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Senators dip back under .500 with four-game skid
Fans of the Haymarket Senators should not be too concerned about the team just yet if they are going on the assumption that if a team loses enough games, it has to rebound eventually.
And, hey, it's still early in the season.
Right?
That message has yet to stick with Haymarket (9-10 overall, 5-6 division), which dropped its fourth straight game Monday night. The Senators last picked off Fauquier on June 26 before dropping to Staunton, 5-2, on Saturday and falling three times in two days to Winchester (10-10, 7-4).
"I guess you could say there's a little bit of a rivalry," said Royals closer Matt Zahel, adding that some of his college teammates from the University of Toledo play for Haymarket. "I mean, we approach every game the same, it doesn't matter who's wearing the other uniform. It was a good game."
The Royals mounted a come-from-behind three-run rally in the eighth inning Monday night to come away with a 6-5 win, due in part to sloppy fielding by the Senators.
With Haymarket leading 5-3 in the top half of the inning, Aaron Dudley singled to center and grabbed an extra base after an error in the outfield. A passed ball from pitcher Jack Leathersich to catcher Jim Vahalik brought him over to third, which set up Kevin Garcia for an easy RBI single.
After a pitching change for Haymarket and a pinch runner brought in for Garcia, another pitch went by the mitt of Vahalik. The catcher hurled the ball to third base, only to watch the ball sail past his intended target and into left field to bring the tying run home.
A base hit by Brad Zapenas brought the go-ahead run home, giving Winchester new life.
Though the scoreboard did not light up the rest of the game, the on-field intensity lit up like a Fourth of July firework.
Haymarket manager Ryan Fecteau got into a spat with the home plate umpire in the top of the ninth inning after he went out to the mound to talk with his infielders.
"Let's goooo, Winchester!" jeered one player from the Royals' dugout, mocking the familiar phrase of Senators fans that can be heard at just about every Haymarket home game.
When the bottom half of the ninth came around, what started as seemingly faux excitement emanating from the Senators bench quickly turned into the real deal. Players began yelling exuberant cheers after each pitch to their teammates at the plate and the fans responded by pounding the fencing around the bleachers.
Lead-off man Sam Greenberg struck out on a full-count delivery from Nate Bayuk but the undeterred Senators cheered again when Zeth Stone smacked a one-hopper to left field to put the potential tying run on first base.
"Yeah-ep!" screamed one Senator as new player Mike Lang came to the plate.
The right-fielder hit an infield dribbler to third base that brought the lead runner into scoring position but roiled Lang when he was called out at first base on a throw that arrived milliseconds apart from him after an an all-out hustle to the bag.
Lang chucked his helmet as part of an emotional outburst after the infield umpire called him out. The umpire appeared to eject him as well as he signaled the "you're out of here" sign again as if to remind the player he didn't make it to first in time.
As exciting as the play to first base was, what happened next was just shocking.
Third baseman Greg Hopkins, the league's best hitter with a .461 batting average who already cranked an RBI double and triple on the day, came to the plate next and was intentionally walked after the first two pitches missed their marks.
Winchester opted to switch pitchers, causing Haymarket's photographer to heckle the outgoing Bayuk from the bleachers.
"VBL player of the week, and you've got to walk him?" he yelled, adding, "Boy threw his arm out throwing those balls like that."
Bayuk responded as he walked off the mound by flipping him the bird with his left hand.
Twice.
The umpires did not eject him, much to the chagrin of the Haymarket dugout.
"That's just nonsense. I mean, the way I was always learned from my mom and dad was treat yourself in a professional manner. Don't go out flipping people off," said Haymarket starting pitcher Kevin Johnson after the game.
Closing Winchester pitcher Zahel added a little more drama of his own by throwing a first-pitch ball that came dangerously close to Mike Demma's head, causing the first baseman to shake his whole body to the left, turn, and stare back at the mound.
"Well, I didn't really want to load the bases. I wanted to get some sliders in there for strikes and I just missed my spots a few times. But the next guy, you've got to forget that," said Zahel.
A four-ball walk to Demma then set the stage for the moment every baseball boy dreams of growing up:
Bottom of the ninth. Bases loaded. Two outs. Home team down by one.
Riley Cooper answered the call from the on-deck circle and ran into a whirlwind of low and outside pitches that were just out of his bat's range.
In three pitches, Zahel closed out drama with a win for Winchester.
The end result left Johnson still searching for his first win of the year, despite exiting the game with a 5-3 advantage.
"The way that we have here is pick yourself up. If you make the errors, pick yourself back up," said Johnson.
"Baseball's all about pitch by pitch. You live or die pitch by pitch," he added. "And, I mean, the excitement just builds up and then, whenever; it just happens. I mean, it just; you just go with the flow. And whatever happens happens. You can't really change nothing. But we'll be good. We'll be fine. We'll come around."
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