Home and Away Series

Game #16 v South Australia

Sunday 18th January 2009

GAME REPORTS

Queensland completed their Claxton Shield commitment with a three game sweep over South Australia

In the last game in the season for both teams it was the case of the young gun (Justin Erasmus – Queensland) up against the veteran (Phil Brassington – South Australia) on the mound for the match at Holloway Field
Both pitchers were in their groove in the early part of the game, with the only registered hit through four innings going to another South Australian veteran in Darren Fidge with a double base hit to centre field

The game was turning over at a fast pace due to the respective dominance of both pitchers

South Australia finally put a score on the board in the fifth dig when catcher Michael Corbett made base on a walk and advanced to third base on a safe hit from Jared Kempf
Corbett then came home on a sacrifice fly to centre field by Jeremy Cresswell

Queenslander's Brad Dutton and Michael Collins reacted with the bat in the bottom of the fifth innings but were unable to convert a result on the scoreboard

The Rams made a pitching change in the sixth innings with Nathan Crawford replacing Justin Erasmus
Crawford found himself in trouble from the start when South Australia’s Tom Brice singled to right field
Brice then stole second base and was advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by team-mate Ben Wigmore
On the next play Craig Watts hit to third base only to see Rams defender Matthew Studeman flip up the ball bare handed to catcher Naylor who tagged Brice at home trying to squeeze in another run

Crawford's control continued to let him down in the seventh innings, giving up consecutive walks
This forced Rams manager Peter Yates to call on Matthew Timms to take the mound
Again the visitors advanced runners into scoring positions only to see some strong Queensland defence keep the score to 1-0

The home side applied the pressure in the seventh innings when speedster Trent Baker came into the match to pinch run for David Sutherland who had made base on a walk
Baker reached third base with two out and then scored on a wild pitch to draw the game level at 1-1

Queensland manager Yates then brought in his fourth pitcher into the match with Ryan Searle replacing Matthew Timms
Yates also revamped his defence to accommodate Trent Baker into the side
Three up and three down was the result for the visitors in the eight innings allotting Queensland two innings to grab the game on offer

South Australia replaced their starting pitcher Phil Brassington with Michael Fienemann producing immediate results for the northern state
Matt Studeman singled to right field and then Clinton Naylor reached base when hit by a pitch
South Australia made another pitching change reaching for experienced Darren Fidge to shut down the threat
Ram's batter Trent Baker hit to short stop who tried to execute a double play only to see Baker beat the relay to first base scoring Studeman to give the Rams a 2-1 advantage

The visitors were shattered and went out in consective order in the ninth for Queensland to grab a grinding victory

In order to start this final report for our Queensland and South Australian fans on a positive note, we will begin by complementing the Queensland Rams on finishing their 2009 Claxton Shield campaign with a series sweep that has them finishing just one game behind New South Wales
Being hard to please, it may be scant consolation for them that they narrowly missed a semi-final opportunity
They will no doubt replay in their minds a few of the games that they might have won during the journey
There is nothing for them to be ashamed about in such a tight and keenly contested competition such as this

Unfortunately for our many friends and subscribers in South Australia this last, torture ending, game was somewhat of a “microcosm” of all the things that have gone wrong for them in 2008/09, much as it did in 2007/08
Yet another desperately close contest simply refused to go in their favour

In baseball, like most sports, you generally make your own luck, but one can’t help but feel that anything that could go wrong just about has for the ‘Croweaters’ once again this summer
Let’s start right here by recounting that South Australia lost this game by the skinniest of 1-2 scorelines
The first run they allowed came via a leadoff walk, followed by a sacrifice bunt and it crossed the plate on a wild pitch
The second came after a single, then a hit batter, later a passed ball and it scored on a fielder’s choice ground out

This, readers, is typical of the kind of ways the South Australians have found to gift runs and to thereby lose games these past couple of years
On this occasion they could not shift much of the blame to their veteran-of-evergreen starters Phil Brassington who has now put a lid on his twelfth season of Australian major league baseball, in a career that spans even longer than his nineteen years that we have chronicled!
‘Brasso’ went deep into this game to allow only one run from seven innings, matching three hits with three strike outs
The tell-tale issue for all “knuckleballers” was the eight walks, three wild pitches and a hit batter … these stats come with the knuckleball territory, but this time they did not hurt as much as they might have on another day

Inexperienced second-year Claxton pitcher Mitch Fienemann was the unlucky lad to take the loss when he was unable to secure an out in the eighth and one of his two base runners eventually crossed the plate on a fielder’s choice for the winning run
Darren Fidge is one of the very few to have seen more AMLB action that Brassington and, typically, he was a tremendously valuable servant for his team with both bat and ball today

Boston Red Sox rookie Justin Erasmus has been largely struggling to find his feet at senior National level at this early stage, but he ended his 2009 Claxton Shield campaign on a very positive note with a solid, quality start here
OK, he walked a few more than he would have preferred, but only two hits and one run from five innings is a definite confidence builder looking ahead to his 2009 professional season

Nathan Crawford was not particularly tidy in this game, while Atlanta rookie Matt Timms was a lot neater with no action of note happening during his one inning stint
Chicago Cubs ‘A’ leaguer Ryan Searle demonstrated his potential class by making sure that a tenuous one-run lead would be maintained for the Rams across the final two innings
He could do no more than to sit down the last six South Australian batters in unbroken sequence

Another lingering concern for South Australian baseball to ponder, apart from their relief pitching, is that annoying habit of failing to score runs when their opposition is limited, then scoring plenty when their shaky bullpen leaks just one or two more!
This was painfully evident again here when the combined South Australian offence, which is far from shabby, could only cobble together three hits, the best of which being a double from renowned pitcher Darren Fidge

Stalwart Jeremy Cresswell drove in South’s only run via a sacrifice fly to add to his early walk
As we have mentioned, it was great to see him back as good as ever after that horrific whack in the face he copped from a pitch in their home series against Victoria at Woodville near the start of Claxton 2008

I’m not sure why productive sibling Wade Dutton didn’t continue his great competition in this series, but the family was more than adequately represented by Brad Dutton, who batted a handsome .311 for the Independent League Rockford Riverhawks in 2008
As the only two-hit performer in this game, Brad took his final competition average to .393 to prove once again what a naturally gifted hitter he is

Unobtrusive former ABL pitcher Matt Studeman is demanding attention as a hitter after a strong Claxton 2009 where his .466 on base percentage tells us that this guy can really handle a bat
To prove this again in his last appearance for the competition, Studeman accumulated two walks on top of his single

Cleveland Indians’ signee Trent Baker supplied Queensland’s single RBI via his game-winning fielder’s choice ground out in the bottom of the eighth

I did see one reporter use the nickname South Australian BITE during this competition and I’m not sure if it is a throwback to the 2000 Claxton Shield, when Western Australia still called themselves the Heelers, or if it is still in common use?
I really don’t want to prolong any pain for the South Aussies this year but, it must be concluded, their bite has certainly lacked a fair few teeth lately

It sounds gratuitous, but the only way for them has to be UP!
"SOS" John Challinor and Dushan Ruzic ... and anyone else they can find!

The Queensland Rams, as most expected, were right in the mix and ‘Flintoff & Dunn’ would suggest that the passing of time will take care of itself for them
There are plenty of young Queenslanders refining their trades in US professional ranks and these guys will only get better
As long as they don’t let their proven leaders like Brett Roneberg, John Veitch and others move on, they will continue to pose a very real threat every time a National competition rolls around