Championship Series!

In my opinion, the two best teams in the league were in the Championship series (us and the cardinals).  We both finished in first in our divisions and had played each other evenly throughout the season.  The first series between us at Bluefield was won by the Bluejays.  The second series at Johnson City was won by the Cardinals.  Going into the championship series, we thought we had a great chance at winning because we had home field advantage.

We were winning the entire game because we scored first.  I think scoring first is a huge momentum swing in the game because the other team has to play catchup.  We scored in the first inning on a 3 run home run by Kevin Pillar.  We were winning 3-1 until the 7th inning until the scratched across another run making it 3-2.  The score remained the same going into the bottom of the ninth.  The first batter reached base on a double in the gap past a diving center fielder.  The next guy also doubled in the gap to score the tying run and we still did not have any outs.  The next batter was retired, while the following hitter was walked.  There were now runners on first and second. The following hitter worked the count to 3 balls 2 strikes before delivering the game winning hit just over the shortstops reach.  The Cardinals won 4-3.

We went back to Bluefield and on the way back, the bus was dead silent.  Everybody was pissed off about the game and we couldn't believe we lost it.  We had to move on though and think about the next game.  We couldn't live in the past.  We had to handle our business and take care of what we had to take care of in game 2 to live to play game 3.

Game 2 was close with the exception of one inning.  They scored 4 runs in the inning putting the game just out of our reach.  They won game 2 meaning they were the champions.  I had to watch them dog pile on our home field and celebrate at our home stadium while we couldn't do anything but watch.  It was one of the worst moments ever.  I hate losing and I hate seeing other people celebrate.

Although we did not win the championship, we had a great year and an unforgettable one at that.  I met a great bunch of guys and can't wait to see them again at Spring Training.