Cardinals Take Care of Business

The Arlington Cardinals defeated Winchester 5-1 on Wednesday in a workmanlike performance at Spy Pond Field in Arlington.

Cardinals' starter Brian Mazzola threw five scoreless innings in the win, and the team's bats did enough, as 3-15 Winchester never threatened to take the lead.

"We tend to play to the level of our opponents," coach John O'Brien said of the lackluster game, "which works both ways. Regardless, we managed to come out with a win, which is important as we try to improve our seed heading into the playoffs."

The Cardinals, at 11-7-1, are currently in fourth place in the Middlesex Senior Babe Ruth League with a little more than a week remaining in the regular season.

On Wednesday, Mazzola gave his team a solid outing, allowing only four hits. He was relieved by 15-year-old call-up Evan Walsh, who looked good over the final two innings despite giving up a solo home run.

Walsh, a southpaw from Arlington Catholic, struck out two batters in his first appearance with the club.

"I thought he pitched well," O'Brien said. "He pounded the strike zone with his fastball and mixed in a few breaking balls. He didn't look overmatched at all."

The Cardinals got two runs in the bottom of the first inning, as third baseman Pat Cunningham and first baseman Sean McCarthy had back-to-back RBI hits.

In the fourth inning, teammate Dylan Boyle had a two-run single, and center fielder Brendan Foley knocked in a run to give the Cardinals a 5-0 lead.

In addition to his RBI, Foley had two hits, a run scored and two stolen bases on the day.

Neither team made an error in the game.

The Cardinals' next three games have been postponed, making the team's next scheduled game at 5:45 p.m. on Wednesday, July 28, at Spy Pond Field against the Woburn Tanners.