Monsters Mashed then Rally for Win

Oxford, AL – Choccolocco rallies from early 4-0 deficit on the road to earn its first victory in franchise history

By Al Muskewitz

Choccolocco Monsters manager Steve Gillispie always was confident his team would have success on the diamond. It just took it a little while to get up to speed.

Daniel Swatek and Harris Burns pitched six shutout innings of relief and the Monsters put together a three-run eighth-inning rally to erase an early four-run deficit and defeat the Columbus Chatt-a-Hoots 5-4 for their first victory in franchise history.

I equate it to driving a manual transmission,” Gillispie said. “They’ve put their foot on the gas, but they haven’t let off the clutch. It’s taken some time to get going.”

The Sunbelt Baseball League’s newest franchise trailed last year’s league runner-up 4-0 after four innings, but chipped away and eventually took the lead with a bizarre eighth that started after the first two hitters of the inning were retired.

The Monsters’ big inning didn’t start well, with Dawson Winningham getting thrown out at third trying to stretch a leadoff double into a triple, but it showed the aggressiveness the Monsters were willing to display on the base paths when warranted. They were able to do some of those things because the game was still within reach.

Jake Spivey singled home the first run of the inning to make it 4-3. Brennan McCullough scored the tying run on a double steal when the throw through from Hoots catcher Ellis Yohn bounced through the infield. Spivey was balked to third and then scored the go-ahead run when ball four to Tyler Waugh got away from Yohn.

The Monsters had beaten the Hoots in an exhibition game last Sunday, but this was their first win in a game where all the particulars counted.

“I told them in the clubhouse we’ve done nothing but play six games against the team that was in the championship game, they’re kind of the gold standard,” Gillispie said. “We didn’t always play well, but you always kept playing and that was very important.

“It was big against one of the top teams in the league and coming from behind against a good pitching staff. It was 10-0 last night, run rule and then they had two hours in the van driving down, then fell behind 4-0, we could’ve put a stamp on it and mailed it in, but … they did everything they needed to do.”

Once the Monsters took the lead, Daniel Swatek made it stand. The right-hander from Shelton State was their second reliever after starter A.J. Jarrell took a shot off his knee cap in the fourth inning. Harris Burns came on first and gave up a run to an inherited runner, but otherwise kept the Hoots off the board in his 2 2/3 innings of work.

Swatek finished sixth inning and stayed to the end without expending a lot of pitches. He gave up no hits, no runs and struck out three in 3 1/3 innings. He gave up a leadoff walk in the ninth, but that runner was erased on a failed sacrifice and he closed it out with a fly to left and a game-ending comebacker.

“He was just dominant at the end,” Gillispie said.

“My key to success on the mound today was realizing early that my fastball was playing well,” Swatek said. “It had a lot of life and my slider was really tight. When hitters did make contact it was weak and on the ground. My infield was completely solid. All they did the whole time was back me up. They made it easy for me.

“We all just really worked together and I found a groove and was able to make a lot of pitches at the right time. Knowing now I’m the first Choccolocco Monsters pitcher to record a win, that means a lot to me … All I hope is I can record a lot more wins, our whole pitching staff can record some wins and we go far in this league. I really think we will if we build off that.”

The Monsters and Chatt-a-Hoots got to know each other pretty well, having played six games since last Saturday, including their respective home openers the last two nights. The Monsters open a two-game road series with the Gwinnett Astros Monday night. They don’t play the Hoots again until June 24-25.

“They’re a solid team,” Gillispie said. “I felt we could compete with them pretty well and we’ll see what the rest of the league is like, but (getting the first win is) definitely a confidence builder going into next week when we finally see another color uniform.“ [*** read more]

Choccolocco       000 011 030 – 5 7 2
Columbus            102 100 000 – 4 5 2
WP: Daniel Swatek. LP: Ryan Middleton. 2B: Dawson Winningham (Choc), Manibusan (Col).

Sunbelt Baseball League standings

Saturday’s results
Atlanta Crackers 3, Atlanta Blues 2
Choccolocco 5, Columbus 4
Gainesville 3, Alpharetta 0
Waleska 6, Brookhaven 4

Oxford wood-bat collegiate team has tough time in first official game, suffers run-rule loss to Columbus

Friday’s SBL Games
Alpharetta 8, Gwinnett 4
Columbus 10, Choccolocco 0
Waleska 21, Brookhaven 7

The Choccolocco Monsters are hoping for a long and fruitful existence in Oxford and the Sunbelt Baseball League, but it certainly didn’t start the way they wanted.

The Monsters lost their first official game as an SBL franchise Friday night in a 10-0 run-rule setback to the Columbus Chatt-a-Hoots at Choccolocco Park.

“We were not particularly good,” Monsters manager Steve Gillispie said. “The bottom line is we didn’t adjust and I don’t know whether the stage was a little bigger than what those kids were used to being on.

“We talked about that last week, but they also knew it was go-time, that it was live and the exhibition part is gone. We’re into meaningful games.”

While the atmosphere was festive for the official start of the season, there weren’t many highlights.

Monsters starter Brock Hill walked four of the first six batters he faced and nine total in three innings while falling behind 7-0. The Monsters, meanwhile, were held to three hits. The Hoots scored multiple runs in four of the first five innings to go up 9-0.

During pre-game player introductions, the Monsters lined up facing the field instead of looking in the eyes of the 700 or so who came to see what this team was all about. With league commissioner Todd Pratt in attendance, somebody forgot there was a run rule in the league and they played an extra inning, uncertain if those stats will count. It ended the same either way, with the Monsters hitting into a double play.

“I kind of put that in (the umpires’) hands because they’re hired to manage the game once it’s started,” Gillispie said. “I knew we were down, but I’m in the game, trying to figure out how to make some moves, get some guys some at bats. I thought there was (a run rule), but didn’t really notice until they mentioned it in the bottom of the eighth that there was. Should’ve been stopped the inning before.”

There were highlights.

Neal Williamson, the original Choccolocco Monster, brought out the cape and steer’s skull costume he used to scare passersby as a teen for the first time in 54 years to throw out the ceremonial first pitch. And Dawson Winningham delivered the franchise’s first hit, a single between short and third with two outs in the second inning. He promptly recorded the team’s first stolen base, becoming their first ever runner in scoring position.

The umpires did recognize the significance of the feat and retrieved the ball, delivering it to Monsters manager Steve Gillispie in the dugout.

“There’s a joy and emotion being back on my home field, playing here,” said Winningham, an Oxford product. “I’ve been going for two years and it was good to see the hometown crowd coming out and supporting us and supporting me.

“There definitely was a chill running down my back when I got to first base on that hit. I got there and Coach Dalton Cobb was like, ‘hey, you know you got the first hit?’ I had no idea. I was going up there playing my game … and I made it happen. It’s something that’s going to stick with me for a lifetime.”

The Monsters best threat to score their first run came in the sixth inning. They loaded the bases with one out and the top of the order coming up, but the Hoots got out of it with a strikeout and groundout.

The teams play in Columbus Saturday night. It will be their sixth game against each other in eight days. The Hoots have won four of the first five and, really, the first one that counted.

The Monsters-Hoots series has taken on a special meaning. Before the game it was announced, since both teams are owned by Ignite Sports, the winner of the series would take home the Ignite Sports Cup. They play seven more times this season.

Gillispie said his lineup would look a little different Saturday at Golden Park with the infusion of several newcomers, including first commitment Brennan McCullough, and different still next week when several other players join them for the first time. The players are convinced when they all come together they could have something special.

“We’ve got a bunch of guys who haven’t played together,” Winningham said. “We’ve been practicing for a week together. We’re still bonding, still getting to know guys; we had two or three guys come in tonight.

“There’s really good talent on this team, guys coming from all over. I think our biggest thing as a team is we need to loosen up and just play ball, trust everything that got us to this point because if we couldn’t play we wouldn’t be college eligible.” [*** read more]

Columbus 232 020 10 — 10 10 0
Choccolocco 000 000 00 — 0 3 2
WP: Clay Weatherly (1-0). LP: Brock Hill (0-1). 2B: Zane Ross (Col), Brad Smith (Col).

Sunbelt Baseball League standings