1991: THE CATCH & THE HOMER

Brewers 5 , Bad Loads 4

July 24th 1991

Game #1: DVFL Championship Series

Brewers vs. Bad Loads at Devereaux

Coming into the 1991 season the Brewers were the two-time defending DVFL Champions. The team had lost regulars Ron Stein and Kevin Curran, but added an exciting newcomer in young outfielder Matt Ragan.

During the regular season, the Bad Loads had established themselves as the best team in the DVFL. They swept the Brewers in three meetings by a cumulative 36-11 score with routs of 13-5, 12-4 and 11-2.

This allowed the Bad Loads to finish with a 14-4 record and in 1st place, one game ahead of the Brewers. It also established the Loads as overwhelming favorites to win the title and end the Brew Crew's dream of a "Three-peat" season, something that had never been accomplished in DVFL history.

In the playoff Semi-Finals the Loads had dumped the greatly improved A's by 3-1. The Brewers had swept past an always tough McGuire's team 3-0. This setup a DVFL Championship rematch. The league's top two regular season finishers and greatest rivals would meet for the crown for the second straight season..

The first game of the Finals would be pivotal. If the Loads ripped the Brewers again, the series might be over before it even began. The Brew Crew had to show that it could stand up to the Bad Loads, and that they could forget the three regular season lopsided losses.

Early on the Brewers played a solid game, holding the Loads scoreless through three innings behind the strong pitching of Adrian Kosteleski. In the 2nd inning, Frank Gleason led off with a triple, and came home on Chris Novak's sacrifice fly for a 1-0 Brewer lead. The Brewers extended the lead to 3-0 in the top of the 3rd, when Tom Novak's two-run double scored Mike Kneisc and Pat Guido.

In the bottom of the 4th inning the Loads finally broke through, getting to Adrian for four runs that the Brewers had to feel lucky weren't more. The Loads runs came on a two-run single by Dan McElhaugh and a two-run home run by Billy Miles. The Brewers got out of the inning thanks in part to a runner being hit between the bases by a batted ball, but the Loads had taken a 4-3 lead.

The scored remained unchanged, with the Brewers getting out of a 6th inning jam thanks to what has been labeled as the "Greatest Defensive Play in Brewer History."

With two outs and two runners on base, the Loads already leading 4-3, Miles stepped to the plate again. His earlier homer was the difference thus far, and now he was ready to ice the game. He sent a line drive into dead center field for what looked to be a sure three-run homer and a likely insurmountable 7-3 Loads lead.

The ball soared towards no man's land, but suddenly from out of left-center field came the speedy and athletic Pat Guido. On the dead run Patio lept to full extension and snared the screaming line drive which was over his head, miraculously saving the inning, the game, and possibly the entire series.

As the Brewers came to bat in the top of the 7th, we still trailed by 4-3 and were in serious danger of losing the opener. With one out, Mike Kneisc singled and pinch-hitter George Sweeney worked a walk to move the tying run to 2nd base. Patio then matched his heroic glove with a heroic bat, drilling a base hit to tie the game at 4-4.

On that play, over-aggressiveness nearly killed the rally. George headed to 3rd and Patio sprinted for 2nd base. But Pat was thrown out for the 2nd out of the inning. Tom Novak then flew out, and the Loads would get a chance to win it in the bottom of the 7th.

Adrian continued to battle, allowing just a two-out single in the bottom of the 7th, and the game moved into extra innings. In the top of the 8th, Loads hurler Jay Staiber continued to match him by getting the first two batters out.

Just when it appeared that the Loads would come up for another shot at victory in the bottom of the 8th, up to the plate stepped Brewer team Captain Frank Gleason. With one of the biggest hits in Brewer history, Frankie drove a no-doubt shot to deep right-center field for a go-ahead home run. The entire team poured out to mob him at home plate as we took a 5-4 lead.

The Brewers took that lead into the bottom of the 8th, now looking to pull off the upset. With one out, Adrian was touched for a single by Keith McCarthy to put the tying runner on base and bring the winning run to the plate in the person of the Loads number two and three-place hitters.

The "A-Man" proved up to the challenge, as he did so many times in his Brewers career. He got Freddie Graham to bounce into a fielders choice, then Chuck Marcello to fly out, fittingly to Frank, for the final out.

The Brewers exploded off of the Devereaux bench and mobbed one another, congratulating each other on a huge 5-4 victory that gave us a 1-0 lead in the DVFL Championship Series.

The Brew Crew now had the confidence they needed to beat the Bad Loads. We would move on and complete the "Three-peat" with dominating 10-0 and 11-2 wins over the next two games.