunity. They work their butt off and they deserve all of this. I am just thankful that I am along for the ride which I hope keeps going all the way to the Championship.
But, like I said, this is because of them. This is not about me, nor should it ever be. This is about the Voyagers. The players. The coaches. Their trainer and their strength and conditioning coach. This is about the White Sox people that come to Great Falls. They are the ones that, despite finishing in last place in the first half, entered the second half with an awesome attitude. They are the group that consistently fought and fought, both in individual games and in a tight late-season playoff race. They came up with the big hit, made the big pitch, or made the big adjustment to enjoy more success.
We are on the bus to Missoula with the hope of winning one of two so as to advance to the Championship. If that's the case, baseball will return to Great Falls in a just a few days. Tonight, the boys played in front of a loud crowd. To all of those in attendance, I tip my cap to you for your support. But the crowd was just shy of 700 and I find it hard to believe more people in the town would not enjoy some men representing their town with some playoff baseball. I hope that, if baseball comes back here next week, we can get some of the biggest crowds of the season. Chances are that those of you reading this are the same people at the games, making noise, or you are the families thousands of miles away. For those with an influence, spread the word. Help us promote the Voyagers game. But don't do it because I am asking you because, as I have said, this is not about me. Do it because these men deserve it. They deserve to play in front of a few thousand fans.
One win down, one more to go, and then another two after that. One game at a time. It all continues Saturday night in Missoula. What will the end result be? Only time will tell. But I can guarantee you that these boys will fight their effing tails off for nine innings--or more if the game dictates such--because that's what they have done since day 1. I hope everyone can appreciate and admire that. I know I sure as hell do.
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Without further ado...THE CHAMPIONSHIP BELT
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