Reading Bulldogs

By:  Jeff Pierce Daily Times Chronicle 

 Reading (3) – Cataldo 3-0, Conti 4-0, Manzi 3-2, Talis 3-2, Taylor 3-1, Hartwell 4-2, Gagnon 2-0, Buitkus 2-1, Zajac 2-0 Totals 26-8 

Arlington (0)-  Freidman 1-0, Brown 3-0, Way 3-1, Csapler 3-0, Perkins 2-0, Mansfield 3-0, O’Neil 3-1, Griffin 3-1, Hart 2-0, Conner 1-0  Totals 24-3 

Reading   020 001 0   3

Arlington  000 000 0   0 

Double-  O'Neil

Triple-  Taylor

WP- Tully   LP-  Oberg  

Wrap: On Friday night, in their biggest game of the season to date, the Bulldogs turned to 17 year old Scott Tully to stop a three game losing streak and give them a small cushion in the race for a playoff position, versus Arlington. Tully responded with his most dominant Bulldog performance to date, as he struck out 13 Trojans on his way to a complete game three hit shutout, as the Bulldogs prevailed 3-0 under the lights at Summer St. field. The Bulldogs put together a rally in the second inning that gave them the only runs they would need with Tully on the hill.  The league’s top hitter Zac Talis (.511 BA) lead the inning off by being hit by a pitch. (Over the past 12 games Talis is hitting at a .567 clip and has reached base twenty- seven times in his last forty at-bats.).  Mike Taylor then stepped up blasting a line drive triple to centerfield scoring Talis. Darren Hartwell knocked in Taylor with an infield out making the score 2-0. From there it was the Tully show as the Trojans threatened to score just once on the night. In the fifth inning, Paul O’Neil hit a one out double and then the next hitter reached on a slow roller to second when the long infield grass allowed the runner to beat the throw. After a two-out walk loaded the bases the game result was clearly in the balance. The next batter up was former minor league professional and the 2006 captain of the Harvard baseball team, Morgan Brown. Tully reared back on a 2-2 pitch and threw a fastball on the outside corner that Brown could only waive at, the third time he struck out Brown on the night. Coach Matt Morrison marveled at the seventeen years old poise and power, “he totally overmatched a player who used to get paid to play the game, all night long.”  A Bill Cataldo infielder grounder brought home an insurance run, and Tully went on to retire the Trojans in order the rest of the way while striking out four batters.  The Bulldogs still have a tough road to hoe to secure a playoff spot and play their last seven games in the next eight days. “We need a few more of these type performances the rest of the way to get back into the postseason”, said Morrison, “it all begins with pitching in this league and I would expect our starters to step up to the challenge this week”.