Sleepy Hollow Explodes Against Mahopac

When Sleepy Hollow second baseman Ray Rodriguez struck out, it was the third out of the second inning of the Legends' 14-and-under Westchester Putnam Baseball Association contest against visiting Mahopac.

The good news on that play for Sleepy Hollow (2-2) was that, thanks to a passed ball by the Mahopac catcher, it didn't end the inning, which sparked an 11-1 Legends' triumph Thursday evening at Sleepy Hollow High School.

Rodriguez was at bat with teammates, center fielder Joey Good Jr. and third baseman Nick Gasparre, on third and second base respectively. On the strikeout, a hard charging Good came down the line, scored and Gasparre followed to put Sleepy Hollow up 2-1.

A hustling Rodriguez reached base when he beat the throw from the catcher to the first baseman. That kept the inning alive and enabled the Legends to score nine more runs.

"We have been struggling to do the little things to win baseball games," Sleepy Hollow Legends coach Joey Good Sr. said. "I guess something like that just really sparked something in all the kids. Joey was on third base. Ray was up, Joey was running toward home and Ray got upset that he struck out. Joey told him run to first base, it's a passed ball. It was a good outcome."

After Rodriguez reached first, he advanced to second on a passed ball. Right fielder Mike Martello walked before Rodriguez and Martello reached third and second respectively on a another passed ball.

Shortstop Nick Arduino then drove both of them in with single to center field before Arduino scored on a double to right field by catcher Luke Colley that put the Legends up 5-1.

Left fielder John Cummins reached base on an error and winning pitcher Edwin Lebron followed that up with a two-run triple just inside the right-field line.

"I saw the right fielder was playing more in center field, I had a gap to right field," Lebron said. "I got jammed and I just kept inside the ball and my coach just waved me around to third."

Sleepy Hollow kept accumulating the runs when Good and Gasparre walked and scored, along with Lebron, on a three-run triple to left field by designated hitter Isiah Sanjuan. Sanjuan scored himself on a single by first baseman Adam Tracey that concluded the 11-run outburst.

Having that type of inning where everyone makes a contribution brought a smile to the face of the  Legends coach when he talked about it after the game.

"That's the best feeling for a coach when it's not just one player or one standout," Good Sr. said. "It's nice to have a kid come in, pitch and do well for you but everyone on the team contributed in some fashion. A hit, a walk, a key stolen base, it makes you feel good as a coach and it makes you feel good as a team."

Besides the offensive balance, Sleepy Hollow also got a well pitched game from Lebron, who struck out six and allowed just one run in three innings. Arduino pitched shutout ball in the last two innings, striking out three.

"I was throwing first-pitch strikes," Lebron said. "I tried to throw outside to keep them honest and I saw that the umpire's strike zone was outside so I threw it there."