Third Time No Charm for Andre Chiefs Vs. Blue Sox

The Andre Chiefs had accomplished the rare feat of beating the Lexington Blue Sox the first two times the teams met during the course of the eight-week-old Intercity League season, including most recently at home on Sunday.

But the third time proved to be the charm for the four-time defending champion Blue Sox, as they picked up their first win of the season series with a 9-4 victory at Lexington High School on Wednesday night.

The first two games of the year between the teams both took place at Tufts University’s Huskins Field. Apparently the Blue Sox needed some home cooking to solve the Chiefs.

“We talked about this (two-game) series being a preview of playoff baseball, and it was,” said Blue Sox manager Rick DeAngelis, whose club lost winning streaks of nine and eight straight the past two times it faced the Chiefs (15-10-1). Add in Lexington’s tie with Reading on July 13 and Sunday’s loss also cut short an unbeaten streak of 11 games.

“I suppose we still have to play our game,” DeAngelis said, of the difficulty of beating the Blue Sox three straight. “We just can’t show up, roll out the baseballs and say, ‘We’re here, fellas.’ We still have to come to play, and we do come to play.”

Longtime Andre manager and namesake Chuck Andre conceded that teams often don’t win one, never mind two straight, against the Blue Sox – who, as eight-time champions, including the past four straight, are the ICL’s answer to the New York Yankees.

“It’s tough to get them one in a row,” he said, “but, quite frankly, the wins are nice in June and July, but they don’t count. They count when you’re in the playoffs. And, really, we’d like to meet them (in the playoffs) and challenge them.”

Lexington had to overcome a rare, subpar start from staff ace and two-time ICL pitcher of the year Matt Karis. He “had ascuffle,” in DeAngelis’ words, from the start against the Chiefs, as the righty had to face four Andre batters with the bases loaded in the first inning alone.

Karis wriggled free of much harm, however, as the Chiefs managed just a single run.

Only Matt Boleski could do anything with the opportunity, and even then plated just the one run with a bases-loaded single through the right side. The other Chiefs that came to the plate with the bases loaded did nothing: recording a fielder’s choice, a flyout to center field and a groundout back to Karis.

Aside from a three-run blip in the fourth inning that tied the game at 4-all, Karis (4-1) was good enough the rest of the way to pick up the victory. He pitched six innings, allowed the four runs on seven hits, while striking out three batters and walking two.

“He didn’t have great command and didn’t get the calls that he thought he should have,” DeAngelis said, “but he battled. If you’re a battler and a competitor like he is, you find your location, you find your arm slot, find your rhythm and you keep going.”

The Blue Sox led 4-1 after three innings with a single run in the second inning on a sacrifice fly by catcher Mike Morgan, and the team added three runs in the third. The damage could have been worse in the second, but the Andre left fielder Boleski made a nice diving catch on Morgan’s sinking liner to snuff out a rally.

In the third, Lexington took the lead when No. 9 hitter Dan Capra led off with a single, center fielder Pete Frates followed with a double down the right-field line and second baseman Justin Wright brought them both home with a ground-rule double over the right fielder’s head.

Left fielder Jeff Vigurs plated the Blue Sox’s fourth run, Wright, on an infield hit.

Andre kept the heat on Karis by bringing three more batters to the plate with the bases loaded in the fourth, and, this time, the Chiefs did more with the opportunities.

First baseman Mike DiCato, rookie catcher Paul Yanakopulos and rookie designated hitter Jon Byrne all reached with singles. DiCato came home on center fielder Jeff Burcume’s walk with the bases loaded and Yanakopulos and Byrne crossed the plate on Mike Barbati’s high chopper to shortstop, also with the bases loaded.

On Barbati’s chopper, Lexington’s Steve Gath threw the ball past first baseman Tom Haugh, allowing Byrne to score and Barbati to reach second base. Gath was charged with an error on the play.

“I was proud of my kids, they hung in there,” Andre said. “I had three rookies (Andrew Cavanaugh, Byrne and Yanakopolus) in there tonight due to injuries. They battled and they hung in there. … It’s not easy to come over here and win. It’s a tough place to play.”

The Blue Sox got to Andre starter Jared Freni and lefty reliever Tim Dunphy two innings later. Andre turned to his bullpen when Freni allowed the first four Lexington batters to reach on three doubles and a walk.

Lexington sent all nine batters the plate in the fifth and scored five runs on four hits, all doubles, and an error on Dunphy. Wright and Gath had an RBI double each, while Morgan later drove in a pair of runs with a two-bagger to right field.

Despite the extra-base hits, the rally didn’t have a big-inning feel. The Blue Sox still had to grind out their runs, using the help of a passed ball by Yanakopulos and Dunphy’s error.

“We didn’t bludgeon them to death,” DeAngelis said. “We did have to grind (the runs) out.”

The loss was Freni’s first of the season after winning six games. His final line was: four-plus innings, seven hits and eight runs allowed to go with four strikeouts and three walks. Dunphy pitched 1 2/3 innings with two hits and a run allowed and one strikeout. Jake Crawford got the third out of the sixth on a strikeout.

“Jared was 6-0 coming into tonight, but he didn’t have his best stuff,” Andre said. “He was leaving his fastball up and they got to it. You can’t make mistakes against these guys.”

The Chiefs have five games to play in four days to close out the ICL regular season next Wednesday. They’ll take on Wakefield and Reading on the road a total of four times, including a double-header at the Merchants’ Walsh Field on Sunday, and return to Lexington on Tuesday night.