And Now For My Next Trick

Harry Houdini

Stop me when this starts to get ridiculous.

Team Hoffy has done it again, staging yet another improbable comeback Friday night to beat Malachy's 13-11 and take a 2-0 lead in the best of 7 Quincy Merchant League championship.

Held to just four hits and two walks through the first five innings, Hofbrau faced a 6-2 deficit heading on the sixth. The Hoffy bats then woke up as the undefeated three time defending champs came alive with 7 of the first 8 batters reaching safely. Ramon led off with a hard hit single to left. Nelly followed with a base hit up the middle. After a Jim Dennis walk, Scott Logan drove in the first run of the inning with a deep sac fly to left. Glen Bosse, Bill Wysocki, Steve Yocco and Mike Yocco ripped consecutive base hits to erase the deficit and give Hoffy a 7-6 lead.

Malachy's answered the Hoffy onslaught with three runs of their own in the bottom of the 6th to retake the lead.

Trailing 9-7 after 6 innings, and inspired by friends and family, including fans from Stop and Shop's corporate office, Team Hoffy dug down one more time. A heads-up walk by Dave Brolin got things started. Hoffy then retook the lead for good with back to back doubles by Ramon and Nelly. Dennis started the insurance runs with a single to knock in Nelly, who toughed it out to score depsite injuring a hamstring in the second inning. Scott Logan kept the inning going with a single. Glen Bosse's third hit of the night, a line drive double to left center, and a sac fly by Wysocki gave Hofbrau a 13-9 lead going into the bottom of the seventh.

Malachy's looked as if they might come back to win in the bottom of the seventh with the heart of the batting order coming up, but conservative base running left the bases loaded. Big green plated two runs in the inning, but stellar defense saved the day again for Hofbrau. With a man on first and the tying run at the plate, Ramon turned in the defensive play of the night when he snagged a hard grounder in the hole at second and fired to second for the second out. Wysocki almost turned it into a game ending double play, but the Malachy's batter just beat the throw. Hofbrau ace Steve Lannan put the final nail in the coffin as the next batter grounded to third to end the game and close the book on another Hofbrau comeback.

"Deep down I knew we were going to win," Jim Dennis said after the game, "but I can't believe what we just did." "This is what we do," Tom Fratalillo added, "it's another classic Hoffy comeback."

GAME 3 TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 AT KINCAIDE. TIME TBA