The 2024 Red Hook Softball League resumed play on July 11 after a Fourth of July break. In the first game of the evening, the Record Shop took on MiniBar at Dovey Diamond. Last place MiniBar jumped out to a 3-0 lead but the Record Shop responded by scoring 19 unanswered runs. They crushed five home runs in the game including three by RecKids’ Coach and 2022 League MVP Juice Brault. With contributions throughout the lineup they cruised to a 25-8 victory.
In the second game, The Wobblies took on Bait & Tackle. Wobblies scored five in the top of the first but Bait responded with six of their own. The game remained close throughout and the Wobblies led 11-9 with Bait coming to the plate in the bottom of the seventh. Bait pushed across a run and had first and second with two outs but a pop-out ended the rally as the Wobblies held on to win 11-10.
On July 15, the Wobblies carried their momentum into a matchup with Hometown and jumped out to an 8-0 lead which was capped off by Nate Laux’s league-leading seventh homer of the season. Hometown made a push and cut the lead to 8-5 in the top of the fourth but the Wobblies responded with five of their own in the bottom of the inning. Rodz pitched a complete game for the Wobblies and got help from Montana who made a great diving play at third. They won the game 17-6.
On July 18, B61 took on the Record Shop in a match-up between the top two teams in the standings. The Record Shop scored three in the top of the first but B61 responded with three of their own in the bottom of the inning. B61 got a clutch two-out, three-run triple from DeLeo who was playing despite a bad back.
B61 held a 9-7 lead in the sixth but the Record Shop was threatening with runners on the corners with two outs. Chuck made a beautiful over-the-shoulder catch in center field to preserve the lead. The Record Shop threatened with runners on the corners and two outs in the seventh but the runner from first took off on a swing and a miss. B61 alertly threw to first and the runner was called out as there is no stealing in the league and if a runner takes off, the runner is out if the fielding team throws to the bag before the runner gets back. The play ended the game and lifted B61 to an important victory.
On July 22, Bait & Tackle took on Hometown in a potential playoff preview. Five consecutive Hometown batters walked to start the game and they all scored, giving them a 5-0 lead. Bait worked a few walks of their own and responded with five in the bottom of the inning. The game remained close throughout but a few big defensive plays by Bait made the difference as they threw out a runner at the plate in the sixth thanks to a great throw in left and an athletic tag by their catcher. They led 10-7 going into the seventh but Hometown would not go down quietly, scoring a run and then loaded the bases; however, the game fittingly ended with a fly out to left.
On July 25, B61 took on MiniBar knowing that a victory would secure a bye in the first round of the playoffs. A three-run homer by Morel got them off to a strong start and they never looked back. MiniBar kept it close thanks to a few nice plays in the field including throwing out a runner at home in the sixth but B61 won the game 10-5. The win clinched B61 a bye as well as the best record in the regular season.
Brian’s Top Games of the Regular Season
Here we go with my countdown leading to the best game of the season!
5. The Wobblies beat Bait & Tackle 11-10 on July 11. The Wobblies scored five in the first and Bait responded with five of their own. In the bottom of the seventh Bait got one run and was threatening for more but the Wobblies got out of the inning with a pop-out to beat their rivals.
4. The Record Shop beats MiniBar 4-3 on June 20. The Record Shop and MiniBar were tied at three after six innings. In the top of the seventh, Bobby Cole led off with a triple down the line. He then used aggressive base running to draw a wide throw to third on a grounder to first and then scored the go-ahead run. With two outs and a runner on first, MiniBar got a single to right but an excellent throw cut down the tying run at third to end the game. The Record Shop was tested but came away with a 4-3 victory.
3. MiniBar beats Bait & Tackle 18-17 on May 16. A pair of home runs for Bait & Tackle helped them jump out to a seven-run lead against MiniBar. However, MiniBar caught fire in the bottom of the sixth and rallied for eight runs to take the lead. There was some controversy over how many runs scored in the inning but ultimately it was determined to be eight. Down to their last out, Michael Buscemi delivered a two-run double to give Bait a 17-16 lead. However, in the bottom of the seventh, MiniBar scored two runs on a ground out to second with some aggressive base running with the second runner scoring on a very close play at the plate. The 18-17 win gave MiniBar their first win in the Red Hook Softball League
2. The Record Shop beats the Wobblies 10-9 on May 16. The Record Shop jumped out to a 6-0 lead over the Wobblies but the Wobblies strung together singles and came through with some clutch hits. They took a 9-6 lead in the top of the sixth and led 9-8 going to the bottom of the seventh. A single and a walk set the stage for Bene Coopersmith who ripped a line drive into the gap in left-center. Two runs scored lifting the Record Shop to a 10-9 win. Coopersmith almost had a walkoff homer but he stumbled and did a celebratory summersault rounding third.
- B61 and the Wobblies tie 8-8 after 10 innings on June 20. B61 and the Wobblies were in a close game with B61 up 2-1 after 6. They added two more in the top of the seventh, including an RBI single by pitcher Shawn Andrew but the Wobblies responded with three in the bottom of the seventh to send it to extras. Each team scored one in the eighth as B61 got out of a jam in the bottom of the inning. B61 scored three runs in the top of the ninth including a home run by Andrew. There was some controversy during the bottom of the ninth as it looked like B61 had cut down a runner at the plate but was called safe. The Wobblies tied the game and a running catch in right field sent the game to the 10th. The Wobblies loaded the bases with the score tied 8-8 in the bottom of the 10th but a pop-out ended the inning and ended the game in a tie.
Final Standings: (regular season ends)
1 – B 61 9-2-1
2 – Record Shop 9-3
3 – Wobblies 8-3-1
4 – Bait & Tackle 4-8
5 – Hometown 4-8
6 – MiniBar 1-11
