It took me long enough in this recap to get to the first
inning. Actually this game was the best
part of being at the game. Chuck and I
were both keeping scorecards, but he’d forgotten to bring a pencil, so I lent
him my pen, which had consequences later.
Chris Heston started the game for the Rainiers. This was a bit of a surprise for me, since I
didn’t know where he’d gotten to lately.
The last I’d heard of him, Heston had pitched a no hitter for the San
Francisco Giants in New York. There was
some brief hope he’d be the next great Giants pitcher. I was using that winning image as my
wallpaper for a while. Likewise, I’d
watched Rainier second baseman, Gordon Beckham, play several times for the
White Sox, and he was one of my favorite players on the team. (And now, WGN America doesn’t even show
baseball games.)
The night started well for the Diablos as pitcher, Tyrell
Jenkins, had a clean inning to start the game.
In the bottom, Franchy Cordero led off with a triple and was driven in
by Corey Spangenberg. 1-0 Diablos. The
top of the second had three plays I’m still in shock over. The first batter grounded to Spangenberg at
third, who dropped it. As I was looking
down to write “E5” on my scorecard, I looked up and saw that he had thrown out
the runner. ALWAYS WATCH THE ENTIRE PLAY
BEFORE MARKING IT. Jenkins walked the
next batter. He then picked off the
runner, who hadn’t even strayed far enough to try to dive back. It seemed like he tripped or came off the
bag. Jenkins walked the next
batter. He picked him off and the runner
was diving back. Two pick offs in a
row? Every time I think I’ve seen
everything in a ballgame, I’m surprised shortly thereafter.
The bottom of the second didn’t have much action, but I did
suddenly see Chico in the upper level Westar Bank section casting a fishing
line down in to the lower level. I’m not
sure what was going on there. Also, a
huge military cargo jet flew over. It
just seemed to defy gravity. The biggest
play of the entire third inning was a foul ball that fell into a nearby section
and was dropped by a fan, who was boo’ed.
The people next to us were pretty loud and having a good time with
audience participation. They got right
into the “We want a hit!” chant. When
the player at bat got a free pass, they changed to “We’ll take a walk!” Dance Cam between halves featured a couple of
attendants dressed as Diamond Girls dancing to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance
With Somebody.”
Clank! Rainier Daniel
Vogelbach bounced a two-run home run ball off the sign on the Big Dog House in
right field. Jenkins finished the fourth
inning with a strikeout and two on in scoring position. 1-2 Rainiers, and that could have been
worse. The Diablo half of the fourth
started off with a great Rainier defensive play, as DJ Peterson caught a foul
ball going into the third base camera well.
OMG, are the fans in front of us using a selfie stick? Sitting at a ball game, you need a selfie
stick, really? I’m just embarrassed. Thankfully, the players didn’t notice.
Spangenberg had a great diving stop and put out to start the
fifth. Meanwhile, catcher Tony Cruz
earned his pay, getting hit on a backswing.
No obvious harm done. Diego Goris
tied it for the Diablos on a monster solo home run into the centerfield green
seats (the elevated lawn overlooking the field). Back in the old Diablo days, players hitting
a home run would stand beside the stands by the dugout with their helmet
out. Fans would line up to give them tip
money for the shot. (I’m thinking
probably a couple of phone numbers too.)
Yes, really. Tips for home runs. Cruz then doubled (I told you he was fine) and
Franchy singled him home to give the team the lead. 3-2 Diablos.
Chuck had gotten up to get a meal in this inning, and I
continued his scorecard for him. Of
course, the hardest play of the game to score came up. Rainier catcher Tuffy Gosewich attempted to
pick off Carlos Asuaje on second. The
throw went into centerfield. Asuaje
hesitated for a second, then broke for third, where he was put out by the
centerfield. I have this as a Caught
Stealing, but I think the official record disagrees. Needless to say, the third base umpire was
not a popular person after that play.
Thereafter, he got a steady stream of abuse on any call involving him,
perhaps correctly. In the sixth, the
Rainiers answered with a run driven in to tie the score.
In the top of the seventh, I ran out to get a drink refill
and a pizza pretzel. I still kept up
with the game, via radio and a TV monitor by the concessions (clever). I did miss the grounds crew dragging the base
paths and doing a dance routine to Seals & Crofts’ “Diamond Girl.” I think the PA called them the “Diamond
Boys.” The significance of this goes
back the Diamond Girls that used to perform at Diablos games. They were the team cheerleaders in little
shorts and tops in team colors. I think
they were high school girls. They’d
sashay to the top of the dugout and perform a cheer routine to the song. It was attention-getting. I’m sure there are plenty of El Paso high school cheerleader girls, who’d be happy to
perform this summer, if given an outfit and some direction.
Meanwhile in the Diablos’ half of the inning, a single, a
sacrifice, and a hit by Spangenberg brought in Cordero to give the team a 4-3
lead. The top of the eighth featured
some kind of ice bucket Diablos’ trivia challenge with the loser getting
wet. In the eighth, the wheels came off
for Rainier pitching. Nine men came to
the plate with five of them scoring.
However, this was not without controversy.
Goris’ apparently hit a bases clearing double to center,
only to have one of the runners called back to third. The ball had bounced out of play and was
ruled a ground rule double. The crowd
muttered in confusion, not having the radio call on like I did. The new “pitch-less” intentional walk sent a
runner to first without any preamble.
Tim Hagerty on the radio seemed to disapprove of the new rule. I’m not sure what the fans thought.
With the bases loaded, Asuaje sent a high fly ball into the
near unobservable left field corner. It
looked out, but the third base umpire ruled it fair. Chuck, using a pen, scratched this into his
scorecard. The video started to show a
replay, and then immediately stopped before showing the ball in flight. Meanwhile, the umpires convened and then sent
the runners back to the bases. You can
imagine the crowd’s reaction, even knowing that was probably the right
call. Chuck’s scorecard was
wrecked. Back at the plate, Asuaje did
go ahead and rap a two-run single. 9-3
Diablos.
The ninth inning entertainment featured a girl in an NM
State shirt playing a balloon-pumping game.
Good to see we weren’t the only Las Cruces natives in the park. The Rainiers did score one run to bring the
final score to Diablos 9, Rainiers 4.
The most exciting moment of the inning was actually a foul ball that hit
the roof. Experienced fans started
yelling immediately and about three seconds later, the ball rolled back off and
into a, thankfully, deserted section.
It’s that proximity of danger that makes the game so involving. I give my star of the game to Diego Goris,
mostly for his home run.
After unfortunately having to end my brief affair with our
usher, I went to the bathroom. Again, I
hit my head on the shelf over the urinal.
Next time, I’m using a toilet in a stall. If traffic getting to the stadium was bad, we
had no idea how much worse it would be on the way back. Construction shutdown two lanes of the interstate,
and it took a half hour just to get past it, and then another half hour to get
home. So
the trip was bad, we missed the giveaway, and I didn’t like the expensive,
ballpark food. But gosh darn it, we had
a great time. Credit the great game and
the atmosphere, including the cute girls and throwback uniforms. Good show Diablos. I’ll probably be back again before the
construction finishes in another year, but I’ll certainly enjoy it more when it
is done.
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