Keene, NH – July 4th weekend is one of the highpoints of the baseball season. A time when patriotism and fanaticism come together in a wonderful union that celebrates and embraces the past, present, and future of our national pastime. It’s a time for hot dogs, beer, and sitting out in the sun for hours watching men play a boy’s game and reveling in the joy. Red Smith once said, “Ninety feet between home plate and first base may be the closest man has ever come to perfection.” But it also comes with a price. There are times when these simple and wonderful things are overlooked, especially within the ranks of an actual team. This usually comes, if say, you’re mired in a slump at the plate, can’t spot your fastball, or if the team just isn’t clicking and can’t escape the funk. And really, that’s where the SteepleCats are right now, because for all the talent and promise they have shown at points through the first month of the season, the unit has been unable to sustain it. Heading into Keene on Sunday night for the final time during the regular season, the ‘Cats knew they could have easily lost both meetings at Alumni Field thus far. On Wednesday night, they had used a four-run ninth inning comeback to win a shootout 9-7 and used the game as a springboard to finish 3-1 on their four game roadtrip. That was quickly forgotten after Saturday night’s disheartening 8-2 loss at home to the hard-hitting Danbury Westerners that dropped the team’s record to 6-13. As they’ve done all year, they came ready to play, but the results were not up to their standards.

Perhaps the first inning best represents the team’s struggles. Chantz Mack extended his hitting streak to six games, but was thrown out at second attempting to steal by Keene’s catcher Tom Conley. Following well-struck two out singles by Drew Gadaire and Justin Leeson, Jacob Daniel stepped into the batter’s box coming off two of his best games of the season. With a 2-2 pitch on the way from Swamp Bats starter Brad Monroe, Leeson took off from first but the play was quickly ruled dead by home plate umpire Matthew Teig, who called Daniel for batter’s interference for the third out. Keene scratched one across in the home half off ‘Cats left-hander Cody Kopilchak, who had last thrown a complete game in last Saturday’s 3-2 loss in New Bedford. Following a one out walk to shortstop Alex Chittenden and a ground ball by Kevin Brown for the second out, right fielder Brett DeLoach scorched an RBI double to left.

In the third, Keene added three more runs after third baseman Curt Powell was hit by a Kopilchak curve on the inning’s very first pitch. Following four straight singles and an RBI fielder’s choice off the bat of center fielder Michael Burruss, Kopilchak breezed out the rest of the frame with two straight strikeouts to go to the fourth with the score 4-0. In the meantime, the SteepleCats stranded a pair of runners in both the second and fourth. Kopilchak (0-2) was pulled with two runners on and nobody out in the fifth after back-to-back singles by Kevin Brown and DeLoach. Friday night’s starter Matt Hinkle was asked to provide relief after a tough showing on the hill in Holyoke 48 hours earlier. The batter was Colby May, and catcher Mike Zavala snapped a throw to second baseman Corbin Blakey with Brown caught between the bases. Blakey’s return throw to third sailed up the left field line and past third baseman Cameron Griffin, allowing the runner to score the Swamp Bats fifth run. Despite the hiccup, Hinkle retired all six batters he faced in the fifth and sixth in what was his best showing of the season.

The ‘Cats got on the board in the visiting sixth when Jacob Daniel continued his marvelous week at the plate with a no-doubter solo home run to straightaway center, his first of the season. Their final chance came in the eighth when Swamp Bats righty Anthony Cervone was pulled after hitting the only two batters he faced, shortstop Mike LeBel and Gadaire. Leeson then battled to a 3-2 count against Scott Silverstein before working a walk to load the bases with nobody out, putting Daniel at the plate as the tying run. Daniel struck out swinging, but the next hitter Sam Russell smoked a line drive on the very first pitch from Silverstein into left field to score LeBel and cut the deficit to three. The bases were still loaded with the tying runs for Cameron Griffin, who was already 2-for-3 on the night. Griffin hit a hard grounder on Silverstein’s 3-1 delivery that deflected off the pitcher’s foot and ricocheted to shortstop Alex Chittenden, who stepped on second for the force and threw to first to complete the inning-ending double play.

Join us tomorrow night at Joe Wolfe Field and celebrate your Fourth of July with the North Adams SteepleCats! It’s our biggest night of the year as the ‘Cats play host to the western division’s newest team, the Mystic Schooners at 6:30. The night will go out with a bang, and following the game, make sure you stick around for one of the biggest fireworks’ displays in the Berkshires, brought to you by Hoosac Bank! To learn more, visit www.steeplecats.com