Light's Out: Glare Leads to Error, Caldwell Defeat

RANDOLPH—With Jack Kinney throwing a strong game, the Caldwell 14U baseball team was just four outs away from advancing in the Livingston Recreation Summer Travel Team Tournament Monday night at Freedom Park.

In fact, the Chiefs appeared to be just three outs away from the championship game when Kinney induced a routine fly ball off the bat of Matt Tang that would have ended the sixth inning.

But Caldwell outfielders lost the ball in the lights and it fell in for a two-run double that was the difference in Randolph's 5-4 win in the tournament semifinals.

"That ball should have been caught and our guy knows he should have had it," Caldwell coach Chip Gardner said. "We should have been out of the inning. Maybe they score in the bottom of the seventh, who really knows?

"It was a good game, we played well, we pitched well, they pitched well, but we basically made the last mistake of the game.''

Randolph relief pitcher Dave Sacco closed out the victory with a pair of strikeouts after Caldwell's Jim Stille doubled down the right-field line with one out in the seventh.

It was one of several opportunities with runners in scoring position that the Chiefs (16-7-1) failed to convert.

Caldwell took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a Kinney RBI double, but also had two base runners thrown out in the frame. 

After Randolph scored three times in the bottom of the second to seize a 3-1 lead, Caldwell loaded the bases in the top of the third, but Joe Salter popped out to right field to end the inning.

The Chiefs tied the game in the fifth on RBI singles by Kevin Gray and Joe Bongo. Caldwell chased Randolph lefty starter Robert Meola, who was replaced by Sacco.

Sacco struck out Jack Docteroff, but Bongo singled in Gray. Sacco prevented further damage by striking out Ray Iodice to end the frame.

"We left too many guys on base,'' Gardner said.

Caldwell still managed to take the lead in the sixth after Kinney began the inning with a leadoff walk. Docteroff then replaced him as a courtesy runner and moved up on Dave Burton's sacrifice bunt and Cooper Milano's groundout. Docteroff then scored on a wild pitch to give Caldwell a 4-3 edge.

After surrendering the lead in the sixth, the Chiefs had another opportunity in the seventh with a runner on second and only one out, but struck out twice to end the game with a total of 10 strikeouts.

"Sometimes you put the ball in play and anything can happen," Gardner said. "But striking out 10 times in seven innings is way too much."

It spoiled a strong effort from Kinney, who scattered six hits, struck out four, walked three and hit two batters.

"You can't blame the game on anybody, it was a great game by everybody,'' Kinney said.

Caldwell will resume its game against Ramsey Tuesday night after play was suspended Sunday due to rain with the Chiefs trailing 4-2, but at the plate with the bases loaded and no one out in the bottom of the fifth inning in the Wayne PAL Tournament semifinals. The game will resume at the Wayne PAL Field at 7 p.m.