17 Aug, 2005

Cardinals claim second title in three years

     The Orleans Cardinals won their second Cape Cod Baseball League Championship in three years after a triumphant 13-1 victory over the Bourne Braves in the final game of the championship series on Sunday night at Eldredge Park in Orleans. 

Pounding out 13 runs on 18 hits, the Cardinals made the necessary adjustments after only scoring two runs in the first two games of the championship series combined. 

With the offense finally firing on all cylinders, it was up to Orleans starter Brad Meyers to hold the Bourne bats in check. The Braves were able to get their offense going in a Game 2 win Saturday in Bourne scoring 10 runs on 14 hits after neither team could do anything offensively in Game 1. 

Meyers was given an early lead after a two-run double by Brett Pill over the left fielder’s head, scoring Manny Burriss and David Uribes. The offense continued for the Cardinals, after an infield single by Robert Perry. Chris Pettit launched his fifth homerun of the season, a three-run blast over the left field wall knocking Bourne starter Forrest Cory III out of the game and making the score 5-0 after just one inning. 

“I was looking for something soft and away but he tried coming inside with a fastball and I was able to get into it,” said Pettit. “After yesterday’s game, we really wanted to come out and be more aggressive and score some runs.” 

Going to work with the lead, Meyers made quick work of the Braves hitters scattering nine hits and giving up only one run before being pulled in the seventh. Meyers was named series co-MVP after pitching 12 2/3 innings and giving up only one run during the series. 

Also earning MVP honors was Burriss who had a great series going 5-12 against Bourne pitching and scoring the winning run in Game 1. He also made some key defensive plays at third for the Cardinals. 

Orleans added four more runs in the bottom of the third with two sacrifice flys by Matt Camp and Jason Jacobs and a two-run, two-out single up the middle by Burriss, who fought off pitch after pitch until getting one he could hit. 

With the game in hand, Meyers seemed to go into cruise control, working off his change-up and keeping the Bourne hitters off balance. 

“I had some success with my change-up today. I was able to get a lot of movement on some of my pitches and really hit my spots,” said Meyers. “Even though we had a good size lead, I just went out there every inning thinking the game was tied.” 

Bourne seemed rattled by the offensive explosion by the Cardinals, committing four errors in the field, leading to three Orleans runs. 

In the bottom of the seventh, with the score already 9-1and the bases loaded after an error and a couple of singles, Bourne pitcher Dave Preziosi hit two consecutive Cardinals with pitches, forcing in two more runs. 

Orleans finished their scoring in the bottom of the eighth inning when Pill came through with his fourth hit of the night, an RBI single making the score 13-1. 

The final game of the series was a complete turnaround for the Cardinals who only managed one hit in the first game of the series. Despite the lone hit, the Cardinals managed to do the impossible and score the winning run in the bottom of the ninth without getting a hit. 

With one out, Burriss earned a walk after a lengthy at bat. With the league leader in steals at first, Bourne pitcher Romas Hicks couldn’t keep his eyes off the speedy Burriss, checking on him numerous times. 

With all the attention on Burriss, Uribes earned a walk on five pitches. After a wild pitch moved the runners up with only one out, the Braves decided to intentionally walk Colin Curtis to load the bases and hopefully set up an inning ending double play. 

With the game on the line, Pill stepped to the plate looking for a pitch to hit. 

“I was looking for something off-speed that I could get into the air,” he said. “The main thing I didn’t want to do was hit it on the ground for a double play.” 

While trying to get the ball into the air, Pill popped a 2-1 pitch foul off first base. Just after the first baseman made the catch, a tagging Burriss easily beat the throw to the plate for the winning run.

“I was just hoping that I could get a chance to score,” said Burriss. “I knew if I was going to try it, I had to be completely committed to getting to the plate. Once I saw that ball in his glove, I knew I had to try.” 

It was a good decision as Orleans won the game and eventually the series. 

This was a rematch of the 2003 championship series with Orleans winning that series in two games. The difference this time was Orleans lost Game 2 in Bourne forcing a deciding Game 3 in Orleans. 

“Winning this title is just great, and we really wanted to do it in front of our home fans,” said Meyers. “This is a great league with a lot of great players, so to be the last team standing at the end is something to be really proud of.” 

When the game had finally ended, the crowd of more than 6,000 gladly cheered and chanted for their beloved Cardinals. During the presentation of the championship trophy to Cardinals general manager Sue Horton and coach Kelly Nicholson, the field was mobbed with kids and adults seeking to meet their favorite Cardinal. 

“This is really such a tight group of guys,” said Nicholson. “I really think that the biggest reason for our success was how close this group was. They seemed to enjoy each other and they really had a great time together during this whole experience. A lot will tell you that they’ll miss the fans and the town most of all, and although that is true, they’ll really miss each other too.” 

“I’m gonna miss the everyday aspect of it,” said co-MVP Burriss. “The fans are tremendous and very supportive. We’re all going to miss the fans and our host families most of all.”