On the Christie Hillside: Highs and Lows and Highs

Maple Leafs Weekly Recap - May 22 to 26, 2024

The Toronto Maple Leafs recovered from a rough start to the season with a couple of home dubs in a winning Week 2.

Toronto Maple Leafs shortstop Jose Vinicio is greeted by teammate Jordan Castaldo after hitting a solo homer to open the game last Wednesday night.

Sweet Baby Jesus!

It has been all or nothing for the Toronto Maple Leafs to start this 2024 IBL season.

This week in Leafs baseball offered a prime example. On Wednesday night against the Kitchener Panthers, the Leafs were deep in a hole late in the game, on the verge of going 0-5. In a wild turn of events that often happens at Christie Pits, the boys flipped the game on its head and won a walkoff.

From that high, the boys crashed back to Earth in a 10-0 shellacking at Welland Stadium.

The very next day, they picked themselves up and swung the lumber. Two home runs over the caged monster helped craft a revenge win over the Jackfish in front of a vibing Christie crowd.

It's all or nothing with these guys. And we love it.

And now, here is a recap of Week 2 in Toronto Maple Leafs baseball.

Wednesday, May 22, 2024 - Kitchener Panthers vs Toronto Maple Leafs

On Wednesday night at Christie Pits, pinch runner Keiran Martini-Wong's game-winning dash to the plate touched off wild celebrations.

There were absolute scenes at Christie Pits for the first Wednesday Nighter of the summer.

The full moon that rose over the park might a been a sign.

This one had it all. Home runs, strike outs, blown leads, a field invasion, a bullpen meltdown and a sensational comeback win for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

In the bottom of the first inning, shortstop Jose Vinicio put the Leafs on the board with a leadoff home run off Kitchener Panthers starter Yadian Martinez.

That put the ballpark in a good mood as a large contingent of fans took in the first night game of 2024. Some may have taken in a little too much. A couple of innings into the game, a trespasser entered the field, wandering from left towards the infield. Perhaps drunk, high or something else, the trespasser refused the umpire's order to leave the field. He ended up being tackled, marched to the third base fence, and dumped over. After the brief disruption, play resumed.

Starter Sam Greene pitched a shutout into the fifth inning, where he ran into some trouble. After retiring the first two batters, he loaded the bases on two walks and a single. Another walk brought in Kitchener's first run of the night. Yunior Ibarra followed that with a grand slam to put the Panthers ahead 5-1 through five.

Rookie hurler Max Lanoue finished the inning for Greene, then pitched two scoreless.

For most of the night, the Leafs struggled at the plate. After giving up the home run to Vinicio to start the game, Martinez racked up 13 strikeouts and stymied the home side through seven innings.

In the top of the eighth, things became more dire for the Leafs. Reliever Dean Christidis, another rookie, put two men aboard. A botched pickoff attempt saw both runners score and extend the Black Cats' lead.

Enough was enough. With the Leafs down 7-1 in the bottom of the eighth, it was time for the Angry Confines to go to work.

The Bushmen, who had been pelting the Panthers with heckling throughout the game, dialed it up as Kitchener's relievers tried to close it out. The entire ballpark joined in as the heckling zeroed in on pitchers Nathan Laird, Jack Anderson and Adam Robertson. One by one they crumbled. Two walks by Laird and a fielding error loaded the bases. Laird walked in a run and his night was over after recording just one out. Anderson fared little better, giving up a two-run single to third baseman Johnathan Solazzo. A walk by Anderson re-loaded the bases. He worked a 3-0 count to centerfielder Greg Carrington, then hit him with a pitch to bring home Toronto's fourth run of the inning. The Panthers clung to a 7-5 lead going into the ninth.

Julian Tymochko pitched a scoreless top of the inning, setting the stage for some high drama. Anderson returned to the mound and immediately gave up a walk and a single. With all hell going on around him, first baseman Jordan Castaldo waged an 11-pitch battle with Anderson before calmly hitting a two-run single to tie the game. All of Christie Pits was now at full volume, including the Panthers whose outfielders could be heard screaming at their rattled teammates. Robertson was called to the mound, now tasked with trying to keep the game going. He walked catcher Justin Marra to put runners at first and second. Castaldo exited the game in favour of pinch runner Keiran Martini-Wong.

A brief sidebar: Martini-Wong is on the Maple Leafs' Junior Call-Up roster. What that means is that this 20-year-old middle infielder plays full-time for High Park Junior Baseball, but when the Leafs find themselves with a short bench, he gets the call to join the club wherever they may be playing. Last weekend, he made his Leafs debut in Guelph, playing second base and going 0-for-2 with a couple of walks. This was the night he made his Christie Pits debut as a Maple Leaf.

As the ninth inning rolled around, several veteran players were scheduled to bat, and Martini-Wong was aware that he might be called upon to pinch run. He started stretching on the bench and went for a little jog along the left field line. Sure enough, once Castaldo and Justin Marra were on base, Leafs manager Rob Butler made the move. Martini-Wong was coming in to run for Castaldo.

Butler: "Don't get picked off."

Martini-Wong: "Yes sir!"

Solazzo came to the plate and Robertson plunked him. Bases loaded again, Martini-Wong now standing at third. Everyone losing their minds. Right fielder Ryan Dos Santos was up next. Robertson's first pitch bounced to the backstop. Martini-Wong was off like a shot. He sprinted home, dove headfirst and slid across the plate with the winning run.

"I've never seem something like that before," Martini-Wong said later. "The fans are absolutely unreal... That was insane."

8-7 FINAL. The Leafs, Tymochko and the Christie Mystique all notched their first win of the season.

Kitchener 7 9 1

Toronto 8 7 1

W - Tymochko (1-0, 4.50)

L - Anderson (0-1, 27.00)

BOXSCORE

Saturday, May 25, 2024 - Toronto Maple Leafs at Welland Jackfish

Ben Abram struts off the mound the proud father of a complete game shutout at Welland Stadium on Saturday afternoon. (Image: Welland Jackfish YouTube)

The Toronto Maple Leafs rolled into Welland on Saturday, still high off their comeback victory three nights before.

And they got destroyed.

After a two-hour rain delay in the Rose City, the Leafs were shut down by second-year Jackfish starter Ben Abram. The towering righty pitched a complete game shutout. The Leafs mustered just four hits and two walks, while striking out eleven times.

Wilgenis Alvarado had what is likely his worst start in the IBL. The Leafs' own second-year man lasted just 2 1/3 innings, striking out one batter while surrendering 10 hits and eight runs (five earned). Four errors by the Leafs did not help the cause.

A rainout would have been a blessing. Instead, the Leafs were battered 10-0 as their high plunged to a low.

Toronto 0 4 4

Welland 10 14 1

W - Abram (2-0, 1.84)

L - Alvarado (0-2, 5.40)

BOXSCORE

Sunday, May 26, 2024 - Welland Jackfish at Toronto Maple Leafs

Justin Marra salutes the Bushmen as he rounds the bases after hitting a two-run dinger on Sunday at Christie Pits.

After a quick return flight, these same two teams clashed again in Toronto the following afternoon.

"Baseball in Paradise" was the theme at Christie Pits. Hawaiian shirts, leis and a limbo contest created a tropical vibe for fans. Clad in baby blue jerseys, the Maple Leafs were all business on the diamond.

Shrugging off the decimation of 24 hours before, the Leafs poked and prodded at Jackfish pitching all afternoon and held on for a nice revenge victory.

In the bottom of the first inning, a single and two walks by starter Francisco Jimenez loaded the bases. Catcher Justin Marra hit a sac fly to bring home first baseman Jordan Castaldo with the first run of the game.

Welland scored right back in the top of the second inning, as starter Jesse Hodges gave up an RBI double to make it a 1-1 ballgame.

The visitors pulled ahead in the top of the fourth. With two out and a runner on third, a grounder to short was bobbled for an error by Jose Vinicio. The run scored and Welland went up 2-1.

The Leafs responded with big lumber starting in the bottom of the 4th. Right fielder Ryan Dos Santos bashed one over the caged monster to put the baby blues up 3-2.

In the top of the fifth, Hodges was relieved by Julian Valdez, who halted a potential Jackfish rally.

Bottom of the fifth, Justin Marra: POW! A two-run blast of his own over the caged monster made it 5-2 and gave him three RBIs on the day.

The home side did not let up. Vinicio walked to open the bottom of the sixth inning. He stole second, moved to third on a Castaldo fly out, and scored on a 4-3 ground out by starting centerfielder Marcus Knecht. The Leafs were up 6-2 and everybody was feelin' irie.

Julian Tymochko pitched a scoreless seventh for Toronto.

Chris Nagorski got tagged for a two-run home run in the eighth but escaped without further damage thanks to a 9-6 double play that killed Welland's last best chance to rally.

"Last best chance" I say, because on came the ninth and in came Toronto's Undertaker Dustin Richardson to end the game.

Gasping their last, the Jackfish flopped around a bit. They got a single and a walk but nothing else. A grounder to second base ended the game and the Leafs split the weekend series.

With a 6-4 FINAL, Valdez recorded his first win and Richardson his first burial.

Welland 4 7 0

Toronto 6 6 2

W - Valdez (1-0, 6.75)

L - Jimenez (0-1, 7.50)

S - Richardson (1)

BOXSCORE