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The Prospector: Renegades Nip ValleyCats 2-1 in 11 for 51st Victory, Best in Franchise History

The Renegades edge the Tri-City ValleyCats 2-1 in 11 innings in Troy, setting a franchise record for games won in a season (51).

Monday, Sept. 3—The Renegades defeated the Tri-City ValleyCats 2-1 in 11 innings in Troy tonight to become the team with the best won-lost record in the New York-Penn League at the moment and the first Renegades team to win 51 games in a season (eclipsing the 50-game high water mark established in 1998). The Gades, fresh from a three-game sweep of the IronBirds in Aberdeen over the weekend, and the ValleyCats, who were swept by the Lake Monsters in Vermont during that time, entered tonight’s contest with identical 50-23 records and home-field advantage in the playoffs on the line. Who would have suspected in June that this final series of the season would have so much riding on it?

Hudson Valley notched victory 50 by outlasting the IronBirds Sunday afternoon in a 12-9 slugfest that included a first-inning grand slam by Luke Maile, the first of the season for the Gades. Sorry I missed it, but I had obligations to my church choir (not that my voice was in particularly good shape after the celebration Saturday night) and my historical society (open house, I being one of the resident resource people on the history of our venerable Little Red Schoolhouse). Please click here to read the game story on the Gades’ Web site.

Eagerly anticipating a potential preview of a league championship series between my two favorite teams, I headed up the Taconic State Parkway, Interstate 90 and U.S. Route 4 to Joseph L. Bruno Stadium, traveling for the most part in the direction opposite homebound Labor Day traffic and arriving at The Joe at 4:25 p.m. for a 5 o’clock start. That gave me plenty of time to finish a lunch I had brought with me, fill in my scorebook and settle into Row F of Section 180, on the first-base side near the Renegades’ dugout. (Any other opponent, I would be sitting in Section 170 on the third-base side near the Cats’ dugout.)

Tommy Coyle got the Renegades on the scoreboard early with a first-inning homer, the only score of the game until the eighth, when the Cats evened matters on a bases-loaded walk. Seven Cats batted but not a single one recorded a hit; the run was the result of three walks and an error.

Marty Gantt scored the winning run amid a bizarre series of events after leading off the 11th inning with a single and being sacrificed to second by Felix Gonzalez. Coyle struck out on a full count for what should have been the third out; but the ball skittered away from catcher Tyler Heineman for a passed ball, allowing Tommy to reach first base safely while Marty raced home. Please click here to read the game story on the Gades’ Web site.

The extra-innings victory negated a masterful relief pitching performance by the Cats’ Brian Holmes, whose lone blemish on seven otherwise perfect innings was a fourth-inning walk. Brian and the Cats blanked the Renegades in the nightcap of a July 27 doubleheader at The Dutch, allowing only a seventh-inning single in an otherwise perfect seven-inning game.

Katie, a Dutchess Stadium staffer whose usher mom is our conduit to much leftover food, was on hand with her parents (her dad is an usher, too) and greeted me warmly at the gate. Charles Epperson waved at me and flashed a big smile as the players headed into the dugout before the game. Paul, one of several Renegades faithful who made the trip north, stopped by for a bit, and I heard a number of folks around me cheering for the Gades. My friend Scott, a longtime ValleyCat season ticket holder in Section 170, came over soon after the game started and, after a lot of good-natured ribbing, joined me in a vacant seat for three innings.

Anticipating a razzing from Southpaw, the ValleyCats’ mascot, I brought along a peace offering—a sign my son Dave made a while back that read “Southpaw 4 President.” Southpaw did not get to the first-base stands tonight (he tends to hang out near the Cats’ dugout) but Scott got his attention with the sign while the big cat was on the field between the fifth and sixth innings and handed it to him. When last seen, the sign was being carried in triumph toward the third-base stands.

The game was followed by a fine display of fireworks in honor of Labor Day, which dovetailed nicely with the Renegades’ victory. Outside the Cats’ clubhouse, Scott and I had a nice chat with relief pitcher Blake Ford. I was delighted to renew acquaintances with Mary, a longtime friend and Cats season ticket holder, whom I had not seen in previous visits to The Joe this season.

Thanks to the early game time it was still only about 9:30 by the time things were breaking up and the Renegades bus rolled away. Scott and I made our usual visit to Wendy’s across Route 4 and for a change arrived in time to eat inside (apple pecan salad for me, cheeseburger and fries for Scott). We both lamented that Dave, because of his work schedule, was not able to be part of the evening; ditto for Bob Hand.

Scott needed to replenish his home supply of Mountain Dew, so we stopped at Price Chopper before heading to his apartment, where we received a noisy greeting from his beagles, Dallas and Peanut. What began as a quick visit lasted more than an hour as we got engrossed in discussions of possible playoff scenarios, sports and life in general.

It was after midnight when I finally said goodbye to Scott until the next game and headed south. Before leaving the Troy area I gassed up at Cumberland Farms in Defreestville for $3.899 a gallon and stopped at Super Wal-Mart in East Greenbush for bird seed. Yes, that sounds like an unlikely thing to do at 1 a.m. when facing a two-hour drive home but I had been trying, without success, for a few weeks to get seed to refill an empty front-yard feeder, so I took advantage of the opportunity. Retracing my route, I arrived home safe and sound, without mishap, around 3:10, thank God.

Next game (end of regular season):  Wednesday, Sept. 5, at Tri-City, first pitch 6 p.m.

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shakemdown June 19, 2013 at 12:03 am
@ASHLEY TARR my comments that i posted did not contain profanity nor did they harrass or abuseRead More anyone, they were just what the forum is for, to discuss issues within our city. but i know, some people would consider it harrasment or would try to have it deleted because the truth hurts,and that's what some of our elected officials don't want you to hear, (the truth)
shakemdown June 19, 2013 at 12:06 am
@jo you are right, the old web site was 100% better then this and it was more user friendly unlikeRead More this new one . BRING BACK THE OLD ONE
Lisa Buchman (Editor) June 19, 2013 at 07:04 am
By the way, in our new system we have an update that includes a community moderation tool—it'sRead More not only Patch editors who can flag comments. What is it? Readers can flag any content they find objectionable on any Patch site at any time. We’ve put the flagging link in more places to make it easier to find and backed it with more sophisticated tools. Our goal is to recognize and reward readers who make our community great. How does it work? You’ll see these words — Flag as Inappropriate — on the top and bottom of Board posts, articles, blogs and notes, and next to every single comment anywhere on the site. To flag something, you simply click those words. What happens when you flag? It alerts us that something might be up with the content. When should you flag? We ask that you use your common sense and a general spirit of openness. You should never flag things that you simply disagree with and certainly not to clarify minor points. We encourage you to comment, post (or even start your own blog) to be heard on those things. You can review the Patch Terms of Use Ashley referred to above.
sue June 17, 2013 at 07:00 pm
don't know why I'm having a problem getting this written............anyway...they are rude,Read More unhygenic and WILL NOT follow any of the condo rules....there's so much more but we are sick of it. There are only two of us that speak up...everyone else is cowering behind closed doors.
joshua tanner June 18, 2013 at 03:00 pm
Unleashed dogs is getting to be a big problem in Peekskill. I see them routinely now. People areRead More letting their pit bulls out, their poodles, their chihuahuas - all kinds of dogs. Two days a go I watched a lady jogging on the track with her loose dog. The dog wasn't even supposed to be on the track no less loose. Some kid or elderly lady is going to get bit. Loose dogs also end up in more fights with other dogs.
sayitsnotsojack June 19, 2013 at 09:15 am
Sue a sad fact that these days of “political correctness” individuals who exhibit rudeRead More and ignorant behavior are empowered by the rest of us. I know of a similar situation where the individuals will yell four letter words in the public areas with young children there, call others the foulest things, and in this case, they are black and gay so the race/gay card is used constantly. Until people make it known they are not going to tolerate their behavior it will not stop. Have you notified the property owner, complex board, and police, or maybe the board of health?
Nancy O'Connor June 17, 2013 at 09:33 am
It was our pleasure to help out....good food, good weather, all around good time!!
leesther brown June 18, 2013 at 11:48 am
@Nancy,,I Thanked both you and Pauline Ghilcrest for serving the community and they took my commentsRead More down twice!!! Once again Thank You..you're automatically signed up for next year..:)
joshua tanner June 15, 2013 at 10:28 pm
It seems Patch moves editors every year. Liz was here when I signed up. Then she was shortly movedRead More to Rye and Rasheed took over. He must have been here about a year and then he left when the new format was introduced. Both times patch started cooking and then it got cut down just as new staff got their mojo going. A new editor with a new format seems like starting from scratch again. I know AOL/Patch needs to get some cash flow going quick (from what I've read) but I can't see what they are trying to do exactly by tipping the cart over and over
Wendy Kelly June 17, 2013 at 08:37 am
Agree Joshua just when you have a good thing going with an Editor they move. I can't figure thisRead More site out I was not allowed to post for at least a week thought Mary et al put an hex on me. Hey anyone know where Peter Goodson is??? I miss his posts.
jo June 18, 2013 at 10:12 am
new format is a dud.. 100% dud.. not user friendly.. a horror to navigate, as mentioned... noRead More benefit here. not at all.. quickly becoming a ex Patch fan... fix the mess you made..
Wendy Kelly June 15, 2013 at 11:03 am
http://search.lohud.com/sp?aff=1100&skin=&keywords=revitalization of Peekskill
Working Families Party endorsed candidate Mary Foster
Robin Seggs June 14, 2013 at 10:44 am
Working Families Party almost always cross endorses with Democrats. Looks like the choice isRead More getting clearer: One team is Democrat, WFP and Independent and the Catalina Team is Republican, Right-to-life, Conservative. Anyway, I believe Catalina is campaigning as anti-gay rights, so I know how I will be voting.
jo June 14, 2013 at 02:28 pm
and so many in the cast of characters that attend the meetings. believe Mary is a republican atRead More heart.. and here the Left of all left dem groups endorses here..mmmmmmmm just thinking out loud..
stephanie June 14, 2013 at 03:57 pm
mary foster and the rest of her butt kissers not need to run after what they have done to this cityRead More already we don't need them to run another term they neeed to get out and stay out. i believe frank catalina will much better than foster will ever be he cares about the city and does not like what foster has done to this city i wish him very much luck and i truly believe he will win as our mayor for peekskill good luck and kick foster and her butt kissers out of city hall and keep them out
af24us June 12, 2013 at 01:48 pm
I agree - the dangerous stop signs On Hudson Ave should be removed in both directions and keep theRead More stop signs on South St. and the exit ramps from Route 9.