Hallmark Hustlers win 1st Round Playoff Game

The Hallmark Hustlers took on Ballz Out in a pivotal first round playoff game last night, first pitch was at 5:35 PST on field Four at Twin Creeks Sport Center in Sunnyvale California. It is notoriously difficult to hit home runs at field Four since there is typically a prevailing northern wind that keeps most balls in the park.  The Hustlers were the home team because of their superior final ranking in the regular season’s standings.

After the first inning the Hustlers were down six to one. Having dug a hole early the team needed to stay focused and grab the momentum back from Balls Out. With the help of some very questionable officiating, Balls Out stretched their lead to ten to one by the end of the third inning.

In the bottom of the fourth inning the home plate umpire inexplicably ejected Alicia, the Hustlers stellar right fielder, subsequently leaving the team short of the required amount of female participants. A quick negotiation brokered by the Hustlers manager, Davey Ponciano, aka The Stud, brought a female replacement out of the stands to continue the fight. By the top of the sixth the score had been dwindled down to fourteen to eleven with Ballz Out still in the lead. With time running out, the bottom of the sixth would be the Hustlers last chance to continue their storybook season.
Through some very timely clutch hitting and opportunistic base running, our heroes tied the game at fourteen each. You could smell the taste of victory in the Hustlers dugout, the excitement was palatable. With two out and runners on second and third, Ballz Out pitcher, Little Chicken, walked Tommy “The Man” Formosa, leaving him to pitch to Davey “The Stud” Ponciano. The excitement at field Four was at a high pitched fever. The crowd was on its feet. The Stud walked solemnly to the plate and it appeared to some in the stands that he pointed to left field with his bat. Little Chicken shook off a couple of signs from his catcher, Little Chicken Two, and settled on a fast ball, assuming he could get one by the Stud.

The first pitch was indeed a fast ball that the Stud rocketed to deep left centerfield and deposited in the bay for a walk-off Grand Slam.  The crowd went crazy, they charged the field, tore up the bases and carried the Stud off to the dugout. Pandemonium broke out in the club house as champagne was flowing freely for hours.

This was indeed the Shot Heard Round Sunnyvale.