Buds Bash the Brant Sox

Game 5: Brantford Red Sox at Toronto Maple Leafs - May 22, 2016

Leafs win 8-6




The Toronto Maple Leafs celebrated Victoria Day this afternoon with a 16-hit salute and an 8-6 victory over the Brantford Red Sox.  The huge Christie Pits crowd went home sun-kissed and delighted by the show.

Jon Waltenbury (above) and Sean Mattson lit the fireworks with a home run each.  Wally's 3-run blast in the 4th inning put the Mapes ahead for good.

Will Richards accounted for four of the Leafs' hits on the day and he knocked in two runs.

Johnathan Solazzo went 3-for-5 with a double and hiked his batting average to .529.

The Toronto baseball club has been bringing a potent offence to each game so far this season.  The mystique of Christie Pits is that no lead is ever safe, something that has been demonstrated in spectacular fashion over the years, most recently during the 2015 postseason.  Today the Leafs fought back from behind twice, exemplifying the kind of steely resolve and never-say-die attitude that made the British Empire great.  Yeah, Queen Victoria and all that.

On the mound, Justin Cicatello pitched seven solid innings for the win, giving up four runs on eight hits while striking out eight.  A trio of pitchers finished up the last two innings with Adam Garner earning his first save of the season.


Game Recap:


The Toronto Maple Leafs welcomed the Brantford Red Sox to Christie Pits for a Victoria Day weekend contest.  On the mound were Justin Cicatello for the home side and Graham Tebbit for the visitors.

Second baseman Benjamin Bostick led off the game by rapping a single to centerfield.  He advanced to third when third baseman Tyler Patzalek's sacrifice attempt was played for an error at first base, and he scored the first run of the game on a wild pitch.  Patzalek followed him in on a ground out that made it 2-0 after a half inning of play.

In the bottom of the first, right fielder Jon Waltenbury and first baseman Johnathan Solazzo each singled.  Catcher Will Richards followed with another single.  Waltenbury made the turn at third and scored easily.  Richards was gunned down at second before Solazzo could cross the plate, and it was 2-1 Brantford after one inning of play.

The Red Sox blitzed Cicatello for a pair of doubles to start the 2nd inning.  Leftfielder Nic Burdett hit the first one, and he was driven home when centerfielder Dennon Koziol hit the second one.  That made it 3-1 Brantford midway through two.

The Leafs tied the game in the bottom of the 2nd.  Third baseman Sean Mattson led off with a solo home run.  Shortstop Ryan White doubled and advanced to third on a wild pitch.  Centerfielder Grant Tamane followed with a single that scored White and it was 3-3 after two.

Brantford retook the lead in the top of the 4th on a solo home run by Burdett that made it 4-3.

Toronto seized the game by the throat and took the lead for good in the bottom of the 4th.  DH Justin Marra led off with a walk, then moved to third on a double by leftfielder Troy Daring.  A sac fly by White plated Marra, and ended Tebbit's afternoon after 3.1 innings.  Matt Martinow came on in relief and got into a heap of trouble.  He walked Tamane, then gave up a three-run bomb to Waltenbury -- a home run that went so far and so high that it did not seem to land, much to the delight of the large home crowd, the astonishment of the umpires, and the disappointment of the Christie Pits ball chasers.  7-4 Leafs after four.

The Leafs tacked on a run in the bottom of the 6th.  Solazzo doubled and scored on a single by Richards.  8-4 Leafs after six.

Cicatello retired the side in the 7th and turned it over to Cameron Gray to start the 8th.  Gray, who had spent most of the previous afternoon warming up in anticipation of relieving Dillon Mulholland in Guelph (it never happened), got into a jam quickly.  He allowed first baseman Dan Jagdeo to reach first on a throwing error, then gave up a single to catcher Ricky Murray -- a single that turned into a double and allowed Jagdeo to score.  Gray then walked Burdett, but got the next two batters to fly out.  He then hit rightfielder Casey Howard with a pitch, and walked Bostick with the bases loaded to bring Murray in to score.  Matt Fiorini entered the game and got the next batter to fly out to end the threat, but the Red Sox had pulled closer, down 8-6 after eight.

Adam Garner came in to the pitch the ninth for Toronto and he struck out the first two batters he faced.  He then gave up singles to Murray and Burdett before striking out Koziol to lock down the win for Cicatello and earn his first save of the season with an 8-6 FINAL for Toronto.


Brantford 6-11-1
Toronto 8-16-3

W - Cicatello (1-0, 4.50)
L - Tebbit (0-1, 13.50)
S - Garner (1)

BOXSCORE

The Maple Leafs are now 3-1 and tied for second place in the IBL standings.

The Leafs hit the road for a pair of games starting this Thursday, May 26 up in Barrie, and on Friday, May 27 down in London.  Got fuel to burn, got roads to drive.

Fired Up Leafs Grind One Out in Guelph

Game 4: Toronto Maple Leafs at Guelph Royals - May 21, 2016

Leafs win 6-5

I am not of that school of muttering fogeydom that demands that all ballplayers bottle up their emotions and play the game like stoic robots.

Nor am I of the school of showing up the opposite side and parading around the ballpark after every play like a braying jackass.

But there is a middle ground, where an athlete should be free to celebrate a great performance, and release the passion that burns within.

There was such a moment at the end of today's game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Guelph Royals at Hastings Stadium.

Having just thrown a 171-pitch, come-from-behind complete game victory, Leafs starter Dillon Mulholland flung his glove into the air and shouted "Yeah!"  After a performance like that, the dude had earned himself a "Yeah!", even a "Hell Yeah!", but let's not ruin the sport.

Mulholland's "screw the pitch count" gem topped off an afternoon of passionate play from the Leafs.  Aggression on the basepaths, assertion at the plate, slammed helmets in the dugout, and a steady stream of chatter to pick each other up.  They fell behind 3-1 after the first inning, but battled back and beat nine hits out of the Royals en route to a 6-5 win.  

RBIs were provided by Grant Tamane, Dan Marra, Johnathan Solazzo, Will Richards and Justin Marra.  Solazzo banged out three hits on the day to raise his club-leading batting average to .500.

The Royals held the visitors in close for most of the game, and their ballpark's expanded dimensions held Toronto's sluggers at bay.  With the score tied 5-5, the day was decided in the ninth.  Luck and patience worked in the Leafs' favour as they loaded the bases for Justin Marra, who drew a walk to bring home the winning run.

Mulholland wanted to close it out.  The young Royals battled him for 20 more pitches before he finally nailed down the 27th out and launched his glove to the heavens.


Game Recap:


The Toronto Maple Leafs visited reconfigured Hastings Stadium for the first time this season.  Matt Schmidt was on the mound for the Guelph Royals against Dillon Mulholland, making his first start of 2016.

Toronto got on the scoreboard first.  Centerfielder and OBP machine Grant Tamane led off with a walk.  He stole second base and scored on a double by first baseman Johnathan Solazzo.  After throwing 18 pitches, Schmidt left the game with an arm issue and was relieved by Adrian Yuen.

It looked like it might be a short afternoon for Mulholland.  He surrendered three runs on four hits in the bottom of the first.  Shortstop Kingsley Alarcon singled and stole second, then scored on a double by third baseman Richard Gill.  Leftfielder Aaron Loder followed with an RBI single to score Gill.  Loder also stole second, then scored on a single by first baseman Brendan Power.  3-1 Royals after one.

The Leafs got one back in the top of the third.  Rightfielder Jon Waltenbury led off with a walk, then moved to third on a single by Solazzo.  Leftfielder Will Richards then drove in Waltenbury on a doubleplay.  3-2 Royals midway through the third.

In the bottom of the third, Gill drew a walk, then stole second.  He moved to third on a single by Power.  Then Power attempted to steal second.  Catcher Brendan Keys' throw resulted in an error, Power was safe and Gill scored.  4-2 Royals after three.

The Leafs battled back in the top of the 6th.  DH Justin Marra and Keys both reached base on walks.  Singles by Tamane and Dan Marra brought them both in to score, and ended Yuen's emergency relief appearance.  Ryan Greco came in to get out of the inning, but the score was tied 4-4.

Both clubs grabbed another run each in the 7th.  Solazzo and Richards were walked aboard.  A passed ball moved them to third and second respectively.  Solazzo then came roaring home on an error by catcher Saul Tahuite to give the Leafs their first lead of the game 5-4.

The Royals scored right back in the bottom of the 7th.  DH Steven Saatz led off with a walk, then moved to second on a walk to second baseman Trevor Nyp.  Rightfielder Chandler McLaren tied the game with an RBI single that plated Saatz and the score was knotted at 5 through seven innings of play.

A scoreless 8th meant that the game came down to the final outs.  Solazzo led off with his third hit of the day on a close call at first.  A grounder to Power left him scrambling and diving back to the bag to make the out, but the 1B umpire called Solazzo safe.  This prompted a visit from Guelph manager Steve Scagnetti, to no avail.  Richards was grazed by the very next pitch, putting two men aboard.  Third baseman Sean Mattson then walked to load the bases.  Justin Marra was up next, and he too drew a walk, and Solazzo crossed the plate with the winning run.  Jeff MacLeod relieved Greco to get out of the inning, but the Leafs now led 6-5.

At 151 pitches, Mulholland came out to start the 9th.  Saatz and Tahuite both battled him before being retired.  Saatz's strikeout gave Mulholland eight on the day.  Up next, Nyp succeeded in reaching base on balls, then advanced to second on a wild pitch.  That was as far as he would get, as Alarcon grounded to third, where Mattson scooped it up and lasered it to first for the final out and the 6-5 FINAL for Toronto.


Toronto 6-9-1
Guelph 5-6-2

W - Mulholland (1-0, 3.27) 
L - Greco (0-1, 7.71)

BOXSCORE

The Maple Leafs are now 2-1 and in 4th place in the IBL standings.  

Their next game will be back home at Christie Pits on Sunday, May 22 against the Brantford Red Sox.  

Rivalry Renewed at the Pits

Game 3: Barrie Baycats at Toronto Maple Leafs - May 18, 2016

Baycats win 8-5

Last August, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Barrie Baycats went the distance in the IBL semi finals, exchanging a fury of jabs, crosses and hooks over seven titanic rounds.

The old familiars went at it again tonight at Christie Pits, with the Baycats emerging victorious, 8-5.

The combatants took the field on a cool, windless evening.  The small crowd on hand thinned out sometime after the third inning, after the Christie Pits workout club jogged away from their stretching station up the left field line.

The visitors grabbed an early lead, stretched it out in the middle innings, then held off a late rally to earn the win.

Sean Mattson (above) belted his second home run of the season -- a solo shot in the 5th to give him a team-leading 5 RBIs after a couple of games.

Starter Brett Van Pelt was outduelled by counterpart Brett Lawson, the former giving up six earned runs over five innings while the latter gave up just one over seven, while striking out 10.

As the season gets going, the Leafs are showing confidence in their ability to put runs on the board, especially in bunches.  This bodes well in a place like Christie Pits, where no lead can ever be considered safe.


Game Recap:


Brett Van Pelt of the Toronto Maple Leafs faced Brett Lawson of the Barrie Baycats on a cool spring evening at Christie Pits.

The Baycats led off the scoring in the top of the 1st inning, as rightfielder Ryan Spataro drew a walk and stole second, then came home on a single by first baseman Jordan Castaldo.

In the top of the 2nd, Barrie scored again.  Shortstop Branfy Infante singled and second baseman Jeff Cowan doubled, then Infante scored when third baseman Conner Morro grounded out.  2-0 Baycats after two.

Barrie doubled its lead in the top of the 4th.  Van Pelt gave up walks to Cowan and left fielder Brandon Dhue.  Morro then drove in one run, and centerfielder Glenn Jackson drove in another on back-to-back singles, making it 4-0 Barrie through four.

Infante tacked on two more runs for the visitors in the top of the 5th, when he hit a 2-run homer.

Lawson held the Leafs hitless through 4.1 innings, until Sean Mattson launched one over the centerfield fence to put the home side on the board.  6-1 Barrie after five.

Marek Deska relieved Van Pelt after the 5th, and pitched two scoreless innings of relief.

Justin Cicatello came in to pitch the top of the 8th and he retired the Baycats in order.

The Leafs were glad to see the back of Lawson's lofty frame for the last time after 7 innings.  Jaspreet Shergill relieved him to start the bottom of the 8th and Toronto pounced.  Catcher Brendan Keys worked Shergill for a walk, then centerfielder Julio Guzman singled.  Second baseman Grant Tamane walked to load the bases, and then DH Ryan White hit a sac fly to left to score Keys.  First baseman Jon Waltenbury followed with a single to score Guzman.  Shortstop Johnathan Salazzo rounded off the scoring with a double that brought home Tamane and Waltenbury.  Adam Hawes got the call from the Barrie bullpen to put out the fire, but when the smoke cleared the Baycats held on to a 6-5 lead.

Barrie was able to add a pair of insurance runs in the top of the 9th.  Morro and Jackson both singled off of Cicatello and advanced on a sac bunt by Spataro.  A sac fly by catcher Kyle DeGrace brought Morro in to score, and a single by pinch hitter Jeremy Walker plated Jackson for an 8-5 Baycats lead.

Hawes retired the Leafs in order in the bottom of the 9th to earn a save and lock down the win for Lawson and an 8-5 final score.


Barrie 8-11-1
Toronto 5-4-1

W - Lawson (1-0, 1.28) 
L - Van Pelt (1-1, 7.20)
S - Hawes (1)

BOXSCORE


The Maple Leafs are now 1-1 to start the season.  Their next game will be this Saturday, May 21st in Guelph, the five-pin bowling capital of Canada, and also home to the Guelph Royals baseball club.

The Darling Buds of May, Some Other Day

                                                                                                                                                                                           FILE PHOTO

The month of May can't get with the program.

Today's game between the Burlington Bandits and Toronto Maple Leafs at Christie Pits has been postponed due to poor field conditions.  

Most of the IBL's schedule for this weekend was wiped out by weather.

The Leafs' next game will be this Wednesday, May 18th, when they host Barry's Baycats from up north.

Leafs Rampage on Opening Day

Game 1: Guelph Royals at Toronto Maple Leafs - May 8, 2016

Leafs Win 13-2

                                                                                                                                                                                             FILE PHOTO

Like a band of escaped gorillas, the Toronto Maple Leafs went on a rampage at Christie Pits yesterday afternoon.  Kicking off their 48th IBL season, the Leafs kicked the Guelph Royals up and down the Pits for a 13-2 win.

Toronto's family of bash brothers got off to a roaring start.  The heart of the order launched four round trippers for a team cycle of home runs:

Sean Mattson - grand slam HR
Jon Waltenbury - 3-run HR
Johnathan Solazzo - 2 run HR
Will Richards - solo HR

This season's projected rotation each got a turn on the mound, with Brett van Pelt getting the start.  He struck out three over five innings, giving up Guelph's only two runs of the game and earning the win.  He was followed by Marek Deska, Dillan Mulholland and Justin Cicatello, who combined for four shutout innings to close it out.

It's the first game of the season, it's early.  Come on, the trees have barely blossomed.  But it's hard to dampen the pangs of enthusiasm for a club that found itself during last season's post-season run and looks to have picked up right where it left off.  Here they come, those feelings again.


Game Recap:

Balls.  The Maple Leafs hit many of them.  So did the Royals, but to far less effect.  The season is on.


Guelph 2-12-1
Toronto 13-11-0

W - van Pelt (1-0)
L - DiMichelle (0-1)

BOXSCORE


UP NEXT: The 1-0 Maple Leafs will be back at Christie Pits for their second game of the season on Sunday, May 15 against the Burlington Bandits.