The 2011 playoff march began on September 1st in much the same fashion that 2009 and 2010 ended: with a duel against SOM/Swanke. In each of the past three seasons, HMA/RAMSA and SS have faced off in the playoffs to play a total of 7 games – 6 of which were decided by one run. So it really should come as no surprise to anyone that those two teams would produce yet another thrilling series – a double header of comebacks.
We fast forward to the bottom of the 6th of Game #1 as SOM/Swanke clung to a 6-5 lead with the middle of the lineup coming up for the defending champions. Clean-up hitter Brian Barney (CF) delivered perhaps the most-clutch hit of his young but brilliant career in SLAM as he led off the bottom of the inning with sky-high homerun to that little 15' wide fence in left field out in Hecksher #1 to knot the game at 6. Neither team could push across a run in the 7th as the game headed to extra frames. In the bottom of the 8th, leadoff man Pete Garofalo (RF) did what he’s done for two seasons now: he simply found a way to get on base. And his single was followed by two more base hits, the last of which came off the bat of Doug Houstoun (1B) which brought home the game-winning run. Put simply, HMA/RAMSA stole a game in which they never held the lead.
Game Two began directly following the conclusion of the first. And while the prognosticators expected the pitchers to tire in the double header, it was in fact that bats on both teams that were quieted. Once again, SOM/Swanke jumped out to an early 2-0 lead with a pair of runs in the first. Following that, both pitchers locked down the opposing bats as neither team could muster even the slightest threat for the next 4 innings. SS was able to tack on an insurance run in the bottom of the 6th to extend to a 3-0 lead as they were 3 outs away from tying up the series at 1-1. (We flashback for a moment to the final game of the regular season as HMA/RAMSA trailed PCF/HH 4-1 in the top of the 7th inning with the #1 seed and a playoff bye on the line. We learned that night to never question the heart of a championship team as HMA/RAMSA scratched across 4 runs in the 7th to win the game that evening 5-4.) So even as the Orange Crush faced yet another 3 run deficit we knew we had been there before, not too long ago. And with the echoes of the '86 Mets (also down 3 runs in their final at bat in Game 6) wouldn’t you know it, despite being shutdown all game long – and just as they had only a few weeks earlier against PCF/HH – the heart of the HMA/RAMSA batting order responded with 4 timely runs in their final at bat to take a very familiar 5-4 lead. Three outs later in the bottom of the inning, HMA/RAMSA had completed a very improbable sweep to earn its 3rd consecutive trip to the SLAM Finals
The SLAM Finals began on Tuesday, September 20th as FxFowle and HMA/RAMSA faced off to settle the score from their 8-8 tie in the regular season. No doubt motivated by the riveting pregame speech by their manager, HMA/RAMSA’s bats came out swinging in the very first inning. After the first two batters reached base, Doug Houstoun delivered another big rip to plate the first 2 runs of the game. Following a pair of walks, rookie-of-the-year candidate Josh Aisenberg stepped to the plate with two outs in the inning. The big lefty, batting 7th in the order on this day despite the fact that he was first or second on the team in hits, RBI and homeruns during the regular season. And he stroked a monster 3-run homerun to rightfield to break open the game to 5-0. Not to be outdone, two batters later Doug Neri roped another 2-run homerun to extend the lead to 7-0. The offense did little else on the afternoon but did plenty in that first inning to secure an 8-2 victory.
Game Two on the Finals was played a week later as HMA/RAMSA looked for its 8th consecutive playoff win; but more importantly, its second consecutive SLAM title. And much like game one, the wind was taken from the FxFowle sails very early as the first three batters of the game each got on base and later scored as HMA/RAMSA took a 3-0 lead – a lead that they would never relinquish. The game was highlighted by excellent defensive plays on both sides of the ball as FxFowle turned two double plays and 4 other baserunners were thrown out trying to stretch a base at 2nd or home. And as the final out was squeezed on a popup to catcher Megan Fullagar, all of Central Park celebrated as the Orange Crush were champions again.
Following the game, when asked about his team’s performance in 2011, pitcher/manager David Solomon said “I’m proud of our team. They say that championships are like children: each one holds a very special place in your heart." He then paused to regain himself as a tear dribbled down his cheek: "I guess the biggest difference though is that I’m stopping at 2 kids—and I’ll be damned if this is the last time we win a championship. This feels so good, I think we’ll just have to bring everyone back for the three-peat.”
