QUICK PREVIEW: Boston Whaleheads vs. Arizona Thunder The Thunder won the Young division pennant by a 1 game margin, but a pennant is a pennant. The Thunder once again benefited from an amazing year from Mark McGwire, who shattered the home run record. Jeromy Burnitz and Matt Stairs were not bad either. Staff ace Jimmy Key won 16. The Whaleheads are a little more tamer than their raging 1996 form, but they're still a playoff team. Griffey, ARod, and Hundley lead a potent offense. Darryl Kile won 19 games. The Thunder won the regular season series 5-4. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GAME ONE - Boston Whaleheads (Darryl Kile) at Arizona Thunder (Jimmy Key) Carlos Delgado got the Whaleheads off to a rousing start, smacking a 1-out solo homer off Key ... and that was it. Neither side would score again, giving the Whaleheads the game 1 victory by a narrow 1-0 margin. WHALEHEADS LEAD 1-0. Series 8 10/9/1997 -- Game 1 of 1, Jacobs Field 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP 97 Whaleheads 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 9 0 13 1 97 Thunder 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 9 1 Whaleheads AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Johnson,L lf 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 2 0 0 0 Delgado 1b 4 1 3 1 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .750 9 0 0 0 Hundley c 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 5 0 0 0 Griffey cf 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 4 0 0 0 Rodriguez ss 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 0 2 0 0 Naehring 3b 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 2 3 0 0 Mabry rf 3 0 2 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .667 3 0 0 0 Kelly 2b 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 1 3 0 0 Kile p 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 1 0 0 0 Butler ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Bochtler p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Dreifort p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 35 1 9 1 3 0 1 6 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 8 0 0 Thunder AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Burnitz lf 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 8 0 0 0 McLemore 2b 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 2 1 0 0 Franco,M ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Vosberg p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Stairs rf 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 3 1 0 0 McGwire 1b 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 4 1 0 0 Williams 3b 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 0 1 0 Damon cf 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 1 1 0 0 Hernandez ss 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 3 0 0 Marrero pr 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Steinbach c 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 5 0 0 0 Daulton ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Levis c 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 1 0 0 0 Key p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 1 0 0 Worrell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 O'Leary ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Hardtke 2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 30 0 4 0 0 0 0 6 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 8 1 0 Whaleheads INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Kile W 1-0 7.0 3 0 0 2 5 107 64 25 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 Bochtler 0.2 0 0 0 2 0 20 8 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Dreifort S 1 1.1 1 0 0 2 0 23 12 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 9.0 4 0 0 6 5 150 84 36 0 0 0 0 1 0 Thunder INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Key L 0-1 6.2 8 1 1 3 4 124 70 30 1 0 0 0 0 0 1.35 Worrell 1.1 0 0 0 3 0 27 9 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Vosberg 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 14 11 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 9.0 9 1 1 6 5 165 90 41 1 0 0 0 0 0 BSW: Butler batted for Kile in the 8th ARZ: Daulton batted for Steinbach in the 8th O'Leary batted for Worrell in the 8th Franco,M batted for McLemore in the 8th Levis inserted at c in the 9th Hardtke inserted at 2b in the 9th Marrero ran for Hernandez in the 9th GWRBI: Delgado Temperature: 55, Sky: clear, Wind: in from left at 7 MPH. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GAME TWO - Whaleheads (Tom Gordon) at Thunder (Mike Morgan) The floodgates opened early in this game. With the Thunder down 1-0 in the bottom of the first, a Matt Stairs double scored Mark McLemore to even it up. The Thunder took a 3-1 lead when Mark McGwire slammed a 2-run shot. Carlos Delgado had a solo shot in the 2nd to make it a 3-2 game. The Thunder padded their lead in the 2nd on RBI's by Burnitz and McLemore. Sacrifice flies by Johnny Damon & Matt Williams in the 3rd & 5th innings made it a 7-2 game. The Whaleheads tried to nickel and dime their way back to the lead, but couldn't quite get there, as Arizona takes game 2 by a score of 7 to 5. SERIES EVEN 1-1. Series 10 10/10/1997 -- Game 1 of 1, Jacobs Field 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP 97 Whaleheads 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 5 10 4 6 0 97 Thunder 3 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 x 7 12 1 4 0 Whaleheads AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Johnson,L lf 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 3 1 1 0 Offerman 2b 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 3 1 0 Hundley c 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .143 7 2 1 0 Griffey cf 4 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222 2 1 0 0 Rodriguez ss 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .111 3 3 0 0 Delgado 1b 4 1 3 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .750 6 0 0 0 Tatis 3b 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 0 0 1 0 Mabry rf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .286 1 0 0 0 Gordon p 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 1 0 0 Butler ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Hutton p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 0 0 0 Borders ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Heredia p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Naehring ph 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 0 0 0 0 37 5 10 4 1 0 2 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 24 11 4 0 Thunder AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Burnitz lf 4 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .143 0 0 0 0 McLemore 2b 3 1 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 3 6 0 0 Stairs rf 4 2 2 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .429 2 0 1 0 Worrell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Tomko p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 McGwire 1b 4 1 3 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .429 11 0 0 0 Williams 3b 3 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 .286 1 5 0 0 Damon cf 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 .333 3 0 0 0 Hernandez ss 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 .167 2 1 0 0 Ordonez ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Steinbach c 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 4 0 0 0 Morgan p 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 1 0 0 O'Leary rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 0 0 0 31 7 12 7 2 0 1 1 5 1 1 0 0 1 2 27 13 1 0 Whaleheads INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Gordon L 0-1 4.0 9 6 5 0 4 71 46 19 1 0 0 0 0 0 11.25 Hutton 2.0 1 1 0 1 0 36 19 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Heredia 2.0 2 0 0 0 1 28 18 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 8.0 12 7 5 1 5 135 83 35 1 0 0 0 0 0 Thunder INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Morgan W 1-0 7.2 9 4 3 1 3 100 63 33 1 0 0 1 0 0 3.52 Worrell 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 6 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Tomko S 1 1.0 1 1 1 0 1 15 10 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 9.00 9.0 10 5 4 1 4 121 77 38 2 0 0 1 0 0 BSW: Butler batted for Gordon in the 5th Borders batted for Hutton in the 7th Naehring batted for Heredia in the 9th ARZ: Ordonez inserted at ss in the 8th O'Leary inserted at rf in the 8th GWRBI: McGwire Temperature: 66, Sky: clear, Wind: out to center at 11 MPH. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GAME THREE - Thunder (Kevin Rogers) at Whaleheads (Jeff Fassero) The Thunder were in control of this one (sort of). Arizona scored twice in the 2nd, and once in the 3rd for the 3-0 lead. They made it 4-0 in the 5th on a bases loaded single by Johnny Damon. Meanwhile, Kenny Rogers was (fairly) dominant over the Whaleheads, throwing no-hit ball through 5, but loaded up on walks. The Whaleheads finally touched Rogers for 2 runs in the 6th, but Rogers had done his part, even if he did last only 5 1/3 innings and walked 8 batters along with his 1-hit performance. But 2 runs was all the Whaleheads could score in this one, as the Thunder won game 3 by a score of 4-2 to retake home field advantage. THUNDER LEADS 2-1. Series 14 10/11/1997 -- Game 1 of 1, SkyDome 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP 97 Thunder 0 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 4 4 0 7 1 97 Whaleheads 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 3 1 8 0 Thunder AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Burnitz lf 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .083 1 0 0 0 Graffanino 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 4 0 0 McLemore 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 0 1 0 0 Steinbach c 4 2 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 5 0 0 0 McGwire 1b 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .400 8 0 0 0 Williams 3b 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 0 2 0 0 O'Leary rf 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 6 1 0 0 Damon cf 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 .222 6 0 0 0 Ordonez ss 4 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 3 0 0 Rogers p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Vosberg p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Tomko p 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 32 4 4 3 0 0 1 5 5 1 0 0 0 1 0 27 11 0 0 Whaleheads AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Johnson,L lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .143 0 0 0 0 Offerman 2b 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 4 2 1 0 Hundley c 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 6 1 0 0 Griffey cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .154 5 0 0 0 Rodriguez ss 3 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 2 3 0 0 Delgado 1b 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .545 6 3 0 0 Naehring 3b 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 0 1 0 0 Mabry rf 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222 1 0 0 0 Ashley ph 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 0 0 0 0 Bochtler p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 2 1 0 0 Butler ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Fassero p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Mouton ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Hutton p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Halter ph 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 1 0 0 0 27 2 3 2 1 1 0 9 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 27 11 1 0 Thunder INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Rogers W 1-0 5.1 1 2 2 8 4 118 57 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.38 Vosberg 1.2 2 0 0 0 0 18 10 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Tomko S 2 2.0 0 0 0 1 0 16 8 6 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.00 9.0 3 2 2 9 4 152 75 37 0 0 0 0 1 0 Whaleheads INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Fassero L 0-1 5.0 4 4 3 5 3 103 56 26 1 0 0 1 0 0 5.40 Hutton 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 11 7 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Bochtler 3.0 0 0 0 0 0 31 19 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 9.0 4 4 3 5 5 145 82 38 1 0 0 1 0 0 ARZ: McLemore inserted at 2b in the 9th BSW: Mouton batted for Fassero in the 5th Ashley batted for Mabry in the 6th Halter batted for Hutton in the 6th Halter moved to rf in the 7th Butler batted for Bochtler in the 9th Temperature: 70, Wind: none. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GAME FOUR - Arizona Thunder (Dwight Gooden) at Boston Whaleheads (Jose Rosado). Both starting pitchers were able to get the other team under control through six innings, when the game was tied 1-all. But the Whaleheads had a big inning in the 7th, scoring 6 runs and put the game out of reach in the 7-2 victory. SERIES TIED 2-2. Series 16 10/12/1997 -- Game 1 of 1, SkyDome 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP 97 Thunder 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 8 1 10 0 97 Whaleheads 0 0 0 1 0 0 6 0 x 7 9 0 9 2 Thunder AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Graffanino 2b 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .111 0 6 0 0 Daulton lf 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 0 0 0 Steinbach c 4 1 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .286 8 0 0 0 Levis ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 0 0 0 0 McGwire 1b 2 1 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 9 1 0 0 Williams 3b 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .154 0 0 0 0 O'Leary rf 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .429 1 0 0 0 Damon cf 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .182 2 0 0 0 Nevin ph 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 0 0 0 0 Burnitz cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .083 1 0 0 0 Ordonez ss 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222 1 1 1 0 Gooden p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000 0 2 0 0 Worrell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 1 0 0 Vosberg p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 0 0 0 Hernandez ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 0 0 0 0 31 2 8 2 0 0 1 5 9 0 0 0 1 1 1 24 11 1 0 Whaleheads AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Johnson,L lf 4 1 2 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222 4 0 0 0 Offerman 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 .000 3 4 0 0 Hundley c 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 9 0 0 0 Griffey cf 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 0 0 3 0 0 0 .133 1 0 0 0 Rodriguez ss 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 1 3 0 0 Delgado 1b 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .538 6 0 0 0 Naehring 3b 4 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 0 1 0 0 Mabry rf 4 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .231 3 0 0 0 Rosado p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 1 0 0 Borders ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Heredia p 1 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 0 1 0 0 Dreifort p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 32 7 9 6 3 0 0 7 8 0 0 3 0 1 0 27 10 0 0 Thunder INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Gooden 6.0 5 1 1 4 6 105 58 27 0 2 0 1 0 0 1.50 Worrell L 0-1 0.2 1 3 3 2 0 17 6 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 11.57 Vosberg 1.1 3 3 3 1 2 30 19 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.75 8.0 9 7 7 7 8 152 83 40 0 3 0 1 0 0 Whaleheads INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Rosado 6.0 5 1 1 4 7 104 61 27 1 0 0 0 0 0 1.50 Heredia W 1-0 2.0 3 1 1 1 0 24 15 9 0 0 1 0 2 0 2.25 Dreifort 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 12 8 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 9.0 8 2 2 5 9 140 84 39 1 0 1 0 2 0 ARZ: Nevin batted for Damon in the 8th Burnitz inserted at cf in the 8th Hernandez batted for Vosberg in the 9th Levis batted for Steinbach in the 9th BSW: Borders batted for Rosado in the 6th GWRBI: Delgado Temperature: 70, Wind: none. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GAME FIVE - Thunder (Jimmy Key) at Whaleheads (Darryl Kyle) With the series tied at 2, game five was to decide who would go into game six one game closer to the RY conference finals. The Whaleheads scored first in the 3rd on a Jose Offerman triple followed by a free trip home by a Jimmy Key wild pitch. The Thunder ran wild in the 4th thanks to their middle infielders. With the bases loaded, Jason Hardtke hit a 2-RBI single. The next batter was Rey "boom boom" Ordonez, who hit a 2-RBI double to make it a 4-1 game. Lance Johnson knocked in a couple of runs in the 4th & 8th innings, but ran out of steam. With 2 outs and a batter on first, Brett Tomko got Tatis to fly out to left field, giving Arizona the 4-3 win. THUNDER LEADS 3-2. Series 20 10/14/1997 -- Game 1 of 1, SkyDome 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP 97 Thunder 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 6 1 2 1 97 Whaleheads 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 3 8 0 13 1 Thunder AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Burnitz lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .063 3 0 0 0 Levis c 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 8 0 0 0 Stairs rf 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .364 1 0 0 0 Tomko p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 McGwire 1b 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .400 7 1 0 0 Williams 3b 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .118 1 1 0 0 Damon cf 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .214 2 0 0 0 Hardtke 2b 3 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 2 3 0 0 O'Leary rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .429 1 0 0 0 Ordonez ss 3 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 2 4 1 0 Key p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Worrell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Daulton ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 McLemore 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 0 1 0 0 31 4 6 4 1 0 0 2 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 10 1 0 Whaleheads AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Johnson,L lf 5 0 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .217 2 0 0 0 Offerman 2b 3 1 3 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .214 2 5 0 0 Borders ph 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 0 0 0 0 Kelly 2b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 0 0 0 0 Hundley c 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 8 0 0 0 Griffey cf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .105 3 0 0 0 Rodriguez ss 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .211 0 4 0 0 Delgado 1b 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .438 8 0 0 0 Mouton pr 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Mabry rf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .176 2 1 0 0 Bochtler p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Tatis ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .400 0 0 0 0 Gates 3b 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 1 1 0 0 Kile p 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .167 0 0 0 0 Butler rf 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 1 0 0 0 35 3 8 2 2 2 0 8 8 1 0 0 0 0 0 27 11 0 0 Thunder INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Key W 1-1 5.2 6 2 2 5 6 117 68 29 0 0 0 1 0 0 2.19 Worrell 1.1 0 0 0 2 1 16 5 5 0 0 0 0 1 0 7.36 Tomko S 3 2.0 2 1 1 1 1 29 18 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.60 9.0 8 3 3 8 8 162 91 43 0 0 0 1 1 0 Whaleheads INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Kile L 1-1 7.2 6 4 4 2 7 126 80 29 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.45 Bochtler 1.1 0 0 0 0 1 19 11 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 9.0 6 4 4 2 8 145 91 33 0 0 0 0 1 0 ARZ: Daulton batted for Worrell in the 8th O'Leary inserted at rf in the 8th McLemore inserted at 2b in the 8th BSW: Butler inserted at rf in the 8th Borders batted for Offerman in the 8th Kelly inserted at 2b in the 9th Tatis batted for Bochtler in the 9th Mouton ran for Delgado in the 9th GWRBI: Hardtke Temperature: 70, Wind: none. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GAME SIX - Boston Whaleheads (Tom Gordon) at Arizona Thunder (Mike Morgan) This one was a must-win for the Whaleheads. Both teams got off to a strong start, with Boston putting up 2 runs in 2 innings and Arizona scoring 3 runs in the first inning. Each team put up a couple more runs in the next several innings until the score was 5-4 Thunder at the end of 8 innings. For Boston, this wasn't good, as they now had 3 outs left before calling it a season. Carlos Delgado walked (hitting 3/4'ths of the cycle ... all that was missing was a single), becoming the tying run on base. Replacing Delgado on the base paths was pinch runner Pat Kelly, presumably because he'd be better at running the bases. With Ken Griffey Jr. at bat, Thunder reliever Bret Tomko gets Pat Kelly leaning the wrong way, and picks him off! As it turns out, it was a costly error, as Ken Griffey Jr. would promptly smack a (now solo) homer to tie up the game in the 9th inning at 5 each ... instead of a 6-5 Whalehead lead. The game would go to extra innings after a scoreless Thunder 9th. In the 11th, Pat Kelly had his chance at redemption when he faced Rick Helling. And, wouldn't you know it, Kelly redeemed himself. Kelly took a Helling pitch and parked it over the fence. 6-5 Whaleheads. Darren Dreifort closed out the bottom of the 11th for the win. Game seven in Arizona will decide who gets a ticket to the RY conference final to face the Coneheads. SERIES TIED 3-3. Series 22 10/15/1997 -- Game 1 of 1, Jacobs Field 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 R H E LOB DP 97 Whaleheads 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 6 14 2 10 0 97 Thunder 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 5 8 0 9 2 Whaleheads AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Johnson,L lf 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .172 3 0 0 0 Offerman 2b 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222 2 2 1 0 Hundley ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .158 0 0 0 0 Colbrunn 1b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 3 0 0 0 Delgado 1b 4 2 3 2 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 7 0 0 0 Kelly pr 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 .400 1 1 0 0 Griffey cf 5 1 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .167 2 0 0 0 Rodriguez ss 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .208 1 1 0 0 Borders c 5 1 3 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 12 1 0 0 Tatis 3b 5 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .300 0 1 0 0 Mabry rf 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 2 1 0 0 Hutton p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Naehring ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 0 0 0 0 Heredia p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 0 0 0 0 Halter ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .500 0 0 0 0 Dreifort p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 1 0 0 Gordon p 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 0 3 1 0 Butler rf 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 0 0 0 0 44 6 14 6 2 2 3 5 8 1 1 1 0 0 0 33 11 2 0 Thunder AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Burnitz lf 4 2 1 0 0 1 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .100 2 0 0 0 McLemore 2b 4 1 2 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .400 2 6 0 0 Franco,M ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Stairs rf 5 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .313 0 0 0 0 McGwire 1b 4 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 .316 13 1 0 0 Williams 3b 4 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .190 2 2 0 0 Levis c 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273 8 0 0 0 Damon cf 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 .222 4 0 0 0 Hernandez ss 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222 0 5 0 0 Ordonez ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 2 1 0 0 Daulton ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Helling p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Morgan p 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 1 0 0 O'Leary ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .375 0 0 0 0 Worrell p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Tomko p 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 1 0 0 Marrero ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Graffanino ss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .100 0 0 0 0 40 5 8 4 1 1 0 6 11 1 1 0 0 0 1 33 17 0 0 Whaleheads INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Gordon 5.2 8 5 5 4 6 118 69 29 0 0 0 0 0 0 9.31 Hutton 1.1 0 0 0 1 0 23 12 5 0 0 0 1 0 0 0.00 Heredia 2.0 0 0 0 0 3 31 22 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.50 Dreifort W 1-0 2.0 0 0 0 1 2 26 15 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 11.0 8 5 5 6 11 198 118 47 0 0 0 1 0 0 Thunder INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Morgan 6.0 9 3 3 0 5 96 66 26 1 0 0 0 1 0 3.95 Worrell 0.2 2 1 1 1 0 11 6 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 8.31 Tomko 3.1 2 1 1 4 3 65 35 14 1 0 0 1 0 0 3.24 Helling L 0-1 1.0 1 1 1 0 0 11 6 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 9.00 11.0 14 6 6 5 8 183 113 49 3 1 0 1 1 0 BSW: Butler inserted at rf in the 6th Naehring batted for Hutton in the 8th Hundley batted for Offerman in the 9th Kelly ran for Delgado in the 9th Colbrunn inserted at 1b in the 9th Kelly moved to 2b in the 9th Halter batted for Heredia in the 10th ARZ: O'Leary batted for Morgan in the 6th Ordonez inserted at ss in the 9th Daulton batted for Ordonez in the 10th Marrero batted for Tomko in the 10th Graffanino inserted at ss in the 11th Franco,M batted for McLemore in the 11th GWRBI: Kelly Temperature: 44, Sky: clear, Wind: out to right at 5 MPH. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * GAME SEVEN - Boston Whaleheads (Jeff Fassero) at Arizona Thunder (Kevin Rogers) This series has gone back and forth, with each team at one time holding the lead. Now with 3 wins each, game seven was for all the marbles. The Whaleheads drew first blood in the 1st when Lance Johnson scored from second on a Troy O'Leary error. The Whalehads put up 3 more runs in the 3rd on a Todd Hundley RBI double and a 2-run tater by Ken Griffey Jr. The Thunder pitching seemed to be unable to do anything right, as the Whaleheads scored in the 4th & 5th innings to make it a commanding 6-0 Whalehead lead. The Thunder finally got on the board in the 7th on a Phil Nevin 2-run shot, and Mark McGwire hit an RBI double in the 8th, but it wasn't enough. Jose Offerman put the icing on the cake in the 9th on a 2-RBI double, and Darren Dreifort pitched a scoreless 9th, as the Whaleheads defeat the Thunder on their home ground 8-3, and win the series in 7 games. The Whaleheads now meet up with the California Coneheads for the right to represent the RY conference in the CFOD world series. WHALEHEADS WIN SERIES 4-3. Series 25 10/16/1997 -- Game 1 of 1, Jacobs Field 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP 97 Whaleheads 1 0 3 1 1 0 0 0 2 8 12 0 6 2 97 Thunder 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 3 9 1 7 1 Whaleheads AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Johnson,L lf 5 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .235 1 0 0 0 Offerman 2b 5 1 3 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .304 1 6 0 0 Hundley c 3 1 1 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .182 3 1 0 0 Griffey cf 5 2 2 3 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .207 5 0 0 0 Rodriguez ss 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .207 1 3 0 0 Mieske rf 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 2 0 0 0 Naehring 3b 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 0 4 0 0 Bochtler p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Dreifort p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Delgado 1b 4 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 13 1 0 0 Fassero p 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 0 0 0 Tatis 3b 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .273 0 0 0 0 38 8 12 7 4 0 2 3 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 15 0 0 Thunder AB R H BI D T HR BB K SB CS IW HP SH SF AVG PO A E PB Burnitz lf 5 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .120 1 0 0 0 McLemore 2b 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .357 3 2 0 0 Steinbach c 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .278 7 0 0 0 McGwire 1b 3 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .318 10 1 0 0 Williams 3b 4 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 0 3 0 0 O'Leary rf 3 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .364 2 0 1 0 Damon cf 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 1 0 0 0 Nevin ph 1 1 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 0 0 0 0 Dunn cf 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 0 0 0 0 Ordonez ss 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .214 2 6 0 0 Hernandez ph 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .182 0 1 0 0 Rogers p 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 1 0 0 Tomko p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Stairs ph 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .353 0 0 0 0 Spradlin p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Hardtke ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 0 0 0 0 Vosberg p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 Daulton ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 0 0 0 34 3 9 3 3 0 1 3 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 14 1 0 Whaleheads INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Fassero W 1-1 7.2 7 3 3 1 3 100 60 30 1 0 0 0 1 0 4.26 Bochtler 0.1 2 0 0 1 0 14 6 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Dreifort 1.0 0 0 0 1 1 16 8 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 9.0 9 3 3 3 4 130 74 37 1 0 0 0 2 0 Thunder INN H R ER BB K PCH STR BF HR IW HP WP DP BK ERA Rogers L 1-1 4.1 9 6 5 1 4 70 45 23 2 0 0 0 0 0 6.52 Tomko 1.2 0 0 0 0 1 15 10 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 2.70 Spradlin 2.0 0 0 0 1 1 20 14 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 Vosberg 1.0 3 2 2 1 1 22 12 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 9.00 9.0 12 8 7 3 7 127 81 41 2 0 0 0 1 0 BSW: Tatis inserted at 3b in the 8th ARZ: Stairs batted for Tomko in the 6th Nevin batted for Damon in the 7th Hernandez batted for Ordonez in the 7th Dunn inserted at cf in the 8th Hernandez moved to ss in the 8th Hardtke batted for Spradlin in the 8th Daulton batted for Vosberg in the 9th Temperature: 53, Field: wet, Sky: threatening, Wind: out to right at 20 MPH, Rain Delays: 15 minutes.