Pitching showcase

BY CHRIS HUMPHREYS

Published: July 13, 2008

There were two well pitched games on Sunday at City Stadium as a part of the American Legion Baseball Showcase Weekend held in Lynchburg.

Big Island Post 217’s Matt Morgan out-dueled Danville Post 24’s Josh Hackworth 2-1 in the first game and Martinsville Post 42’s Taylor Smith threw a two-hitter and picked up a 4-3 win over Lynchburg Post 16 in the game that followed.

Big Island improved to 4-0 after a late 5-2 victory at Forest Middle School against Vinton. However, Lynchburg dropped its first three games heading into Sunday night’s game against Botetourt at City Stadium. The games were a part of a weekend showcase involving 11 teams and 20 games played at three different sites around Lynchburg.

Morgan, who graduated from Liberty High School in 2007 and pitched this spring at Lynchburg College, was masterful. Morgan worked 6 1/3 innings, allowed an earned run, five hits, a walk and struck out seven batters.

“It was another Big Island-Danville one-run game,” Big Island manager Kelley Russell said. “What can you say about Matt Morgan, he threw strikes and my hat goes off to the youngster, he threw a great game.” 

Post 24 got on the scoreboard first with its only run of the game in the second inning. Scott Norris singled to lead off the inning, but Ethan Fowlkes followed up by potentially grounding out into a double play. 

Ethan Tanner fed the ball to second baseman Shane Timberlake in time to get Norris at second, but Timberlake’s throw to first was wild and allowed Fowlkes to advance to second base. Fowlkes scored on Cody Westmoreland’s double.

Big Island answered in the fourth with a two-out rally that plated a pair of runs. Tyler Brown got things started with a two-out single. He stole second base and scored on Shane Timberlake’s single to left. Timberlake also took second base on home from left field.  Tanner followed with a single of his own that scored Timberlake.

Morgan (2-1) worked around a lead-off double by Westmoreland in the fifth and Ragan Rudisill relieved Morgan with one out in the seventh and runners on first and second. He got a ground ball by Timberlake and a flyball to right to secure the victory for Post 217 and pick up his third save.

“Today was the best I’ve felt in a really long time,” Morgan said. “It was nice to get out there and throw good game for my team.”

A downpour briefly delayed the start of the second game between Lynchburg and Martinsville and most likely played a role at least two of Post 16’s three errors in the top of the first that led to two unearned runs for Post 42.

Post 42 gave those two runs back in the bottom of the second.

Lynchburg’s Mac Ware and Gregg Chewning drew two-out walks and advanced to second and third on a wild pitch before John Howard hit a ground ball to shortstop Jake Joyce. 

Joyce fielded it cleanly despite being briefly screened by Chewning, but Joyce rushed his throw to first and short-hopped the first baseman, allowing both Ware and Chewning to score and make the scored 2-2.

Martinsville (8-6 overall and 3-1 over the weekend) answered right back in the top of the third with a lead-off walk by Grant Wickline, a double by Jeremy Moore and two-run single by Patrick Martin that made it the score 4-2.

Post 16 (5-12, and 0-3 through the first three of four games this weekend) got a run back in fifth when Howard got Lynchburg’s first hit of the game with one out. Howard doubled into the left center gap and eventually scored on Mike Bergin’s single to right but those were the only two hits Post 16 could muster against Smith.

Smith went the distance, allowing three runs, an earned run, two hits, three walks and struck out three batters.

“He went and really kept competing,” Post 42 manager Paul Menchner said. “He kept pounding the strike zone.” 

Nathan Gillispie was the tough luck loser for Lynchburg. Gillispie went the distance allowing two earned runs, seven hits, three walks and struck out three.

“(Gillispie) threw a great game for us we just didn’t swing the bats,” Post 16 manager Chris England said. “We just had trouble making the adjustments (we needed to), but that’s not to take away from the great game (Smith pitched).”