by Nicholas Cipolla
Game Over! Reed Hoskins rips a single up the middle to give NY Nine a come from behind win in the bottom of the seventh with 2 outs. pic.twitter.com/pkKUxlGx0c
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) August 1, 2021
This game was a classic from start to finish if I would say so myself.
In a game that started off as a pitchers duel, we finished with a crazy bottom half of the 7th that swung in favor of NY Nine.
In the first two innings, Brayden Martino and Ryan Martino traded zeros and both looked dominant.
Brayden Martino of NY Nine got off to a video game-esque start as he struck out the first seven batters he faced. His Knuckleball was fooling and frustrating the LI Storm hitters for the first 2.1 innings as no one was able to put it in play.
However, that changed in the top of the third, following a walk and an error by the second baseman. This gave Adam Mosca -a strikeout victim in the first inning- an opportunity to break a 0-0 tie with two outs. He came through with an rbi single that got past the diving reach shortstop, giving the Storm a 1-0 lead.
That appeared to be all the lead Ryan Martino needed, as he cruised through 5 innings of work, only allowing 3 hits, with 8 strikeouts, and 2 perfectly executed pickoffs that would have made Andy Pettitte smile. The only threat Martino felt was during the fifth inning when he loaded the bases with one out. He avoided any damage by striking out the next two batters he faced, keeping the score at 1-0.
In the bottom of the seventh, the NY Nine offense finally showed some life. Henry Garcia Jr drew a walk, stole second, and advanced to third on a throwing error on the catcher. Christopher Martinez walked and stole second, setting up a second and third with 2 outs for Reed Hoskins. But before Hoskins could do anything, there was a pass ball, allowing Garcia Jr to score the tying run.
On the very next pitch, Reed Hoskins hit a line drive that got past everyone and dropped in for the game winning single to give NY Nine an impressive come from behind win.
