Zen and the Art of Winning Baseball

Game 13: Burlington Herd at Toronto Maple Leafs, June 10, 2018

Leafs win 9-8

Fans at Christie Pits have seen several new faces in the Toronto Maple Leafs lineup this season. These newcomers have helped elevate the team to second place in the IBL standings after the second weekend in June.

Garrett Takamatsu is batting .405 and leading the league in doubles. His doubles are not just simple, into-the-gap doubles, but explosive cannon shots that send fielders diving for cover. Impressive stuff.

Mike Reeves has added veteran leadership from behind the plate, and another bat to the Leafs' high-octane offence. The Leafs currently lead the league in team batting average (.301), hits (142), runs (118) and runs batted in (105). The next best team in all of these categories is the Kitchener Panthers, with a team batting average of .291, 141 hits, 91 runs and 81 RBIs.

Then there's Marcus Knecht, a quiet man who conducts his plate appearances like a Zen master. Each time he steps up to the plate, Knecht performs a brief ritual. Facing the pitcher, he raises his bat high in the air in an Ichiro-like manner. With his other hand he tips his helmet ever so slightly, as if to show respect to the opponent to whom he is about to do untold damage.

In late May, Knecht smashed a ninth inning, two-out double to drive in two runs and lead the Leafs to victory over the London Majors.

Last week, he homered to help the Leafs defeat the defending champion Barrie Baycats at the Pits.

On Sunday afternoon, he homered again (above), helping to propel the Leafs to a 9-8 victory over the visiting Burlington Herd.

After the game I asked Knecht about his approach to hitting.*

"It's all about finding your balance, lining up your chakras, and igniting the inner light, man," he said.

And what about the Ichiro ritual?

"When I hold up the bat, it becomes a needle in my hand and I use it to thread the eye of harmony, man."

That is some deep stuff. But whatever works, yeah?

The game started ridiculously. Zach Sloan fell victim to a slew of hits that fell in all the right places for Burlington. It was either blind luck, or Sloan's teammates were reminding him that he owes them some money. Four hits and three runs in the first inning for the Herd.

Toronto responded with three hits and four runs in the bottom of the third. Catcher Justin Marra drove in a run -- his league-leading 19th RBI. Then came Knecht's home run, a three-run shot that gave the Leafs a 4-3 lead through three innings.

Burlington's star player Justin Gideon tied the game with a solo home run in the top of the fourth.

The Herd retook the lead in the top of the fifth, 5-4.

Reeves seized the lead back for the Leafs with a two-run homer in the bottom of the fifth, and Takamatsu doubled (again!) to drive in Knecht to make it a 7-5 game in favour of the Leafs.

Gideon tied the game at 7-7 in the top of the sixth with a two-run homer -- his second round-tripper of the game.

Toronto immediately responded in the bottom of the sixth. Shortstop Adam Odd added to the home run derby with a solo shot to make it 8-7 for the Mapes.

R.J. Page (another Leafs newcomer) took over for Sloan in the top of the seventh, and pitched two scoreless innings.

The Leafs added a vital insurance run in the bottom of the seventh when Takamatsu drove in Knecht again, making it a 9-7 game.

The Burlingtons are a resilient bunch. They faced Toronto closer Andrew Simonetti in the ninth inning, and managed to scrape up three hits and a run, but Simonetti slammed the door shut after that to finish off a 9-8 FINAL for the Leafs. Sloan earned his league-leading fifth win of the season and the sun-baked fans at Christie Pits went home happy once again.

* This interview took place in my overheated mind.  


Burlington 8-15-1
Toronto 9-11-3

W - Sloan (5-1, 3.70)
L - Bouillere-Howard (1-1, 5.09)
S - Simonetti (3)


BOXSCORE


The Leafs' 9-4 record puts them a game out of first place behind the Kitchener Panthers in the IBL standings. They will enjoy a short break to start the week before travelling up north to take on the Barrie Baycats this Thursday night.