GOLDENDALE, WA (GPS)--Game four of the A to Z League championship series started with a hit batsman and a brawl. After the fighting stopped it didn't take long for Bainbridge Island to deliver the knockout punch with a big first inning on the way to an 8-1 win over Goldendale and a sweep of the series.
Dwight Gooden started for Goldendale, down 3-0 in the series and looking to stay alive somehow. Craig Biggio dug in as Bainbridge Island's leadoff hitter who had been hot in the series, batting .500 (7-for-14) and getting two game-winning RBI in the first three games. So when Gooden's first pitch was a high, hard one that drilled Biggio in the shoulder, he took exception to the pitch and charged the mound. The benches emptied and fisticuffs ensued all around. When order was restored both Gooden and Biggio were ejected from the game.
Bainbridge Island's Jeff Bagwell
hit two homers and had five RBI
in game four as the Bees finished
a sweep of Goldendale for the A
to Z League championship. Bag-
well had three homers and 10 RBI
in the four-game series.
Losing his starting pitcher was a particular problem for Goldendale manager Clark Griffith, who had made a difficult decision in sending Gooden to the hill. He'd used his top three starters--Bob Gibson, Lefty Grove, and Tom Glavine--in the first three games to little success. His game four options were Gooden, Ron Guidry, or Gibson on three days rest. Gooden finally got the nod on the strength of a decent start in game three of the opening-round series, and because Guidry had suffered through a couple of horrible outings late in the regular season, though he'd had a perfect two-inning relief stint in game five of the opening series. With Gooden tossed after one pitch, Guidry got the call from the bullpen.
It didn't go well. Cool Papa Bell greeted Guidry with a grounder between first and second, a single moving Max Bishop, running for Biggio, to second. Barry Bonds popped up to second for the first out, but then Jeff Bagwell launched a 2-2 pitch deep into the stands in straightaway left field, a three run bomb and just like that it was 3-0 Bainbridge Island. George Brett struck out on a filthy 2-2 slider from Guidry, but then Yogi Berra got ahead 2-0 and clobbered one down the right field line and into the seats for a solo shot to make it 4-zip. Bobby Bonds whiffed to end the inning.
Bainbridge, and Bagwell, struck again in the third. With one out Barry Bonds doubled high off the wall in left. Bagwell fell into an 0-2 count, worked it back to even, and then cleared the wall in left for his second homer of the game and a 6-0 lead for BI. Brett followed with a single, moved to second on Berra's groundout, and scored on a base hit by Bobby Bonds. That was it for Guidry. Gene Garber was summoned from the bullpen to keep the lead to seven.
 |
| Tommy Bridges pitched a four-hitter for the Bees. It was almost an after- thought. |
After going 0-for-8 in the first two games of the series, Bagwell ended up hitting .333 (6-for-18) with three homers and 10 RBI. Bell hit .421 and scored four runs, and Biggio finished at .500 with two runs and three RBI.
Bainbridge Island swept the championship series for the A to Z League title and claimed B as the best letter ever!
Game 4 box score, October 26
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP
Bainbridge Island 4 0 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 8 13 0 6 0
Goldendale 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 4 0 7 1
B's AB R H BI AVG G's AB R H BI AVG
Biggio 2b 0 0 0 0 .500 Gehringer 2b 4 0 0 0 .188
Bishop pr 4 1 0 0 .000 GwynnSr,T rf 4 1 2 0 .294
Bell,CP cf 5 1 3 0 .421 GriffeyJr cf 4 0 1 1 .125
Bonds,Ba lf 4 1 1 0 .250 Gibson,J c 4 0 0 0 .188
Bagwell 1b 5 2 2 5 .333 Gehrig 1b 4 0 1 0 .286
Brett,G 3b 5 2 2 1 .200 Goslin lf 3 0 0 0 .154
Berra,Y c 4 1 2 1 .333 Groat ss 1 0 0 0 .000
Bonds,Bo rf 4 0 2 1 .308 Garber p 0 0 0 0 .000
Banks,E ss 4 0 0 0 .000 Greenberg ph 0 0 0 0 .333
Bridges,T p 4 0 1 0 .250 Giusti p 0 0 0 0 .000
39 8 13 8 Granderson ph 0 0 0 0 .333
Gagne,E p 0 0 0 0 .000
Guerrero,V ph 1 0 0 0 .000
Gaetti 3b 4 0 0 0 .167
Gooden p 0 0 0 0 .000
Guidry p 0 0 0 0 .000
Garciaparra ss 2 0 0 0 .000
31 1 4 1
B's INN H R ER BB K PCH STR ERA
Bridges,T W 1-0 9.0 4 1 1 4 8 137 88 1.00
9.0 4 1 1 4 8 137 88
G's INN H R ER BB K PCH STR ERA
Gooden L 0-1 0.0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 99.00
Guidry 2.2 7 6 6 0 4 51 36 20.25
Garber 2.1 3 1 1 0 1 30 21 2.70
Giusti 2.0 3 0 0 0 0 26 16 0.00
Gagne,E 2.0 0 0 0 1 4 33 19 3.00
9.0 13 8 8 1 9 141 92
BI : Bishop ran for Biggio in the 1st
Bishop moved to 2b in the 1st
GOL: Garciaparra inserted at ss in the 3rd
Greenberg batted for Garber in the 5th
Granderson batted for Giusti in the 7th
Guerrero,V batted for Gagne,E in the 9th
2B-Bonds,Ba(2), GwynnSr,T(1). HR-Bagwell 2(3), Brett,G(2), Berra,Y(1).
RBI-Bagwell 5(10), Brett,G(2), Berra,Y(2), Bonds,Bo(2), GriffeyJr(3).
K-Bell,CP, Bagwell, Brett,G, Bonds,Bo, Bridges,T 3, Bishop 2, Gehringer,
GriffeyJr, Gibson,J 2, Gehrig, Groat, Gaetti 2. BB-Bonds,Ba, Goslin,
Garciaparra, Greenberg, Granderson. HBP-Biggio. HB-Gooden.
GWRBI: Bagwell
Craig Biggio was ejected from this game
Dwight Gooden was ejected from this game