THIRD IS THE WORD
“Feat to Repeat” Falters; Cannons’ Season Comes to a Close Against Marlins

Manchester, CT (AP)--The 2006 West Hartford Cannons have been a dichotomy that has at times been difficult to decipher. As early as April the team was an odds-on favorite to challenge for the CNMSBL A Division Championship with a potent pitching rotation, a bruising batting order and flashy fielding at a plethora of positions. However, from mid-May to late-July the team experienced an excruciating twelve-game losing streak, solidifying its status as the league’s last place regular-season finisher while lending credence to rumors that it would be back in the B Division in 2007. In early August the team closed the campaign by winning three of four games and one week later took two of three in opening round action in the playoffs, busting brackets from Muzzy Field to the campus of Manchester Community College while advancing to the season’s final weekend. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, the Cannons were a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma this season and nobody knew what to expect as West Hartford took on top-seeded Glastonbury for the right to battle Bristol in the finals (both teams lost to the Phoenix the previous weekend). Unfortunately the proverbial clock struck midnight for the CNMSBL’s Cinderellas as the Cannons fell to the Fish 11-5, finishing in third-place in their inaugural foray in A Division play.

Early on it appeared as if the glass slipper would once again fit as the Cannons jumped on yet another higher-seeded opponent, this time taking a three-run lead in the top of the first inning. Jason Maule continued to confound opposing pitchers as he led off the game with a single to right (he advanced to second on a passed ball and moved to third with a stolen base, his team-leading sixth of the post-season). Kevin McGann followed with a walk, stole second and both players scored on Leo Dionicio’s two-run single to left. The “Dominican Dreamboat” advanced into scoring position as the throw arrived late at the plate, stole third and scampered home on a passed ball putting early pressure on Marlins’ pitcher Chris “Dingle” Barry. Mike Calabrese took the mound for the Cannons and struggled early, allowing the first five Fish to reach base safely (two singles, two walks and an error) and eventually score. Cal and the Cannons avoided further damage as Mike McGann doubled up the lead runner at third on a line drive to end the inning but a three-run advantage had quickly turned into a two-run deficit and the Cannons would never again hold the lead. Calabrese settled down in the second as he got the first two batters in order but a controversial ball call on what appeared to be strike three rattled the normally composed Cannon right-hander and the Marlins managed to score three two-out runs for an 8-3 edge. Calabrese (6 IP, 11 R, 9 ER, 12 H, 1 K, 6 BB, 2 HBP) gave up two more runs in the fourth before the Cannons responded by plating a pair in the fifth as Maule singled and later scored on a passed ball and Tom Luby drove in K. McGann who had reached on an error for the Cannons’ fifth and final run. Calabrese (1-1) allowed another run to cross in the fifth and West Hartford’s long, strange season came to a close as only two base runners reached safely over the last two frames (Patenaude on a single in the sixth and Maule with a walk in the seventh). Manager Matt Celio spoke to reporters outside of the visitors’ clubhouse after the loss: “We didn’t play well enough to win against a good Glastonbury team and I just wasn’t on top of my game out there today. The umpires got to some of our players and I probably should have made a move and brought in [Mike] Patenaude early on. I was playing for Saturday afternoon when we were involved in a Saturday morning elimination game. Instead of going for broke I played it safe and it came back to bite us. Our guys gave it their all out there. I’m just really proud of this ball club and what we overcame to get to this point. It’s something for us to build upon for the 2007 season. I fully expect us to take that next step and challenge for the Championship next year.”

The 2006 CNMSBL season is over and done for the West Hartford Cannons. As the Autumnal Equinox approaches the 2007 season seems far off, with Opening Day approximately eight months away. But those in the know fully understand that this is the time when post-season games are won and lost. Re-signing pivotal players and/or finding those key free agent acquisitions--the team is presently pursuing Sean McCann, including an impromptu Friday evening meeting at Cannons World Headquarters, as well as exploring optins with former Herb's Sport Shop standout John Rusconi and ex-Clark Cougar Craig Perrier--will go a long way toward setting the tone for a team’s future success. A third-place A Division finish is respectable but the rabid fan base of Cannon Nation will only settle for nearly was and almost ran for so long. Cinderella’s slipper may not have fit the 6-16 West Hartford Cannons for the 2006 campaign but the team hopes to lead a charmed life as they chase the 2007 title and being surprise contenders doesn’t suit a team as talented as this at all. Expectations will once again be at an all-time high as the team prepares to play out next season’s schedule and a championship is the only thing that can soothe this “third” degree burn. Follow all of your favorite Cannons throughout the off-season at whcannons.blogspot.com. Get your RED on!

Cannons News and Notes: Maule and Luby combined for 20 of the Cannons’ 46 post-season hits, scored 13 of the team’s 27 runs and had 10 of the 22 RBIs (Maule: 11, 9, 1; Luby: 9, 4, 9); Luby is the Cannons’ all-time leader in playoff at-bats (72), hits (31), doubles (10), home runs (5), runs scored (19) and runs batted in (32); with his sixteen playoff at-bats Maule took over the team lead in post-season average (.688), on-base percentage (.706), slugging percentage (1.000), on-base + slugging percentage (1.706) and fewest strike outs (0); Dionicio’s triple against Marlborough was the only three-base hit for the Cannons in 2006 (he also led the team with 17 post-season at-bats); M. McGann led the team with 3 walks in the playoffs giving him 10 for his career (behind only Ed Poland and Mike Weber with 11 each and Andy Borst with 14); Chris Barsa, Dionicio, Luby, Maule, K. McGann, Patenaude and Poland batted above .300 during the 2006 playoffs (the team batting average was .357, besting the .346 overall average assembled in six years of post-season play); Celio was the only to Cannon not to see time in any of the four games during the playoffs; West Hartford officially finished third in the Associated Press’ final poll, behind Bristol and Glastonbury (the Phoenix beat the Fish by a score of 6-4 to take home the league title); winners of the 2006 Cannons Awards will be announced on Saturday, October 14 at the Cannons’ End-of-Year Extravaganza in Newington, CT.