The Proctor Padres and the Bayside Vipers split an Upper 13 League doubleheader at Proctor on Sunday. Bayside won the first game 7-1 and Proctor took game two 7-4. The teams were supposed to have played one game on Saturday night but it was moved to Sunday after rain canceled a game and half of the three-team tournament between Proctor, Bayside and White Bear Township. WBT defeated Bayside 12-7 and Proctor was ahead of WBT 4-3 when the games were rained-out.
Proctor struck first in the bottom of the first inning of game one. Joe Collier hit a two-out single, advanced to second as Dan Solarz walked, and scored from second on a single by Jason Melander. Those were the only two "hits" the Padres could muster against the Vipers' Marcus Besonen. Both hits were pop flies that were lost in the sun. The only other threat was in the fifth inning when Besonen walked the first two batters but then retired the next three. Besonen struck out 13 Padres in the complete game performance.
Proctor had been idle for two weeks due to a schedule change and the vacation showed as the Padres' typically sound defense (.926 team fielding average) faultered in the second inning as they allowed three unearned runs on two errors and a passed ball. Another passed ball contributed to an unearned run in the fifth inning to put Bayside ahead 4-1. Bayside tacked on three more runs in the seventh inning to hand Proctor a 7-1 drubbing. Pat Davy put an exclaimation mark on the game with a two-run home run in the seventh. Davy's run was the only earned run allowed by Proctor's pitchers. Davy had four hits and was only lacking a triple in his bid to hit for the cycle.
Padres' starting pitcher Kyle Hall (2-1, 1.64 ERA) took the loss in five innings of work. Hall allowed four unearned runs on four hits and one walk. He had five strikeouts. Nick Koubsky pitched a perfect sixth inning but was the unlucky recipient of the lackluster defense in the seventh as two errors contributed to the three-run inning that put the game away and in the pocket of the Vipers.
Bayside needed to get through a pair of former Vipers' pitchers to earn the sweep. Proctor turned to Anthony Bush to keep their playoff hopes alive. Bush made his Vipers debut in 1996 but was lost to the expansion Padres in 2007. The pitching-depleated Vipers looked to Besonen to keep up his dominance in the first game as he started game two. The Vipers were now the home team and Besonen started strong as he pitched a scoreless first inning.
Bush, who had pitched the three innings in the rain on Saturday, fell behind leadoff batter Casey Morsette before inducing a groundout. It was the only batter he faced in six innings where the count went to three balls. Robbie Trettin then singled and reached second on a steal attempt when second baseman Koubsky dropped the ball on the apparent easy out. Corey Verhel made it all the way to third and plated Trettin when Proctor right fielder Scott Lustig dropped a routine fly ball. Verhel scored on a sacrifice fly by Besonen to give Bayside an early 2-0 lead.
[Jason Melander] led off the top of the second with a double and quickly scored on a base hit by Koubsky. After a walk to Hall, Besonen got the next three batters out to leave Padres on second and third and the score remained 2-1.
Bayside lifted Besonen in the third inning, going with outfielder Trettin on the mound. Schmidt led off with a walk, stole second and third and scored when Dan Solarz reached on an error to tie the game 2-2.
Bayside took the lead back in the bottom half of the third when Trettin tripled to the vast Egerdahl Field right-center gap and scored on a single by Verhel.
The Padres' bats finally came to life in the fourth inning. When the dust finally settled, they were ahead 7-3. Lustig reached on an error and scored on a double by Schmidt. Schmidt stole third as Joe Collier walked. Solarz again reached on an error scoring Schmidt. Melander hit a double to score Collier, which spelled Trettin. Besonen returned to the mound and was promptly greeted by a sharply-hit two-run single by Koubsky. Besonen walked Hall and Mike Gerard singled, but he got out of the inning without any more runs scored.
Bayside scratched a run across in the fifth inning when Trettin doubled down the left field line and scored on a single by Besonen, and Besonen kept the Padres at bay for two more innings, allowing only Solarz to reach base on an error in the fifth.
Davy came on to pitch the top of the seventh. Proctor could finally say good riddance to Besonen, who accumulated 18 strikeouts in 11 2/3 innings pitched over the two games. Davy hit Lustig by a pitch and Lustig stole second but was picked off by Vipers' catcher Morsette before Corey Pavlich walked. Davy got two comebackers to finish the Padres.
Flame-throwing closer Collier came on to pitch the seventh inning with Proctor ahead 7-4. Collier pitched for Bayside in 2007 but came over to the Padres in an off-season acquisition. Besonen singled with two outs, but Davy grounded into a fielder's choice to end the game and force a tight playoff race. Collier has saved three of the Padres' seven league wins.
Bush (2-3, 2.25 ERA) earned his second win of the season and first against his former team. It was his first appearance against Bayside after nine years of service in a Vipers uniform. He pitched six innings, allowed four runs (two eaned), and eight hits. He did not walk a batter and had three strikeouts.
Bayside (5-4) hosts the Superior Lakers (5-5) at Proctor on Tues. night (8:30) in a league game with huge playoff implications. Superior needs to win to stay alive and Bayside will fall a game behind Proctor (7-4) with a loss.
Proctor is in Hibbing for a nonleague game on Tues. and is back in league action on Sunday as they travel to Ashland to take on the Merchants (8-2) for their final league game. They travel to Grand Rapids for a Monday night nonleague game against the Itasca Indians to close their regular season.
Bayside has upcoming league games against the Merchants and the Port Wing Boilers (0-11).