It took longer than usual to get this entry posted. Apologies for the delay. I spent most of today recuperating from a triple ordeal that happened before, during and after last night's Toronto Maple Leafs game in Barrie.
The first ordeal was in getting to Barrie, to a ballpark I'd never been to. The directions were fine, but from downtown TO, it took almost two-and-a-half hours to get to Schmidt and Shaw Stadium at the Barrie Community Sports Complex. It was an hour just getting to Highway 400, then a slow crawl most of the way up. Accidents, broken down vehicles, heavy volume, flash mobs, everything got in the way.
The second ordeal - the game itself - was nasty, brutish and short. The Maple Leafs lost their third game in a row. They could get nothing going offensively, and a quick early lead by the Barrie Baycats was all the hosts would need to seal a win.
The third ordeal was in leaving Barrie. I got a jump on the crowd at the park and was peeling out of the parking lot as the post-game fireworks began popping overhead.
At the first intersection out of the complex, I realized I hadn't thought through the return route back to Toronto, and now it was pitch dark. I followed some vehicles to the next intersection, where they started branching off in different directions. I took a guess on a turn, but instead of getting on the main drag back through town, I ended up on a long residential drive. My innate sense of direction indicated I was still heading towards Lake Simcoe and the highway, so I kept going.
But, after a series of turns and backtracks got me further away from the lights of the city, I had to accept one of the most humiliating things that can befall a man. I was lost.
I drove onward, convinced that the highway would suddenly rise up ahead.
Hours later, I was off-roading through increasingly wet terrain. I started to weaken and feel light-headed. Trees closed in on me, only for the SUV to break through into what seemed to be the Holland Marsh. My vehicle began to sink into the bog. I had to stop. I was dizzy and losing all sense of perspective. Venturing out of the vehicle, I could only manage a few steps before my shoes were sucked off in the muck. Despairing, I wailed and fell sideways, then blacked out.
How long I remained there is uncertain. I was roused by the sudden high-pitched roar of an elephant somewhere nearby. A pair of strong hands lifted me up. My half-conscious mind picked up the scent of cloves and incense. I was saved. It was the Munshi, my Indian manservant. In the final moments of delirium, I must have managed to activate the Emergency Distress Beacon in the SUV, and he had tracked me down in the darkness, in the middle of the night.
When we got back home, he plied me with tea and garlic bread. I slept for ages. That's why this entry is late today.
Recap:
Baycats rightfielder Ryan Spataro led off the bottom of the 1st with a single off Maple Leafs starter Marek Deska. He was followed by DH Kyle DeGrace, who hit a long flyball past Toronto rightfielder Jordan Castaldo for a double, advancing Spataro to third. From there, Spataro would be driven home on a single by centerfielder Jeff Cowan, and DeGrace would come home when first baseman Jon Waltenbury hit into a double play. 2-0 Baycats after 1.
Baycats third baseman Kevin Atkinson led off with a flyball to Castaldo in center-right that Castaldo misplayed, allowing Atkinson to dash all the way to third base. A sacrifice fly by catcher Brendan Keys plated Atkinson to make it 3-0 after 2.
For the Leafs, shortstop Cody Mombourquette and centerfielder Glenn Jackson each singled in the 3rd, but they were left on base. This, sadly, was the Leafs' biggest inning.
Left fielder Raul Borjas singled in the top of the 6th, and Castaldo walked and stole a base in the 7th, but they were left stranded by Baycats starter Brad Bissell, who gave up just three hits over 7 innings.
In the bottom of the 6th, Kevin Atkinson drove in two more Barrie runs to make it 5-0. The Leafs stranded 5 more baserunners over the 7th, 8th and 9th innings, and fireworks lit up the night sky after the final out. The game was over in just under two hours.
The Maple Leafs are now 4-5, on a 3-game losing skid. They sit in 5th place in the standings, 3.5 games behind the Brantford Red Sox. Their next game is at the Pits on June 2nd, against those same Red Sox.
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