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GAME ONE: Applegate 12, Superior 6. The ball was flying out of Applegate Park, with the Clips crushing six homers, including Darin Erstad’s first two homers of the year and Brian Schneider’s first, in the Clips’ 12-6 romp. Superior’s Josh Beckett was KO’d in the fourth, having served up three homers, eight runs and 10 hits. Gary Sheffield also homered twice for Applegate, giving him 16 on the year. Wade Miller went the distance for the home squad, although he did cough up three long balls.
GAME TWO: Superior 3, Applegate 2. Jake Peavy pitched great for Superior, allowing the Clips just two hits through five innings, as his mates built up a 3-0 lead. But he tired quickly in the sixth, following a single, walk, DP and another walk, leading to a call to the bullpen. Dan Haren induced a LF (x) roll with David Ortiz up, which Miguel Cabrera could not handle, and suddenly it was 3-2. But Mark Hendrickson, who pitched 4 1/3 innings in Game One, pitched two innings of one-hit relief, and Greg Aquino closed it out. Cabrera was 4-for-5 for Superior and Ortiz had three of Applegate’s five hits.
GAME THREE: Applegate 8, Superior 7. In a game of Insane-O-Matic, robotic Super Hal stuck to his instructions of bringing in Mark Hendrickson no matter the circumstances – ahead, behind, tired, not – with Superior clinging to a 4-2 lead in the seventh inning. Hendrickson gave up a two-run single to Eli Marrero to tie the game at 4-4. It appeared Super Hal would be off the hook as Super Gary left Rheal Cormier in the game too long, and Bobby Crosby delivered a two-run homer in the eighth to put Superior up 6-4. Three walks and a ground out made it 7-4, and still Hendrickson trotted out to the mound for the bottom of the eighth. Richard Hidalgo doubled but the next two hitters made outs. Then everything fell apart. Jason Varitek doubled in Hidalgo and Khalil Greene singled in Varitek. Jose Hernandez rolled a RF (x) to Brian Giles that Giles could not handle, a single and an error that scored Greene to tie the game at 7-7 and put Hernandez on third. Marrero singled Hernandez in and the Clips were up 8-7. So stunned were the Clips that they sent setup man Salomon Torres to the mound for the ninth instead of K-Rod, thinking it was the eighth, and were puzzled to see him showing up as “tired” when he hadn’t pitched in the series. He walked Richie Sexson to lead off (Sexson had come off the bench to face Eddie Guardado, kudos for that move, Hal), but David DeJesus defied logic, didn’t lay down a bunt and promptly hit into a double play. Bobby Crosby grounded out to end the game. Shannon Stewart and Greene each had three of Applegate’s 16 hits; Ray Durham had three for Superior. Hendrickson gave up 7 hits in his 1 2/3 innings of work, and though he was tired throughout, none of the hits were fatigue hits.
