By Joshua Macala
raised || by || cassettes
One of the things I knew going into this game was that both teams were winless on the year up to this point. Wallingford Cardinals and M&T People’s are off to rough starts. What I hadn’t considered going into this game was that this would be my third time seeing the Wallingford Cardinals play and that’s as many times as I’ve seen the Record-Journal Expos play. Perhaps this season will brew a rivalry between cross town teams, as Ceppa Field and Pat Wall Field aren’t too far apart.
The Cardinals came out hot and started this game like they were going to make a statement about it. There have been certain last place teams in the league over the years who ended up disbanding like Malloves Jewelers – so in many ways it felt like the Cardinals wanted to get on a winning track. A double and two singles put together two runs for the Cardinals in the first inning. Then a walk and another double brought home two more runs after yet another double and a run scored to give the Cardinals a 5-0 lead right away. This would be the theme of the game, though it would only happen over two innings when the Cardinals offense exploded.
People’s pushed a run across in the bottom of the third, making it a 5-1 game. They found life in their offense with a single and a stolen base, but they couldn’t figure out the pitching of Wallingford’s Alex Koletar. Meanwhile, People’s had some pitching problems. The staff would give up a hit, walk someone, then a passed ball would move the runners over, then another walk or single and ultimately the runs would home. It was small ball in that way – advancing the runners – but the pitching helped Wallingford by missing the mark. People’s changed their pitcher and would go on a good defensive stretch. They kept the Cardinals from scoring up until the fifth inning.
The top of the fifth started with a home run deep to left field by Evan Wilkinson. That started a big inning for the Cardinals. A walk and a single brought about another pitching change, but then a walk loaded the bases. A strikeout got the first out of the inning but then a run scored on a wild pitch. Another walk loaded up the bases and a single scored two runs as People’s catcher went down looking hurt. A quick strikeout for two outs in the inning but then a run scored on a wild pitch. And after that, a run scored on another wild pitch.
A final pitching change led to back-to-back walks but a third strikeout finally ended the fifth inning. People’s got out of it with the Cardinals putting up six runs. It was now 11-1 and People’s would have a long path to stage a comeback. People’s had a runner on second base in the bottom of the fifth but a strikeout and double play put that inning to an end. They would keep the Cardinals from scoring for the rest of the game but they weren’t done on offense yet. People’s had some catching up to do and they almost did it.
In the bottom of the sixth inning a double brought in a run and then a three run homer by Isaiah Rivera gave People’s some hope, as they were now down 11-5. Just like that, things can change and even when you’re up five runs or even ten runs you never quite know what will happen. People’s had that chance to walk it off. In the bottom of the seventh a run scored for People’s on a wild pitch with two outs but then a strikeout ended the game at 11-6.
This game took M&T People’s to 0-3 as they struggle to find a win this season. But it took the Cardinals to 1-4, which might not seem great but it’s a win that could push them to keep winning. Though they started their season 0-4, the Cardinals also took those losses to the Expos, Orioles, Colts and Graphics. While the Cardinals are meeting the Expos again on Wednesday night at Pat Wall Field, perhaps a true test for the Cardinals will come next Tuesday when they meet the Phillies.