Lansdale finally finds the clutch

By DENNIS C. WAY
Times Herald Staff

NORRISTOWN — For most of this Perkiomen Valley Twilight League season, Lansdale has been like a woman with a sturdy pair of nylons – no runs.



The Tigers, who led the league in runs scored a season ago while reaching the championship finals, have hit the ball and flooded the basepaths with runners. They just haven’t been able to score many of them.



For one night, however, the Tigers found the key to unlock home plate.



Tuesday night at Latshaw/McCarthy Field, Lansdale was an uncharacteristic 4-for-7 with runners in scoring position, built a six-run lead and then rode the five-hit pitching of Travis Hughes to 6-2 win over Norristown.



"Our pitching and our fielding have been awesome so far this year," said Tigers center fielder Jon McGlone, who was in the middle of Lansdale’s run production with a pair of hits and three runs scored. "Our bats just haven’t come around.



"But everyone was relaxed tonight. We kind of realized what we had to do and no one felt they had to be the one to drive in the run."



The Zen-like approach worked wonders for the visitors, who scored in three of the game’s first four innings.



Initially, the Tigers did their best Roger Federer imitiation and hit lines.



Zach Hess drilled a first-inning, two-out RBI double that dented the left-field line to get Lansdale on the board.



Rich Guthridge’s run-scoring infield single in the third snuggled up to the chalk.



And much to their surprise, the Tigers had an early lead.



"It was definitely nice to get runners on, and then get them in," said Lansdale skipper Christian Militello. "It’s a relief to manage with a lead and it’s nice for a pitcher to pitch with a lead."



The pitcher in question was the right-hander Hughes, who had to deal with a Norristown baserunner in each of the first three frames, but found the pitches he needed to register outs.



"I felt good out there, I felt relaxed," said Hughes, a Conwell-Egan product now at DeSales. "I couldn’t throw a curveball for a strike to save my life, but I was able to make them hit my pitch."



The Tigers offense then put the contest out of reach in the fourth.



With one out, a Stan Haraczka single, a Rob Slough walk and an Agents error loaded the bases.



And the Tigers capitalized.



First, on a Chris Jeffers sacrifice fly, then on McGlone’s run-producing infield single and finally via Josh Fink’s laser-beam, two-run double to left.



Hughes then wriggled out of a second-and-third, one-out jam in the home fourth, and it was clear sailing for the Tigers.



A couple of Lansdale errors led to a two-run Norristown sixth.



But Hughes, again, pitched out of trouble and 1-2-3’d the Agents in the seventh.



"I was getting tired," the right-hander admitted. "I didn’t start much at school, I pitched mostly in relief. But I was able to pace myself and stay focused."



Lansdale had a victory, and perhaps more importantly, they had it by scoring runs.



"Our lineup has a lot of lefties, and some of the guys have struggled a little bit against left-handed pitching," Militello said. "But we’ve continued to get guys on, and maybe we’re coming around."



PERKNOTZ: Tuesday marked the 15th anniversary of Plymouth Whitemarsh’s baseball team winning the state championship, and Norristown center fielder Matt Altieri, a member of that team, reminded that the team is having a 15-year reunion on July 18 at the Reading Phillies game.

Date: June 16, 2009     Time: 7:30pm      Venue: Latshaw McCarthy Field