American Tops Killian 5-4 In Battle Of Miami’s Top Two

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Power rankings are an amusing distraction during the grind of a long and grueling baseball season. The debate over one’s might over another is a seesaw of relevance that leaves power rankings as a fun vice to bounce the debates off of. Everyone knows the real way to answer the great debate is to play one another.

Wednesday afternoon provided plenty of fuel for those fires, as Miami-Dade’s two top-ranked programs squared off when second-ranked American traveled to face top-ranked Killian. Both squads stood true to the test and backed their right in earning such high distinction in the Power Rankings, as the underdog Patriots held off a late rally to pull out a 5-4 victory over the host Cougars.

To label an underdog in this contest is almost laughable. With two programs playing great baseball and showcasing vast amounts of depth and talent, the contest was as tight to call as when Superman once fought an exact clone replica of himself. The Patriots (18-3) are chasing a return to the state tournament this season, and meanwhile Manager Ricky Gutierrez could not help but appreciate what he saw from the Cougars on Wednesday.

“Angel Herrera does a great job over here and they are a great ball club,” said Gutierrez. “I told him after the game that I’m cheering for him and they need to bring it home this year. They’ve got the club to do it, and like I said before the game it was going to be two powerhouses going at it today. We were lucky to sneak away with the victory. They fought back in the end and that’s what the good teams do. We were just lucky to get out of here with the win.”

While the Patriots have been consistent in all three facets this season, there is no question that the pitching staff has been the core of the entire club. With ace Ronnie Williams showcasing Major League talent on a nightly basis, they have proven they can match up with anyone in a big game.

But on this day it was another dangerous hurler who toed the rubber and gutted out the victory, as right-hander Alex Blanco got the start and went just short of the distance to earn the big victory.

“Hats off to American’s pitcher; he threw a tremendous game,” said Coach Herrera. “I knew a Ricky Gutierrez coached team is going to be ready to play and is going to be put in position to succeed and play well. It’s not going to give us anything, and I expected that. But to be able to roll out an arm like he did today in a non-district game was nothing short of phenomenal.”

Blanco was incredibly efficient with his pitches and worked calmly through a deep and talented Cougars lineup, taking a no-hitter into the fifth and a shutout into the sixth. The right-hander scattered seven hits over six-and-two-third innings, striking out three on 88 total pitches. He did not issue any walks and surrendered only two earned runs.

“I felt good. I came confident and it’s all I think about is doing good and staying confident,” said Blanco. “No matter what happens, stay through it. I don’t listen to anything when I am up there. It’s just me and the catcher and the catcher’s frame and his glove and that’s it. It’s about working on my pitches and getting ahead and then staying ahead. That’s what it is. If they get a hit or get a homer or whatever it is, just stay in it and keep throwing and keep battling and you will come out with the win.”

Blanco was productive at putting the ball into play and letting his defense make those plays behind him. He was perfect the first time through the lineup, with all nine outs coming with the ball put into play.

“It was the best two teams in Dade going at it and it was a dogfight,” said American’s Matt Ruiz. “My pitcher Alex Blanco wanted the rock and he got it and he pitched a great game.”

It was Ruiz who connected for the biggest hit of the day to drive in the winning runs and give the Cougars (17-4) their first loss since March 17th. Holding a slim 2-1 lead in the top of the seventh, the Patriots rallied for some insurance runs that proved to be crucial. Steven Alvarez lined the first pitch he saw past third base for his second base hit of the day, after he also doubled in the fifth. Andy Figueroa came on to run for Alvarez, and after Eric Gonzalez walked he put his legs to use as the pair pulled off a double steal on a ball in the dirt. This prompted an intentional walk to Romy Gonzalez to bring Ruiz to the plate.

On a 1-2 offering Ruiz waited back and drove a shot deep to right field over the fielder’s head and into the far corner, clearing the bases with the three-RBI double.

“He walked the number four batter and I kind of felt disrespected, but I was just trying to keep the same approach as I’ve had all year,” said Ruiz. “Tap the ball to right field; that’s what I’ve been doing all year. Lucky it worked out and we came up with the ‘W’. That’s what you want as a hitter; you want the bat in your hand and you want to do everything you can to win the game.”

Ruiz finished the game 2-for-4, adding an RBI single that scored Eric Gonzalez to give American an early lead in the top of the first inning.

Kevin Williams added to their lead in the third when he jumped on a high pitch and slugged it over the left field fence for a solo home run. The Patriots put runners on in nearly every inning, but saw some chances erased when a few baserunners were picked off on steal attempts thanks to the strong arm of Killian catcher Spencer Levine.

Levine was also part of a big play late in the game. Down 2-0 in the bottom of the sixth, Ryan Guzman legged out an infield single on a high chopper in front of the mound to get things going for Killian. Danny Cumba then found a hole through the right side for a single, and both runners advanced on a throwing error.

Freddy Zamora broke up the shutout on a sacrifice flyout that plated Guzman and brought the dangerous bat of Levine to the dish. Blanco worked the count to 2-2 before getting a high pop foul on the fifth offering. With the ball trailing high towards the edge of the visiting dugout, the Patriots catcher Steven Alvarez sprinted after it but seemed unlikely to get there in time.

But first baseman Jake Norman was.

“The ball went up in the air and I couldn’t see it at first. I heard my catcher call it and I went over there just in case,” said Norman. “I had to maneuver around the dugout and it was a little crazy there. It was a little different, and not knowing the field it was tough. I thought he was going to dive and I just camped under and in the last second I had my glove under it.”

As the ball miraculously stayed in the field of play and with the catcher falling just short, Norman came out of nowhere to make an incredible basket catch just before running into the dugout to avoid colliding with the fence or dugout wall. It happened so fast that some of Norman’s own teammates did not realize he had made the catch, but the umpire had and he signaled for the third out that ended the inning.

“Usually you hear someone say they got it you back off, but you just go over in case because that is what Coach Rick teaches,” said Norman. “It worked out for us right there. That is their guy Levine up there at the plate and he’s a good hitter. For us to get that out right there and stop the bleeding with that guy on third base was big. It was real big. That was a real turning point.”

After American piled on three more runs in the top of the seventh, the memory of that big moment seemed to fade. But when the Cougars burst back with an intense rally on their final swings, the result of that play rang far more relevant in the end. That one play was simply the biggest example of a team that put it all on the line for one another in a big game against a worthy opponent.

“That’s what I stress all year,” said Gutierrez. “Early in the year we are feeling our team out to see what we have and later on in the year you have to start peaking and everybody has to start gelling as a team. Usually my teams start peaking at the end of the year and knowing what each person can do and they feed off of each other. You saw it today; one would get down and the other would pick them up. That’s a good thing that we have right now.”

Killian has also rallied together to play great team baseball down the stretch. Although the club was down for much of the contest, nobody hung their heads and nobody panicked. Each member stayed true to the mantra that has brought them success, and which led them to make one brave last charge.

“I’m really pleased, as pleased as you can be after a loss,” admitted Herrera. “I’m pleased with the resiliency that my club played with and that’s something that I’m happy to see because that’s something that we’re going to need in that stretch run. As we get ready to wind up the season, hopefully play in the GMAC and the district playoffs and beyond, we’re going to need to show this type of resiliency and fight. I’m happy with what I saw in my team at the end there.”

It was “Dat Dude” Eddy Demurias who sparked the Cougars final surge, as he smacked a single over the third baseman with one out in the seventh and then stole second to get into scoring position. After Blanco responded with a strikeout to get down to the final out Eddy Arteaga singled to left field to bring Demurias in. With his dugout cheering him on in confidence, Ryan Sabbag made them believers when he stung a pitch that shot off the pitcher’s glove for a base hit.

The Patriots elected to bring in Figueroa to close things out. But a hard hit ball from Bryan Borges resulted in an error that scored Artegea, and Cumba brought the atmosphere to full electricity when he pounded a shot just over third base and into the left field corner for an RBI double that scored Sabbag and also put the tying run on third base.

But Figueroa shook everything off and induced a ground ball that produced the final out and lifted American to the narrow victory.

“This was a real team effort,” said Norman. “Killian was very good and we knew it was going to be a dogfight. We knew we had to come out here and play our best baseball, and if we didn’t we weren’t going to come out with the win.”

Both teams played true to their reputations, and the real winners on this day were all the fans in attendance that got to witness one of the greatest games of the season played out before them. It was a contest that provided a little but of everything, starting with great pitching from Blanco and Cougars starter Vlad Nunez, coupled with numerous diving plays on defense and a ton of exciting late offense to decide things. It was a game that lived up beyond its billing, and it was given the highest billing it could have.

“When I put together the schedule at the beginning of the year it was in hopes of being able to expose my team to as tough a competition as this city can offer, and we sure have done that,” said Herrera. “We’ve certainly played tremendous teams along the way, and that’s the only way you can get ready for the playoffs. Today was just another opportunity to do that. American has got a phenomenal club, and is one of the best club in town. Hats off to them, they played a great ball game today and I wish them well in the playoffs.”

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