CANNONS COME BACK AGAINST CARDS, CAPTURE CNMSBL B DIVISION CROWN
The 2005 Connecticut North Men's Senior Baseball League (CNMSBL) B Division Championship pitted the league's two best ball clubs against one another as the second-seeded West Hartford Cannons took on the top-seeded New Haven Cardinals. The teams met in the final weekend's winner’s bracket game. After beating the Cannons 13-6 on Saturday, August 20 the Cardinals advance to the title game needing only one more victory to be crowned champs while the Cannons needed to do the nearly impossible: win three straight over a twenty-four hour period, including two games against the Cardinals, in order to take the team's first postseason title since joining the league in 2001.

In order to advance to the finals, West Hartford had to face the sixth-seeded Stafford Phillies in a Saturday afternoon elimination game. Pitcher Ed Poland (7 IP, 3 ER, 6 H, 9 K, 4 BB) set the Phils down in order in the top of the first and the Cannons offense responded with five runs in the bottom half of the frame on their way to a comfortable 11-3 victory and a date with destiny in a rematch with the Cardinals.

West Hartford would rely on the weary wings of pitchers Mike Patenaude and Poland against the well-rested New Haven rotation on Championship Sunday, August 21. Patenaude (7 IP, 7 R, 5 ER, 10 H, 9 K, 4 BB), the forty-nine year old left-hander, took the mound on one day rest and confounded the Cardinals for a complete game win as the Cannons offense posted ten unanswered runs against the Cards, highlighted by back-to-back blasts in the fourth from shortstop Tom Luby--one of four homers he hit in the 2005 postseason--and centerfielder Poland. The game ended with a 10-7 West Hartford victory and after four months of baseball the season rested on a one game winner-take-all fight to determine league supremacy.

Poland, like his predecessor Patenaude, needed to throw the game of his life after topping the century mark in pitches just one day earlier. In the bottom of the first the thirty-one year old right-hander got two easy outs but before the inning was over the Cannons found themselves staring down a seven-run deficit. West Hartford chipped away at New Haven's lead with three runs in the second on an RBI single from Poland and a two-run basehit by Tom "Mr. August" Bogiatzis. The Cannons tied the score in the fourth on RBI singles from Andy Borst, Matt Celio and Luby and a run-scoring fielder's choice by Mike Weber, but the Cardinals responded with two runs of their own in the home half of the fourth on a pair of walks and three singles to make the score 9-7. Poland (6 IP, 9 R, 7 ER, 10 H, 5 K, 4 BB) dug down deep for a little something extra and limited the Cards to just two baserunners over the final three frames. In the top of the sixth, as storm clouds swirled ominously, Bogiatzis doubled home Poland and Mike McGann to knot the score at nine. Poland struck out two of the three batters he faced in the bottom of the sixth and as the teams headed to their respective dugouts the heavens opened up with a downpour of Biblical proportions that made the field unplayable and forced a continuation scheduled for the following weekend.

Play resumed seven days later on August 28 at New Haven's home field with the start of the seventh inning. The Cannons were silenced in the visitor's half bringing Patenaude to the mound for the fourth time in six playoff games. The Cardinals got a lead-off double, but catcher Steve Markie smothered a sacrifice bunt attempt and threw a perfect strike to third baseman Leo Dionicio (who had ten hits in 2005 postseason, tied for tops on the team), cutting down the lead runner and effectively ending the New Haven rally and Patenaude struck out the next two batters he faced. Then Markie singled to start the eighth, moved to second on a Chris Barsa sacrifice bunt and advanced to third on a wild pitch. For the final time in 2005 Bogiatzis came through in the clutch, singling sharply to left for the go-ahead run. The first two Cardinal batters went in order in the home half of the eighth after a sliding stab and throw by second baseman Mike Calabrese and a pop-up to first baseman Barsa. Patenaude (2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, 2 K, 0 BB) allowed a two-out infield single, but was able to induce a foul out to first to end the game. The heavens opened up yet again and the rain came coursing down. West Hartford had defeated New Haven 10-9 in an epic battle to secure their first CNMSBL title.

Six playoff games. Five wins. Four come-from-behind victories. Three elimination games. Two top teams battling for the title. One champion. Mission: Impossible? Mission: Accomplished. The West Hartford Cannons are the 2005 CNMSBL B Division Champions. CANNONS FOREVER!

Cannons Playoff News and Notes: Of Luby's ten postseason hits, eight of them went for extra bases (four doubles, four home runs); Markie led the team with a .600 batting average in postseason play; seven Cannons hit .400 or better during the playoffs (Bogiatzis, Celio, Dionicio, Luby, Markie, Kevin McGann, Poland) while ten Cannons hit over .300 (Borst, John Mancini, Weber); M. McGann led the Cannons with seven walks in the playoffs; Patenaude pitched 22 of the team's 43 playoff innings this season; Calabrese led the Cannons with a 1.75 ERA in the playoffs; Poland--eight for seventeen in 2005--moved into first-place on the Cannons career playoff list for hits (23); Borst is the Cannons all-time leader in postseason runs scored with seventeen; the team's six playoff homers (Luby: 4; Bogiatzis: 1; Poland: 1) matched 2005's regular season total; the Cannons batted .361 in this season's six playoff games, raising the team's lifetime playoff average ten points from .333 to .343; opponents hit .296 against the Cannons in the postseason; West Hartford averaged 8.2 runs per game in the playoffs while their opponents averaged 6.5 runs per contest; the Cannons finished the season at a CNMSBL-best 19-6 followed by the 16-6 New Haven Cardinals.