Berwick inches to a win

By Gavin Staindl
BASEBALL is a “game of inches” and one only had to be at Wearne Reserve on the weekend to realise how a centimetre here or there can change the outcome of the match.
It was the top of the ninth and Berwick coach Wayne Porter, who was sitting out because of a broken thumb, was still lamenting a missed opportunity to hit the lead in the eighth.
But it was at that moment with two outs in the last when the Division Two Springvale catcher miss-timed a catch, something he would successfully complete 150 times a game, that led to the Berwick win.
Instead of the ball slotting into the webbing, it glanced the side of the glove and deflected to the fence allowing the Berwick runner at third to score which led to the winning two-run triple two at-bats later.
Had the catcher caught the ball and tagged for the out then the game was over, instead Berwick rallied to a 5-3 win and their first of the season.
“We were hosed,” Porter said as he remembered watching Ryan Shane trying to beat the throw home.
“In the end it came down to an inch or two and a mistake by their catcher.”
Running on a Tim Moon ground ball up the middle, Shane sprinted around third and was given the all-clear to reach home.
But little did Porter know about the arm strength of Springvale’s import Dominic Ramos.
“As soon as I saw this throw come in I thought ‘ah f…’,” Porter said.
“He was going to be out by five feet but then the catcher dropped the ball so Ryan (Shane) scored and while that was going on Moony (Tim Moon) was belting around to third.”
Still with two outs, pinch-hitter Dan Betreen walked and Shaun Fahy stepped up and drove in a two-run triple to give Berwick the 5-3 lead.
It was then left to endurance pitcher Nick Veale who closed out the game he started after throwing “around 150 pitches”.
It was a complete performance from Veale who, despite the availability of Mark Surtees and recently imported pitcher Josh Leite, demanded the ball back in the bottom of the ninth.
And he didn’t disappoint, allowing only one batter on base as he closed out the match for Berwick’s first win.
“We’re warming into the season,” Porter said of his team that is renowned as notoriously bad starters.
“It’s where I hoped to be after two games and, hopefully, after the next six games we are still ahead of that mark (above .500).”