If the second game of last night's doubleheader is any indication, the Dedham American Legion Post 18 baseball team is going to be in contention for the final District 6 West playoff berth until the bitter end.
At the end of a dismal weekend that saw Post 18 drop a pair of one-run games to Canton on Friday and a similarly heartbreaking one-run loss in the first of two against Foxboro, it would have been understandable if Dedham simply packed it in and looked forward to a two-day respite before its final six games kick off Wednesday.
Instead, the bats came to life as Post 18 cranked out 13 hits and kept themselves in the postseason mix with a thunderous 12-6 victory over Foxboro at Memorial Park's Heaphy Field.
"The kids played hard," said Dedham manager Dave Brown, whose team stands two points behind Medfield for the fifth playoff spot at 6-8-2. "We had a doubleheader Friday and a doubleheader today. We've had 10 or 11 guys play a lot of baseball. They didn't give up after a tough loss. It would have been very easy to put their heads down and not show up but they came right out hitting right off the bat."
Frank Tierney and Mac Jacobson were the catalysts for Post 18 all night long and got Dedham off and running in the first inning. Tierney led off with a walk, stole second, and moved to third on a wild pitch. Jacobson followed with a double to center, easily plating Tierney with the first run.
Jake Cintolo delivered Jacobson with a double to the fence in right-center, and scored on a base hit by Devan Jones to give Post 18 an early 3-0 cushion.
"We like to get on base any way possible. Infield hits, whatever," Jacobson said. "Getting people on base is a big key. Our leadoff guys were getting on and we could play a little small ball.
Foxboro (10-3) got one back in the second, but Dedham starter Andrew Bishop struck out leadoff man Jimmy Gilmore with the bases loaded to keep Post 93 at bay.
Dedham added two more runs in the third, courtesy of a two-run single by Rob Zarthar that scored both Cintolo and Bishop to take a 5-1 lead.
Post 93 responded with a big fourth, touching Bishop for four runs to tie the game at 5-5. Bishop struggled with a bout of wildness, walking three batters, including No. 9 Matthew Cote with the bases loaded, and allowing a pair of hits.
"I was put back by a long break after we scored a lot of runs and my arm was a little numb," said Bishop of his rough inning. ""I'm just glad I was able to get back into it."
Bishop was able to get back into it with a lot of help from his offense. Post 18 batted through the order in the bottom of the fourth, scoring six times in an inning highlighted by back-to-back solo home runs by Jones and Bishop himself. One again, Tierney and Jacobson got things started; Tierney with a leadoff single and Jacobson hustling down the line on an infield error. Tierney took third on a passed ball and scored on a groundout by Cintolo, with Jacobson moving to second. The speedy centerfielder promptly stole third, and scored when the catcher's throw sailed high into left field.
Jones and Bishop followed with solo blasts, both travelling around 400 feet. The Dedham hit parade continued with a double off the bat of Drew LoRusso and a single by Rob Zarthar, both scoring on a base hit by Henry Mauck that gave Post 18 an 11-5 lead.
"It was good to come right back the next inning instead of dragging it out and having to squeeze out a run later on," Jacobson said. "If me and Frank get on base, we know those guys in the middle of the order will come through."
Dedham added one more in the fifth, as Jacobson walked, moved to second and then third on wild pitches, and scored on a sacrifice fly by LoRusso.
Meanwhile, Bishop was able to settle down on the mound. He struck out two batters in each of the final three innings, allowing just a meaningless run in the seventh. Bishop finished with a gutsy complete game, overcoming seven walks by striking out ten while allowing only five hits.
"My off-speed was definitely working better today. When I was able to start them off with a strike I felt a lot better," Bishop said. "I didn't worry much about the runs, but I was able to settle in a little after we got the lead back. It's been a long day of baseball today."
