QF Game 6: Brantford Red Sox at Toronto Maple Leafs - August 15, 2016
Leafs win 4-3
Leafs win 4-3
It was always going to go seven.
Each time the Toronto Maple Leafs took one on the nose from the Brantford Red Sox in this quarterfinal series, the Leafs slugged right back to tie it up.
The pattern continued tonight at Christie Pits as those plucky Leafers did it again, winning 4-3 in front of a feisty hillside crowd to send the series to a seventh and deciding game.
The back and forth battle was exemplified by sluggers Jon Waltenbury (above) and Dan Jagdeo, who traded home run roundhouses in the early innings.
Waltenbury led the way for Toronto with three hits and an RBI. Ryan White notched two hits with an RBI, and Justin Marra added two hits. Johnathan Solazzo drove in a critical insurance run in the eighth inning.
On the mound, lefty Brett van Pelt and righty Mike Wagner combined to hold the Red Sox to three runs.
In keeping with the theme of the series, four games out of six have now been decided by one run.
In keeping with elimination games at Christie Pits, there were weird scenes.
The crazies lining the Leafs' infield turned the intensity up to 11 while displaying some bonkers, fence rattling behaviour. The racket got loud enough to the point that I had to move a couple of times to escape the soul-rending screams. Seriously, I was frightened by this one woman. She's always there. She's scary.
The Red Sox -- armed perhaps with new evidence obtained by hackers -- lodged another challenge to Wagner's eligibility and the game was played under protest. Wagner gave up a home run shortly after, which may have been the only real motivation behind the second protest.
During the sixth inning, I kicked a bees' nest behind the centerfield fence and got stung in the neck. I fought the venom off with pure Balkan fury and will be back for Game 7 tomorrow night in Brantford.
Game Recap:
With their season on the line, the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Brantford Red Sox for Game 6 of their quarterfinal series. Brett van Pelt got the start for the V-necks against Jamie Richmond for the Brant Sox.
In the bottom of the 1st, first baseman Jon Waltenbury reminded the world that he is Jon Waltenbury as he smashed a solo home run to give the Leafs an early lead.
Anything you can do... With a man on in the top of the 2nd, DH Dan Jagdeo crushed a home run over the centerfield fence to make it 2-1 Red Sox through two innings.
Van Pelt and Richmond traded scoreless halfs of the 3rd inning.
The see-saw battle went back in the Leafs' favour in the bottom of the 4th. Waltenbury singled to lead off and catcher Justin Marra followed with a single of his own. Third baseman Johnathan Solazzo then reached first on a fielding error by Brantford, and Waltenbury scored on the play. Marra moved to third on the play, and scored on a putout by Ryan White. 3-2 Leafs after the 4th.
With the Leafs ahead, it was up to the defence to hold off the Sox. Van Pelt pitched a scoreless 5th and part of the 6th, turning the ball over to Mike Wagner. The reliever pitched shutout baseball through the 8th inning.
In the bottom of the 8th the Leafs tacked on a very important insurance run. Waltenbury led off with a walk and Justin Marra followed with a single that moved Waltenbury to third. After getting DH Sean Mattson to fly out to the deepest part of the park, Richmond was relieved by Tanner Guindon. The next man up was Solazzo, who hit into an out at first base -- but at the same time Waltenbury came into score. That made it 4-2 for the Leafs with the Sox down to their final three outs.
Brantford waited until the top of the 9th before calling for a conference with the umpires. Once again, they challenged Wagner's eligibility. The game was delayed as the umpires huddled on the first base side of the infield before signalling that the game was being played under protest by the visitors. Centerfielder Chris Dennis then stepped up to the plate and hit a first-pitch homer off of Wagner. Luckily there was no one else on base, and Solazzo had driven in that extra run in the 8th. Dennis' round tripper made it a one run game, but Wagner struck out leftfielder Josh McCurdy to nail down a 4-3 FINAL for Toronto. Bring on Game 7.
With their season on the line, the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Brantford Red Sox for Game 6 of their quarterfinal series. Brett van Pelt got the start for the V-necks against Jamie Richmond for the Brant Sox.
In the bottom of the 1st, first baseman Jon Waltenbury reminded the world that he is Jon Waltenbury as he smashed a solo home run to give the Leafs an early lead.
Anything you can do... With a man on in the top of the 2nd, DH Dan Jagdeo crushed a home run over the centerfield fence to make it 2-1 Red Sox through two innings.
Van Pelt and Richmond traded scoreless halfs of the 3rd inning.
The see-saw battle went back in the Leafs' favour in the bottom of the 4th. Waltenbury singled to lead off and catcher Justin Marra followed with a single of his own. Third baseman Johnathan Solazzo then reached first on a fielding error by Brantford, and Waltenbury scored on the play. Marra moved to third on the play, and scored on a putout by Ryan White. 3-2 Leafs after the 4th.
With the Leafs ahead, it was up to the defence to hold off the Sox. Van Pelt pitched a scoreless 5th and part of the 6th, turning the ball over to Mike Wagner. The reliever pitched shutout baseball through the 8th inning.
In the bottom of the 8th the Leafs tacked on a very important insurance run. Waltenbury led off with a walk and Justin Marra followed with a single that moved Waltenbury to third. After getting DH Sean Mattson to fly out to the deepest part of the park, Richmond was relieved by Tanner Guindon. The next man up was Solazzo, who hit into an out at first base -- but at the same time Waltenbury came into score. That made it 4-2 for the Leafs with the Sox down to their final three outs.
Brantford waited until the top of the 9th before calling for a conference with the umpires. Once again, they challenged Wagner's eligibility. The game was delayed as the umpires huddled on the first base side of the infield before signalling that the game was being played under protest by the visitors. Centerfielder Chris Dennis then stepped up to the plate and hit a first-pitch homer off of Wagner. Luckily there was no one else on base, and Solazzo had driven in that extra run in the 8th. Dennis' round tripper made it a one run game, but Wagner struck out leftfielder Josh McCurdy to nail down a 4-3 FINAL for Toronto. Bring on Game 7.
Brantford 3-11-2
Toronto 4-7-2
Toronto 4-7-2
W - van Pelt (1-0, 4.37)
L - Richmond (0-1, 3.68)
GAME SEVEN. Two words that every sports fan lives for. The Maple Leafs are one win away from advancing to the semifinals again. It all gets decided Tuesday night, August 16th at Arnold Anderson Stadium in Brantford.
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