WORLD SERIES GAME 2

After a late blast to steal Game 1 in thrilling fashion, the St. Francis Kansans looked to stun the Yuma Firebirds with two wins in Arizona and a decided advantage to begin the 2017 BARB World Series.

It wouldn’t be easy – on the hill for the hosts was their ace, towering southpaw Chris Sale (18-4, 2.86 in the regular season). Unavailable for Game 1 thanks to a divisional series that went the distance, Sale worked a quick first inning but was stung by a first-pitch homer off the bat of Marcell Ozuna in the second. He also allowed a base runner on an error by Anthony Rendon in the third but worked around it to keep the deficit at one.

St. Francis also started a lefty, this the mercurial Rich Hill. Perfect through two frames, Hill quickly lost the handle in the third. Brandon Crawford singled the opposite way and advanced a base when Brett Gardner dumped a single to right. Christian Vazquez, starting behind the plate in place of light-hitting Mike Zunino, waited on a curve and laced it to the wall in right-center to score Crawford. After a pop out, Joey Votto closed the book on the inning with a single 15 feet off the right-field line to plate both remaining runners for a 3-1 Yuma lead.

That was all the Firebirds would muster. Could they hold off powerful St. Francis?

Well, yes...and no.

Sale settled down and remained in the game into the top of the seventh, when his 86^th offering of the game turned into a souvenir thanks to Didi Gregorius. It was just a solo shot, bringing the Kansans within a run. Bryan Shaw then came on and finished the frame with the lead intact.

Things got interesting in the final two innings. Shaw hit Justin Turner in the eighth but promptly induced a double play to end the inning. In the ninth, a single and a walk put two on with none out and caused Jose Quintana to earn the call from the Yuma bullpen. His 1-1 to Zack Cozart was bounced straight to Ian Kinsler. The second-sacker flipped casually to Crawford, followed by a laser to first. Double play! The tying run, however, had advanced to third.

Despite the southpaw on the mound, Kansans management decided to send up a left-handed pinch hitter for weak-hitting Kevin Kiermaier. Jesse Winker, a late-season call-up who drove in two runs in two plate appearances in the regular season, took two balls from Quintana before called and swinging strikes. The fifth pitch was smashed…RIGHT AT Votto. The Canadian snagged Winker’s laser and trotted to the bag, ending the game to even the Series at one.

FINAL: YUMA 3, ST. FRANCIS 2

Another close one, but this time the Kansans couldn’t sustain a rally long enough to push across the tying run. That meant the World Series would shift to St. Francis for a guaranteed three games. If either team could sweep at The Monastery, they would clinch the BARB crown.