The race for the IBL championship heated up on a sweltering day that saw the Toronto Maple Leafs come from behind twice to rock the London Majors and render their manager Roop Chanderdat a raving mess by the end of the game.
Outraged by seeing his team blow two leads in dramatic fashion, Chanderdat turned his fury on the home plate umpire during the 8th inning, threatening to set him on fire. That got him tossed from the game. Then he threatened to set himself on fire in protest, in the manner of the Buddhist monks of Tibet. Chanderdat was hauled off the field for his own safety and parked near a water cooler.
This spectacle unfolded after the Maple Leafs pounded out 12 hits and 8 runs, with 5 RBIs coming from the lower third of the order: Sean Mattson and Damon Topolie drove in 3 and 2 runs respectively.
The Leafs team that took the field at Christie Pits today showed a different makeup. New arrival Sean Reilly started at first base, triggering a domino effect that moved Will Richards to catcher, Topolie to third base, and Mattson to DH. In addition to that, Branfy Arias played his season debut at shortstop, moving Cody Mombourquette to centerfield.
Marc-Andre Major made his second start for Toronto, and once again had a rough first inning before settling down. He left after 5 innings with a lead, but London reclaimed it off reliever Scott Kelly. Mattson and Topolie drove in runs to retake the lead in the 6th, and it was left to Franco Pace to come in to grab his first win, and Justin Cicatello (above) to grab his first save.
A Latino music festival going on beside the sports fields lent the day a festive atmosphere. The spectators sprawled across the Christie hillside certainly enjoyed the day.
This is the Leafs team we saw earlier in the year - players picking each other up, making timely hits, getting key outs, keeping a lively bench, and scoring plenty of runs. The Leafs signaled to the rest of the league that they will be a force to be reckoned with moving into the second half of the season.
Recap:
It was the first hot game of the year. Toronto hit 30 degrees and the city issued a heat advisory. Hot hot heat! At Christie Pits, a welcome breeze kept everyone from overheating in the sun.
Marc-Andre Major of the Maple Leafs had a shaky start to the game. He hit the first batter he faced, London centerfielder Ryan Lapensee. Lapensee stole second, but was tagged out on a rundown at third on a ground ball by second baseman Paul Young, who dashed to second during the rundown. Young went to third on a wild pitch. Leftfielder Paul LaMantia walked, then stole second. During the steal attempt, Leafs catcher Will Richards made a throwing error that allowed Young to come home for the first run of the game. LaMantia moved to third on a passed ball, and was driven in on a sac fly by first baseman Cleveland Brownlee. 2-0 Majors after the 1st inning.
The lower-order combo of DH Sean Mattson and third baseman Damon Topolie would be prominent throughout the game, starting in the bottom of the 2nd. Mattson was hit by a pitch from Majors starter Jordan Townshend and went to second on a wild pitch. Topolie then drove him home with a single to cut the London lead in half.
In the bottom of the 4th, Mattson struck again in a big way. He hit a 2-run home run over the centerfield fence to give the Leafs a 3-2 lead after 4 innings.
Shortstop Branfy Arias, making his season debut for the Leafs, led off the bottom of the 5th with a single. He moved to second on a single by leftfielder Raul Borjas. He moved to third on a fielder's choice grounder by second baseman Dan Marra. With first baseman Sean Reilly at the plate, Arias raced home on a wild pitch to make it 4-2 Leafs after 5 innings.
The Majors retook the lead in the top of the 6th. Scott Kelly came in to relieve Major, and gave up two home runs over the left field fence: a solo blast by Brownlee, and a 2-run shot by DH Parris Austin. London was back in the lead, 5-4.
The Mattson and Topolie show returned in the bottom of the 6th. Richards led off the inning with a grounder to second baseman Young, but was safe at first on a throwing error. Centerfielder Cody Mombourquette followed with a single that moved Richards to third. Richards was plated and Mombourquette moved to third on an RBI single by Mattson. Topolie followed that with a sac fly to right field that allowed Mombourquette to score, and it was 6-5 Leafs after 6 innings.
Reilly hit an RBI single in the 7th, and Borjas hit one in the 8th, to extend the Leafs lead to 8-5 heading into the 9th. By then, London manager Roop Chanderdat had got himself tossed from the game with two outs in the bottom of the 8th, for blowing up at the home plate umpire.
Justin Cicatello relieved Franco Pace, and threw a shutout inning to secure his first save and Pace's first win. The final score was 8-5 for the home side.
The Maple Leafs are now 8-11 and in 5th place, 9.5 games behind the Brantford Red Sox. Their next game is back at the Pits against the Hamilton Cardinals on June 26.
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