District 62 TOC Majors: Dodgers explode, tame Tigers

Bryce Alderton

FOUNTAIN VALLEY - A slumbering giant awoke in the sixth inning

Tuesday afternoon in the form of Costa Mesa National Little League Majors

Division Dodgers.

With a pep talk from Manager Kim Pederson and some patience, the

Dodgers “pinged” their way to an 11-hit, 12-run sixth inning, breaking

open a 4-0 game to defeat Costa Mesa American Tigers, 16-1, in

first-round action of the District 62 Tournament of Champions at Mile

Square Park.

The highlight of the inning came on the broad shoulders of Bryan

Bennett, who crushed two two-run home runs over the center-field fence in

the sixth.

Bennett was among six Dodgers to score at least two runs in the sixth,

as 15 players came to the plate.

Pederson credited the offensive outburst to his team’s patience.

“We came out a little flat,” Pederson said. “I knew we had to get the

adrenaline going and, fortunately for them, it did.”

After Ian Abernathy scored the Dodgers’ first run in the third on a

single by Justin Long to left field, and the Dodgers held the Tigers

(14-9) scoreless in the bottom of the third, Pederson gave his team the

pep talk.

“I told them, ‘We played some great defense and now is the time to

show them what the Dodgers have been about all year,’ ” Pederson said.

The message apparently got through as the Dodgers scored three in the

fifth, before exploding in the sixth.

“I give all the credit to (the Dodgers), they’re a good ball team,”

Tigers Manager Ted Spoulos said. “Some times you get on the good side and

sometimes you get on the bad side, and we got the bad side today. (The

Tigers) played well, it just wasn’t our day. It was the Dodgers’ day.

They earned it.”

In the fifth, the Dodgers’ Matthew Telles and Ryan Knapp, who would

each score three times in the sixth, singled and walked, respectively.

They then took advantage of wild pitches to get into scoring position for

Long, who doubled them both in. Long came around to score in the inning

on Brandon Grimmett’s line-drive single to left.

Spectators merely got a taste of the 12 runs they were about to see

from the Dodgers in the sixth.

In addition to Bennett’s blasts in the sixth, Abernathy singled,

doubled, had four RBIs and scored twice, while Cody Green doubled and

walked in the inning and scored twice.

Telles went 3 for 3 with three singles, using his speed to beat out

two infield rollers. He two RBIs and scored three runs. Knapp went 2 for

2 with a walk and three runs.

Long finished 3 for 5 with two doubles, three RBIs and two runs.

The Tigers scored their run in the sixth, as Luke Ott walked with the

bases loaded to plate Phil Weber, who had reached on an infield hit.

Both teams’ pitching and defense kept the game, 1-0, going into the

fifth.

The Tigers received strong pitching from Cody Spoulos, who also went 1

for 2 with a walk. Spoulus gave up a run on three hits in three innings

on the mound, striking out three and walking one.

His counterpart, Abernathy, also threw the first three innings,

allowing no runs on one hit. He fanned five, including the side in the

second, and walked one.

Long came on to pitch two scoreless innings for the Dodgers, giving up

a single to Tigers’ first baseman Jason Schroeder in the fourth, striking

out two without a walk.

Tigers’ third baseman Jake Johnston made two dazzling plays, diving to

his right to backhand a groundball and throw to first for the out in the

third, and reaching up to catch a line drive above his head in the

fourth.

Tigers’ faithful cheered their team on shaking soda cans containing

coins throughout the game.

The Dodgers will meet Robinwood Little League Saturday at 9 a.m. at

Mile Square Park.

“I want to credit the Tigers,” Pederson said. “They played great for

three games against us and gave us a battle today until we broke it

open.”

The teams split their two regular-season meetings. The Dodgers (19-6)

won the National League title defeating the Diamondbacks two games to

none in a best-of-three series, while the Tigers lost their best-of-three

American League championship series to the Yankees in three games.