The first two weeks of the American Legion baseball season are always a grind. Because of graduation, beach week and post season high school tournaments, the rosters on most legion teams are a little short. Therefore the order of the day is simply to get by until the team’s full slate is in tack.
  “It’s survival because we have Beach Week, we have kids that are gone who normally would be out there playing, but I understand,” said Post 175 head coach Eddie Gates. “I was young once and I went to the beach myself. But it does make it tough.”

  Despite missing key players, Mechanicsville Post 175 got things rolling out of the gate with a win at Petersburg Post 2 at the beginning of June then picked up another big win on Saturday night at Shepherd Stadium against Post 284-B.

  But when they finally played their home opener at Atlee HS against Post 284-P on Sunday, things did not work out so well. An up and down day on the mound from starter Taylor Marshall led to a 10-7 loss to the Pirates.

  “We had a few pitches that were thrown too fat,” said 175 head coach Eddie Gates. “He moved it a little bit and when he didn’t hit it, they hit it.”

  As with all legion teams, pitching is the key component to their success and for Post 175 it is also the biggest question mark as far as depth. “You play four-five games a week,” said shortstop Chase Worthington. “To any team it’s tough, and to a pitcher, you’d be lucky if he went seven, eight, even nine innings out of them. Definitely pitching is what’s going to win the ball games.”

  After the first three weeks of the season teams are playing five games a week to squeeze in the 22-game slate in just over a month. “That makes it tough for two weeks,” Gates said. “Then if you get a rainout you could be playing every day. Pitching’s going to be a struggle for us.”

  Other than former Hanover players Aaron Adkins and Sam Hartness, no player on the team was a regular starting pitcher in high school. But to their advantage, the team can boast the talents of some of the area’s top relievers in former Lee-Davis pitcher Brandon Powers and Hanover’s Justin Thorn, who came into his own during the Hawks’ state tournament run.

  But the measure of the teams’ pitching talent is only in disparity when compared to the enormity of talent elsewhere on the roster. “I’ve got a tremendous amount of talent,” Gates said. The 175 lineup looks like an local All-Star team with former Lee-Davis standout and current Randolph-Macon first baseman Jordan Walton accompanied by VMI’s Worthington a former standout at Atlee. Add to that former and current Lee-Davis players Josh Perks, Bo-Bo Pack, Nick Frame, Hank Parsley and Will Connerley as well as Altee’s Mitch Keeler and Paul Keyes. Then there are recent Hanover graduates Laine Denton, Thornton Glazebrook, Beau Flinchum and Bryson Kemler.

  “The talent’s here,” Worthington said. “It’s just what we do on the field. As long as we stick together win or lose, I look forward to the next game.”

  With Marshall making the start on the mound against 284-P, 175 took down the order in the top of the first but in the top of the second things unraveled. The Pirates’ Ryan Moore took Marshall’s first pitch and sent it over the wall in center for a 1-0 lead. Next up Kirk Jennings drilled a double-shot to the wall in left center then Emanuel Papadakis homered to left for a 3-0 lead.

  Facing 284’s Moore on the mound, the 175 bats could find little ground but they chipped into the lead in the bottom of the inning when a double to right by Pack drove in Worthington.

  But 284 came back to add three more in the top of the fourth. However, after that Marshall found his groove and held the Pirates scoreless over the next three innings, allowing Mechanicsville to make a comeback.

  In the bottom of the fourth a sacrifice to center from Adkins drove in Walton to pull 175 within four at 6-2.

  Then in the bottom of the fifth, Perks punched a shot to center that drove in Keeler and Kemler. Next up, Walton took a 3-1 pitch and sent it down the right line for a triple that sent Perks home to pull Mechanicsville within one, 6-5.

  In the bottom of the sixth, 284 brought Jacob Karr to the mount and he took down the 175 order in the sixth and seventh.

  To add to their problems, 284 tacked on three more runs in the top of the seventh when Marshall’s arm began to tire. “He pitched a good game after the first couple of innings then he got tired on that last one,” Gates said. “I probably left him in an inning too long.”

  Gates brought Hank Parsley to the mound to close out the game and the Lee-Davis pitcher shut down the 284 offense. “Hank did a good job,” Gates said. “For catching nine innings last night then throwing three today he did good.”

  But the hole was too big for 175 to climb out of gut they added two more in the bottom of the ninth. A sacrifice to center by Kemler brought in Keeler and Hartness scored on a Walton double for the final margin.

  For the game, Walton was 4-for-5 from the plate.

Post 284P….....033 000 400—10 14 1
Post 175 ..........010 130 002— 7 11 2
Moore, J. Karr (6) and Carter; Marshall, Parsley (7) and Keeler. W: Moore. L: Marshall.
Highlights: Ryan Moore (284P) 1 for 5, HR; Kirk Jennings (284P) 3 for 5, 3 runs; Emmanuel Papadakis (284P) 3 for 3, HR, 2 RBI; Jordan Walton (175) 4 for 5, RBI, run; Josh Perks (175) 2 for 5, 2 RBI, run; Chase Worthington (175) 2 for 5, run
Records: Colonial Heights Post 284P 3-0; Mechanicsville Post 175 2-1

American Legion Post 175
2009 baseball schedule

Tues.	June 16 	137 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.              7 p.m.
Sat.	June 20	175 @ 201	   Powhatan H.S.	         7 p.m.
Sun.	June 21	175 @ 186	   Rockwood Park	         4 p.m.
Tues.    June 23	361 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.	         7 p.m.
Wed. 	June 24	175 @ 206	   Patrick Henry	         7 p.m.
Thurs.   June 25	175 @ 125	   Douglas Freeman	         7 p.m.
Sat.	June 27	175 @ 137   L.C. Bird H.S.	         7 p.m.
Sun. 	June 28	  2 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.		4 p.m.
Tues.    June 30	175 @ 244	   Hermitage H.S.	         7 p.m.
Wed. 	July 1	144 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.		7 p.m.
Thurs.   July 2	206 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.		7 p.m.
Sat. 	July 4	284-B @ 175 Atlee H.S.		7 p.m.
Sun. 	July 5	175 @ 284-P TBA			4 p.m.
Tues.	July 7	175 @ 144	   Highland Springs	7 p.m.
Thurs.   July 9	175 @ 361   J.R. Tucker H.S.	7 p.m.
Sat.	July 11	201 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.		7 p.m.
Sun. 	July 12	186 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.		4 p.m.
Tues.    July 14	125 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.		7 p.m.
Thurs.   July 16 	244 @ 175	   Atlee H.S.		7 p.m.