Millburn Baseball Routs East Side in Round 1

The top seeded Miller baseball team did a good job of taking charge of its opening round North II Group 3 state sectional playoff game against the 16^th seeded East Side boys. Millburn scored seven runs in the second and added on six more over the next three innings to run away with the home victory, 13-3, in five innings.

Millburn wasted very little time in this one and allowed very little chance for the 4-21 East Side visitors to believe they had a chance.

“In the first inning we didn’t get the two-out hit, but Willy and Milo had good at bats and we could see that we took some pitches out of that kid and applied some pressure,” said MHS head coach Brian Chapman. “In the second inning I think some of that pressure from the first inning may have carried over and the bats opened up and then we get things rolling. It’s fun to watch sometimes when we can do that.”

Clayton Elder got the scoring started for Millburn in the bottom of the second, knocking in David Talpalar from third base on an infield single. A walk by Jeff Fischer in the ensuing at bat, set up a bases loaded situation with no one out for Tim Swanson. The Miller leftfielder delivered a two run double to left and Danny Frischman drove in two more with a single to shallow center.

Will Fitzgerald kept the inning going, drilling an RBI triple to right-center, and he was brought in by a triple from Milo Freeman to right, putting Millburn up 7-0.

In the bottom half of the third inning, Fisher was hit by a pitch and Swanson reached legging out an infield single. With the table set for him, Frischman drove in his third and fourth runs of the game, lining a single to right. Freeman singled in the next run, putting the Millers up by 10. A sac fly by Ian Riddell and a bases loaded walk by Fisher put Millburn up 12-0 after three.

“That’s the type of team we are, we get contributions from a lot of different sources. Today I think we probably used 18 or 20 different kids,” Chapman said. “This is a team victory, but its not unique to our situation. I think that the way we set this up, we don’t rely on anyone kid and we’ve been able to get contributions up and down the lineup throughout the season.”

Millburn’s starting pitcher, Riddell, did not give up a hit through his three innings of work, and had just one base runner, who reached on an error. He struck out two batters.

“Everyone wants to talk about Dave [Talpalar] and Ian Barry and Stephen Near, but Ian Riddell is a very, very ,very good high school pitcher,” Chapman said. “He threw the ball great, he did exactly what he had to do. He went after them, attacked them and never gave them a chance.”

East Side got a run back in the top of the fourth inning off of Talpalar, with Nick Rego knocking in Phil Ingles to make the score 12-1. The Red Raiders tacked on two more in the top of the fifth off of Elder, getting RBI from Ingles and Reggie Mendez.

Millburn outfielder Chris Gula ended the game in the bottom of the fifth, when his infield single drove in Michael Brown and put the mercy rule back in effect.

The Millers, who improved to 22-4, will not play in their second round game until Friday and already have a bit of good news. Millburn was to face the winner of Nutley and West-Morris Mendham on Friday, and because of Mendham’s win, Millburn will not have to face a Nutley team which has beaten them twice this season.

After that second round game, the locals will then head to Eagles and Bears Riverfront Stadium in Newark to try and finally play Seton Hall Prep in The Greater Newark Tournament final at 1 p.m.