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Baseball: Mitchell Hands Alonso 1st Defeat

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By RICK HARMON

Tribune correspondent

Published: March 25, 2009

TAMPA - When Alonso and Mitchell played March 5 at Mustang Field, Mitchell's senior pitcher Patrick Schuster was sick and missed the Ravens' 5-3 victory.

It wasn't going to happen again Tuesday

"I walked into my coach's office the next day and told him that he could take away as many starts as he wanted but I wanted to pitch against Alonso the next time," the UF-bound left-hander said.

It wasn't one of Schuster's best performances but it was good enough for the Mustangs to hand Alonso its first loss of the season, a 7-5 Class 6A-District 7 setback. The win moves Mitchell (12-2, 7-2) one-half game behind the district-leading Ravens (10-1, 7-1). The win clinched first-round byes for both teams at the district tournament, which begins April 27 at Countryside. It's still undecided who will be the No. 1 seed.

"I was devastated," Schuster said of missing the first Alonso game. "My mom hid my keys so I couldn't come watch the game. I tried to take my mom's van … I was trying to do anything to get to that game just to watch it."

Schuster admitted his performance wasn't one of his better ones – 6 innings, 3 earned runs, 5 walks and 3 hit batters. But he did strike out 7 to give him 50 this season and threw 67 of his 98 pitches for strikes.

"I wasn't impressed with my performance and no one will be impressed," Schuster said. "But we got the 'W.' I gave up just enough runs."

Sophomore Kevin Games provided the big bat for the Mustangs. He hit a 2-run home run in the third inning and added a game-winning 2-run double in the seventh.

"[Games] has been coming through in the big situations whenever we've needed him," Mitchell coach Scot Wilcox said. And he did it twice [Tuesday]."

Games game-winning double came with two outs in the top of the seventh inning off losing pitcher Jose Fernandez (2-1). Conner Hale hit a 1-out double and one out late, went to third on an infield single by freshman Joe Koehler. Games scored an insurance run when Steve Brown reached on an error.

Games put the Mustangs on top 2-1 in the third with a shot over the right-centerfield fence after the Rves had scored an unearned run in the first.

Alonso got four in the bottom of the third inning when Tyler Ting led off with a single to right and then Schuster hit Thomas Dorminy and Casey Smit consecutively to load the bases. Catcher Adam Pendleton hit a 0-2 fastball over the right-field fence to give the Ravens a 5-2 lead. Schuster struck out the side to end the threat.

"It was an 0-2 pitch," Schuster said. "I had him fooled with curveball-fastball. I didn't think he knew what was coming. It was a high fastball that wasn't high enough. It was outside like it was suppose to be but it was waist-high."

Alonso coach Orlando Faedo tried to downplay the loss.

"We just have to bounce back and move on," Faedo said. "I don't consider [Mitchell] a rivalry. Everybody we play here plays the same way. If you have to play a certain team and you get it up a little bit for them, you're not doing it right. You should be getting it up for every game."

Mitchell 002 020 3 — 7 6 2
Alonso 104 000 0 — 5 4 3

W — Schuster (4-0). L — Fernandez (2-1). Sv — Hewitt (1). 2B — Schuster, Hale, Games (M); Delphey (A). HR — Games (M), Pendleton (A). Records — M 12-2, A 10-1.

Correspondent Rick Harmon can be reached at tampabaystringer@gmail.com.

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