BREWER – August 12 – The SweatSox wrapped up the regular season in familiar fashion on Tuesday night, with another 10-run outburst, another mercy-rule finish, and another reminder that their offense can beat teams in a variety of ways.
After being held in check for nearly three full innings, the SweatSox broke things open with a five-run third inning and never looked back, rolling to a 10-0 win over the Coyotes at Brewer. I, Shaun Keay ended it in the fifth with a walk-off sacrifice fly, sealing the club’s fourth straight mercy-rule shortened game.
The win also gave the SweatSox their 14th victory of the season, matching last year’s total, and giving the skipper exactly the kind of final tally he likes to see. Just as notable, it was the team’s sixth straight game scoring 10 or more runs, the longest such streak in SweatSox history and one that tops a pair of five-game stretches from the 2019 championship season.
“This is a team that can beat you in a lot of different ways,” SweatSox manager Cory Bond said. “Sometimes it is the big inning, sometimes it is manufacturing runs, sometimes it is just wearing a team down. That is huge for us heading into what we hope is a deep playoff run.”
The SweatSox offense was not exactly barreling the ball all night, but it hardly mattered. The club managed only four singles — from Eric White, Mike Pignat, Kent Johnston and Geoff Nolan — but also drew seven walks and took advantage of five Coyotes errors to keep the scoreboard moving.
The 10-0 final was the 17th shutout in SweatSox history and their third ever against the Coyotes, who are now tied with the Old Sox franchise for the most shutout losses at the hands of the SweatSox.
Eric White was once again at the center of it all. Making his 11th start of the season, matching Josh Ramage for the team lead, White delivered his fourth straight complete game — all five innings — while allowing just two hits and striking out three. It was his second shutout win against the Coyotes this season and his league-leading ninth victory of the year.
White also did damage on the bases, swiping a game-high four stolen bases.
“I always seem to pitch my best against the Coyotes,” White said. “For whatever reason, the matchups just seem to work out. Hopefully I can keep this momentum going into the playoffs.”
Defensively, Josh Ramage anchored first base and was a vacuum all night, recording a game-high 10 putouts. At a wide-open park like Brewer, where one mistake can quickly snowball, his steady work helped the SweatSox stay in complete control.
“At a place like this, you have to be a wall over there,” Ramage said. “If one throw gets away from you, that can turn into two or three extra bases in a hurry. My job was to make sure nothing got past me.”
For the Coyotes, the offensive highlights were limited to Tristan Haman and outgoing manager Stu Hayes, who collected the team’s lone hits. Haman’s knock went for a double. On the mound, Colin Kargus — a future NCBL Hall of Famer and long-time veteran who once shared the field with several current SweatSox on the Dukes and Royals — gave the Coyotes their best chance early, working 4+ innings and keeping the SweatSox off balance through the lineup’s first trip.
“That first time through, I still had a little something left and was able to make them work for it,” Kargus said. “If I was 30 years younger, I probably could have kept it going for a whole game.”
With the regular season now complete, the SweatSox head into the playoffs as the Tier 3 second seed and will open the postseason against the Aylmer Bulldogs in a first-round matchup that is quickly becoming one of the league’s most anticipated series.
Riding a franchise-record six straight games with 10 or more runs, four consecutive mercy-rule victories, and a pitching staff that has allowed almost nothing lately, the SweatSox enter the playoffs playing their best baseball of the season — and looking every bit like a team built for a long August run.
Final SweatSox vs Coyotes Notes/Thoughts:
- Everybody wants to be like Mike, and Mike wants to be like Trev.
#ITSGOTIME