Game 23 Recap: Hurley Girdy Man
“Thrown like a star in my vast sleep, I open my eyes to take a peep”
By Roberto Santiago with additional reporting from Joe Horton
It’s understandable if Ballers fans aren’t familiar with the 1968 Donovan single, Hurdy Gurdy Man. They can also be forgiven if they were apprehensive about taking a peep going into last night’s game. Those who tuned in found themselves gazing with tranquility as Charlie Hurley (1-1) returned from the IL for Oakland, throwing six innings of 1-hit, 1-run ball in a superb performance the Ballers sorely needed.
‘Tis when the Hurley Girdy Man came slinging balls of fire. The teams traded zeros for the first three frames with Oakland leaving the bases loaded in the first and third. Hurley kept the PaddleHeads batters off balance during the first third of the game, not allowing a hit to the first 13 batters he faced. The 14th batter came up after Hurley had hit one and walked one and promptly lined a single to right for an RBI and the only real blemish on the day for the B’s starter who sat down the next 6 hitters for one of the cleanest lines of any Ballers pitcher this season.
Hurley was so efficient that a friend texted me to ask, “Is this game…boring"?” I assured him it was not. Reached by Dispatches after the game, Hurley wrote that his main goal coming into the game was, “establishing the fastball early to open up everything else.” He also gave credit to catcher Jaden Collura who, “called a hell of a game.” As has become the norm for Ballers pitchers, Hurley was modest: “Just trying to do my job and give the team chance to win so we can take the series tomorrow.” Crash Davis would be proud.
In the opposite dugout, Missoula starter Ryan Wentz (2-1) took his first loss of the year. As has been the case for Oakland previously in this series, walks doomed Wentz as the Baller batters baited him into 6 free passes in just 3.1 innings.
The PaddleHeads came into the game with zero extra position players on their bench. This led to an unusual situation in the top of the fifth inning when first baseman Joskar Feliciano had to exit the game after grounding into a double play to end the fourth. With Feliciano out, relief pitcher Garrett Gores entered the game in left field. Gores made a spinning catch that sent him into the wall on a drive by Jeter Ybarra in the seventh. He later drew a walk and advanced on a wild pitch.
Histories of ages past, Unenlightened shadows cast. The early-season Ballers don’t like to make things easy; they need to entertain the fans. In a nod to my texting friend, the Ballers made things interesting in the eighth. After the B’s put up single runs in the sixth and seventh to extend the lead to 5-1, Langston Burkett threw a scoreless seventh in relief of Hurley. Valek Cisneros, who played hero in the 17-12 win on Wednesday night, replaced Burkett in the eighth with a 7-1 advantage. Cisneros gave up back-to-back walks before getting a line out from Jeremy Piatkiewicz. It would be the only out he’d get as the next two batters went yard, cutting the lead to 7-5.
At least one of those might have been avoided but for a controversial call. It looked like Missoula’s Enzo Apodaca may have struck out on a caught foul tip for the second out, but the umpire ruled it just a foul ball. Manager Aaron Miles asked for an explanation to no avail. The next pitch was the undoing for Cisneros as Apodaca hit a three-run shot. Pitching coach Jim Dedrick was hot after the home run, earning a warning from the home plate umpire. After Nich Klemp hit a homer, Dedrick was ejected for something he said, having to be restrained by the first base umpire and eventually being escorted out by a surprisingly robust stadium staff contingent, much to the amusement of B’s broadcaster Gareth Kwok: “He’s getting a security escort…there’s two security members, a Missoula staff member, and it looks like almost a member of the grounds crew. He’s got the royal treatment here! He’s got five people walking him out of the stadium!” Due to the structure of the stadium, Dedrick had to make a delightful and dignified walk of shame through the stands and down the concourse to the clubhouse.
“Time demands a turn around, And once again the truth is found.” This time the truth was found by closer Braydon Nelson who hasn’t given up a run in his last three appearances. Nelson allowed just two base runners in getting the 5-out save. Nelson attributes the turn around to “developing better relationships with the catchers and being on the same page when it comes to pitch sequencing.” With only one week of spring training, it tracks that it would take time for a wholly new battery to get to know each other. It’s working as the season goes on, as the staff has settled in enough to take three of the last four games from a very strong Missoula side.
Odds and Ends:
It was Jim Dedrick’s first career ejection.
Davis Drewek was the force on offense going 4-4 with a double, home run and 4 RBI.
It was Star Wars night in Missoula. Always a crowd pleaser. B’s Force-Be-With-You night is July 10.
Photos from the Paddleheads’ great social media team; video recap from our great Ben Verhoek.
Roberto Santiago is a third generation Berkeley boy currently raising the fourth generation. Roberto’s writing has appeared in Latina, Parents, and various online outlets. A lifelong baseball fan, Roberto worked briefly with the Boston Red Sox and once hit an RBI single off Spaceman Lee on a 2-2 changeup. It was his only at bat ever in a real baseball game. Find him on Instagram.
