LESS IS MORE! 

HITMEN TOPPLE VALLEY KINGS, 11-7,

AS DARKNESS DESENDED UPON SUN VALLEY

   With only 9 regular roster players, two less than they had last week, the HITMEN employed timely hitting, outstanding defense, superb pitching, and smart baserunning to lock down an impressive victory considering they were shorthanded from the beginning. With daylight giving way to the evening and their bedtime curfew fast approaching, the HITMEN never looked back after plating five runs in the opening frame.

 

LEAVING A "MARK": MARK MARTINEZ put his personal stamp on this game with a breakout performance consisting of two singles and three runs batted in. 

 

FOLLOW MY LEAD: MARC CANALES has been a dominant force for the HITMEN both on the mound and in the batter's box. Against the Kings, MARC registered three dueces; two singles, two runs batted in, and two runs scored. He added a stolen base for good measure.

 

HEADING FOR ANOTHER?: LEIF SOLHEIM is putting up numbers that could garner him another CY Young Award. LEIF registered the "W" with five innings of mound work that included two unearned runs and five strikeouts. Add to that a tumbling catch of a desending pop-up that he turned into a double play; erasing a King at second base who was not privy to LEIF'S fielding skills.

 

MICROWAVE PITCHER: EMILIO VELARDE took less time to retire the last King standing than it does to heat up a cup of coffee in the micro. And with the final out, EMILIO recorded his first Save as he entered the game with two runners on board and the tying run awaiting on-deck. EMILIO ultimately helped his own cause by chipping in with a single, two walks, and a run driven in. His glove work at second base also contributed to shutting the Kings down.

 

"YOU CAN'T TOUCH THIS": WILL "M.C. HAMMER" VOLKMANN, who hadn't been on the mound in months, made short time of dusting off the cob webs with three strikeouts in his one inning of work. WILL also picked up a "W" in his role as Father when he left the game before its conclusion with his very young daughter as her bedtime was fast approaching. 

 

NO REST FOR THE WEARY: JOSE CASTILLON and MICHAEL McVEY packaged four hits, five runs, two walks, and four stolen bases between them while also doing the majority of the running for the designated non-runners.

 

TAKES A BEATING, BUT KEEPS ON TICKING: Yes, it's an old line from a wrist watch commercial, but it pertains to manager/catcher AJ HERBERT. AJ has been getting drilled by foul tips in body areas that are not protected by his catching gear and yet he continues to produce on the offensive side of the game as evidenced by his single, walk, two RBI's, and two runs scored against the Kings. He would've had another hit had the Kings' shortstop decided not to risk his life in stopping a missle off of AJ'S bat.

 

HONORABLE MENTION: He's been a Driller and a Baron and is currently a Valley King, but RAUL CABRERA has also been a HITMEN; a star player, great teammate, and dear friend to all the HITMEN who know him. So, a tip of the cap for his backhanded snag at third base of a ball that had exploded off the bat of MICHAEL McVEY that had "Double" written on it in place of Rawlings until RAUL went into Manny Machado mode and took an extra-base hit away from McVEY, holding him to a single.

 

OLDER THAN DIRT: At one point during the game, three HITMEN reserves; BRUCE SOLHEIM, MIGUEL MARTIN SR., and LARRY BERLIN, were spotted sitting together on the bench. Their ages won't be revealed, but it was determined that their combined years total more than the length of time since Baseball was believed to have been invented in 1839 by Abner Doubleday.