By Joshua Manley
Adrian, MI - The Road has not been kind to the Hamilton Joes so far in their inaugural season in the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League. Coming into yesterday's day/night double-header, the Joes had only faired 2-9 away from Hamilton's Foundation Field. It didn't get any easier.
Facing the Lake Erie Monarchs, a team that had played five times in three days, the Joes continued to their 10th and 11th road losses of the season. 3-1 and 4-0, respectively. The only difference between the two losses to the Monarchs, and every other GLSCL loss for the Joes, was that they didn't give these two away. They just plain got beat. There weren't any late-game mental mistakes, throwing errors, passed balls, or wild pitches (Those came early), all of which have become a Joes' trademark in their plentiful one and two run losses.
Hamilton's boys were beat as soon as they stepped off the bus. Their bodies showed up to Nicolay Field after the four and a half hour bus trip. But something was missing. They looked like zombies who stole some baseball uniforms.
In the first game, Joes' leadoff men and basepath thieves, BJ Willis and Jimmy Brenneman, couldn't buy a ticket to get on base. They racked up a combined four strikeouts. the Joes' did manage to get seven hits, but watched a called strike three on three separate occasions, all with runners in scoring position.
Hamilton's Billy Kitchen pitched well enough to win, as he usually does, but got no run support. He picked up his fourth loss of the season, all while maintaining a sub-2.50 ERA, a scenario all too familiar to Cincinnati-area natives. It's actually quite reminiscent of an Aaron Harang/Cincinnati Reds outing. His opponent, Tim Corbey, put up very similar numbers, but was backed up by his Lake Erie squad's bats, and picked up the win.
Then, as if the 7-inning first game wasn't bad enough, the night began where the day left off. Jerry Young couldn't hit his target, throwing four wild pitches in the first three innings, which consequently led to three runs. And in response the Joes' could only muster three hits all night long. Willis and Brenneman continued to struggle getting on base, with Brenneman. He only reached once on a slow-rolling bunt single down the third base line, but was caught stealing two pitches later. And Hamilton's Kyle Weldon struck out twice and went hitless.
And as if getting roughed up by the Lake Erie Monarchs on a four and a half hour road trip wasn't enough, the Joes spent thirty minutes after the game getting roughed up by the Lake Erie Mosquitos. It just wasn't their day...
For the Double-Header's box scores and play-by-play, please visit the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League's website.