ICHIRO BLUNDERS, SQUIRRELS WIN WILD ONE

Frostbite Falls—Luis Castillo had three hits in his Squirrels debut, the home team scored in (literally) every inning, the lineup socked five homers, yet the game was in doubt in the ninth until (of all people) Ichiro Suzuki committed a fundamental boner on the basepaths, and the staggered Frostbite pen held on to win a wild one over visiting Brooklyn in a critical divisional game, 16-13!

Brooklyn’s offense, if less consistent, was explosive. The Moabs scored first on Miguel Cabrera’s 16th HR of the year, a two-run shot, but Frostbite scratched back with solo runs off a sluggish Roy Oswalt in each of the next three innings to take a 3-2. Brooklyn got to Brad Penny in the top of the fourth, however, scoring five times off Penny and reliever Jamie Walker. Frostbite came right back to tie the score, however, on Mark Teahen’s 10th boundary belt, a three-run shot that made the score 7-7.

Hmm. Roy Oswalt, Brad Penny, 14 runs between the two clubs after four innings? It didn’t add up, but that was the kind of game it was. Tom Gordon (2-0, 7.50) would end up getting the win by retiring two batters in the fifth, as it turned out, as the Squirrels hung three runs on reliever Kyle Davies (6-8, 7.71), and as the ninth inning rolled around, Andrew Haynes’s troops nursed a seemingly unthreatable 16-8 lead, with Eric Gagne on for garbage time.

But Gagne was, well, garbage—he walked Felipe Lopez to open the inning, allowed a single to Cabrera, then walked Ryan Howard to load the bases. He hit Benji Molina to force in the first run, then walked Derek Lee to plate another. Scott Linebrink relieved Gagne, but after getting Bobby Abreu to hit a scoring fly ball, walked Casey Blake to load them up....again!

It was at this juncture, trailing 16-11 with two down, that Ichiro Suzuki choked BIG TIME. Suzuki hit a ground ball to third, which Morgan Ensberg turned into an out at home, keeping the bases loaded at two out. Edgar Renteria then singled sharply to left to score Renteria and Blake, but Suzuki attempted to take third on Jason Bay’s arm.....

and he BEAT the throw.....

and the TAG......but.....

OVERSLID the bag! Ensberg tagged Ichiro! GAME OVER! Pandemonium ensued! So wild was this inning that after the game it was all that anyone could talk about, even though both Pujols (#38, #39) and Bonds (#19, #20) had homered in this game, and the Squirrels had stayed within a game of Brooklyn by holding on for the win.