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2006 Season

Playoffs - Game 5: Sand Gnats Repeat!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats are the 2006 Playoff Champions! The Sand Gnats defeated their rivals Sin City 8-3 to clinch their ninth overall title.
After allowing two runs in the first inning, the Sand Gnat defense stepped up and only allowed a single run in the seventh inning. The Sand Gnats offense wasn't spectacular, but did just enough to cash in some runs at key times. The Gnats scored three runs in the bottom half of the first to lead 3-2 before taking over in the fourth by scoring five runs.Christian Oliver, Nick Pietrangelo and John Carruthers all went 2-for-3 on the night to lead the offense. Steve Dever had the only extra base hit on the night with a double. Nick Pietrangelo shut down the Sin City offense with a fine pitching performance, and also helped the defense out with some ket snags to end a couple Sin City rallies.


Game Notes:

Highlight(s) of the Night:

*Sand Gnats WIN...theeeeee Sand Gnats WIN!


Roster Report:

***NEWS***
The Ninth overall Championship has been won, and first back-to-back Playoff Championship in Franchise history.

Additions (updated August 22, 2006)
*None to report

Deletions (updated August 30, 2006)
*None to report.

Injuries (updated August 15, 2006)
* Harold Ahle is out for the season with torn muscle tissue in his calf.


Game Summaries (in order of most recent)

Playoffs - Game 4: Deja Vu All Over Again!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats are once again headed to the Playoff championship game. They faced the Regular Season Champions, Sin City, and made them look more like chumps defeating them 14-4.
The Sand Gnats jumped on Sin City early scoring three quick runs. Ryan Hodges singles to start the game and was followed by a walk by Steve Dever. Nick Pietrangelo then scored both with a double. Pietrangelo moved to third on a single and was then scored on a Kerry Felstead fielder's choice. Sin City went three up three down as Pietrangelo, getting his first start of the playoffs, set the tone by snagging a liner off Sin City's lead off hitter.
Sin City managed a single run in the second before the Sand Gnats teed-off on their pitching. Dever's double, Pietrangelo's triple and Felstead's double all aided in scoring four runs to make the score 7-1. Sin City answered with two runs in the bottom of the third to close within four runs. The Sand Gnats then took adantage by exploding for seven runs thanks to Pietrangelo's three run homer and doubles by Josh Gullion and Mike Pietrangelo. The Sand Gnats lead 14-3 and cruised to victory the rest of the way playing solid, errorless defense (throughout the entire game). Sin City managed a single meaningless run in the seventh to make the final score 14-4. A special note...Nick Pietrangelo hit a second homer in the sixth which was ruled out due to the one homer per team rule.

The Sand Gnats now advance to the Playoff Championship game next Friday at 7:15, and are one win away from claiming their fourth Playoff Championship and ninth Championship overall. They will have to lose twice to not win the title.

Playoffs - Games 2 & 3: Semi's For Sand Gnats!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats continued their quest for their ninth championship (fourth playoff championship) last Tuesday defeating After Hours 10-5 in the second round, and then knocked off Janz Electric 12-5 to advance to the semi-finals on the championship side of the double-knockout tournament. With the two victories, the Sand Gnats can finish no worse than third place. An improvement from their fifth place standing in the regular season.
In the first game against After Hours, the Sand Gnats allowed a single run in the first inning before coming up with three of their own. They managed to hold After Hours scoreless until the fourth inning when they scored four runs and appeared to be making a late inning rally. The Gnats scored three more runs in the third and two in the fourth to take an 8-5 lead. Two more insurance runs in the sixth gave the Gnats a 10-5 victory after the time-limit expired. Robb McLean, Don Harris and Pete Saddler each had two hits in the game. Josh Gullion played a phenominal game in the outfield chasing down balls reminiscent of Willie Mays. He also had two outfield assists throwing our runners trying to take extra bases late in the game.
In second game the Sand Gnats jumped all over Janz early scoring four runs in the first, six in the fourth and two runs in the sixth to lead Janz 12-0 heading in to the bottom of the sixth. Janz scored five runs in the sixth but couldn't come up with any more hits as the Sand Gnats defense played another stellar game. Josh Gullion went a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate with a triple. Christian Oliver and Kerry Felstead went 3-for-4. Oliver had two doubles in the game. Felstead earned the nickname "White Jeter" for his play at shortstop.
The Sand Gnats next game is scheduled for Friday, September 15 @ 7:15 against the winner of the Sin City/Trailer Park Boys game. The Gnats will need two straight victories to claim the title. A loss would mean they would have to win 3 games without a loss.

Playoffs - Game 1: Playoffs Begin With a Win!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats opened the playoffs Friday night in defense of their Playoff Championship. After finishing the regular season in a tie for fifth place with the Mofia, the Gnats earned the 5th seed position due to a tie-breaker heading in to the doule knockout tournament. Playing with only nine players in the playoff opener, they met 8th seed Rick Jo Rebels (playing with 8 players) and quickly opened up an 11-0 lead after two innings.
In the first inning the Gnats first two batters, Christian Oliver and Kerry Felstead, both walked. Josh Gullion doubled to score the games first run (Oliver). Pete Saddler then singled to score Felstead. A Mike Pietrangelo single scored Gullion. Pietrangelo then scored on a triple by Mike McLean. Don Harris's fielder's choice to the right side of the infield scored McLean as the Gnats took a quick 6-0 lead after one.
In the second inning, more singles and a walk lead to the Gnats taking a commanding 10-0 lead. A single run was scored in the third to make it 11-0 before Ricki Jo Rebels began their late innings charge. The Rebels scored six runs in the fourth and four in the fifth to close the gap to 11-10.
The Sand Gnats bottom half of the batting order went to work as McLean singled for his fourth hit of the night. He scored on a John Carruthers triple. Carruthers burned the centre-fielder who was playing quite shallow. Harris proceeded to score Carruthers on a single. Steve Fish got his first hit of the evening to move Harris to second. Gullion's fielders choice advanced Harris to third before Felstead scored Harris for the last run of the game with a single. The games time limit expired giving the Gnats the victory.

The Sand Gnats next game is scheduled for Tuesday, September 12 @ 6:00 against the winner of the Mofia/After Hours game. The Gnats will need four straight victories to claim the title. A loss would mean they would have to win 4-6 games without a loss.
There is a slight chance the Gnats will be without the service of Ryan Hodges as it has been reported that any player playing in "D" at the Regency can only play on that teams roster and not on a "REC" teams roster. The Sand Gnats Management will be looking into this matter.


Game 28: Gnats on a Three Game Skid!

Unable to capture the regular season title, the Sand Gnats tried a new method to their batting order for the last regular season game. The Gnats batted in the order they arrived to the ball park.
Although it seemed like a good idea at the time, the first four innings said otherwise as the Gnats managed only three runs. Their opponents, Somebuddy's, scored three runs in each of the first three innings for a quick 9-1 lead. They added four in the top of the fifth to lead 12-3 before the Gnats bats came alive. The two through seven hitters in the order all scored to get within three runs. That would be as close as they could get as the final score of the game was 14-11.
Ryan Hodges, Kerry Felstead, and Mike McLean all had three hit nights. Hodges was a homer away from the cyle, while Felstead had 2 singles and a double. McLean had three singles. Pete Saddler had his second straight game with a home-run. The Gnats also recruited two players to fill in for missing players, otherwise the Gnats would've had to play with eight. The Sand Gnats finish the season with 17-10-1 record.

The Sand Gnats open the playoffs next week. Their next game is Tuesday September 5, time and opponent TBA.

Game 27: Gnats Struggle on Offense!

The Sand Gnats couldn't muster much offense Friday night as they lost 7-5 to the Barhoppers, a game they should've won. The Gnats defense played well despite playing once again with only nine players. Christian Oliver lead the highlight reel with a diving catch. He also easily threw out a runner trying to go from first to third on a single to the gap.
Things looked bright early in the first inning as Robb McLean lead off the bottom half with an inside the park homer as his ball dropped just in front of the outfielders glove and rolled to the fence. Oliver scored in the first when he moved to third on a Sac-fly after hitting a double, and then being brought home by a single. The offense didn't do much until the fifth inning when Pete Saddler hit a monsterous two-run jack. A single run in the sixth wasn't enough to bring the Gnats back from a three run deficit. The Gnats only managed eleven hits in the entire game.

The Sand Gnats next game is Tuesday August 28 @ 7:15 p.m..

Game 26: Gnats Struggle in Loss!

Once again, the theory that Regency umpires are subpar was proven to be fact! Although not a direct link to the Gnats loss, it was certainly a contributing factor. Playing in a key game against rival Sin City, the Gnats were screwed over on at least four calls in the first three innnings of the game. A blown call on a runner to first who was easily out ended up costing the Gnats four runs. The runner knew he was out but went to first base saying "I'll take that". In the second inning, a Robb McLean throw pulled first baseman Don Harris off the bag slightly, but Harris clearly put the tag on before the runner touched first. The umpire again ruled the runner safe. The runner had left the field because he knew he was out, but then came back to the base upon hearing he was safe. Gnats players then pointed out the runner left the playing field and came back, but again the umpire "didn't see it"!
Despite all of the challenges thrown at them early, the Sand Gnats hung tough and chipped away at the Sin City lead closing to within two runs in the fifth to make the score 8-6. However, the bats fell silent the final two innings, and four outfield errors cost the Gnats four runs in the seventh to give Sin City a 12-6 victory.
Josh Gullion had a two-run homer in the fourth inning, while Christian Oliver (2 singles) and Nick Pietrangelo (single and a double) were the only Gnats to have a multiple hit night. Gullion's homer and Pietrangelo's double were the only extra base hits for the Gnats on the night.

Game 25: Gnats Offense Explodes!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats offense exploded in the fourth inning and cruised to an 18-6 mercy over the Trailer Park Boys.
The first two innings of the game were very quick as both teams struggled at the plate, both going scoreless. The Trailer Park Boys then lit up Gnats pitcher John "Golden Arm" Carruthers for six runs, although most of them were unearned due to errors committed by the short-staffed outfield. Josh Gullion arrived in the third inning, just in time to shore up the outfield and the T.P. Boys were shutout the rest of the night.
After being down 6-0 heading into the bottom of the third, the Gnats bats were re-energized thanks to the bottom of the batting order. The Gnats managed four runs thanks to doubles by Gullion and Ryan Hodges, while Steve Dever's triple scored two of the runs.
The Gnats continued their dominance at the plate in the fourth when they exploded for thirteen runs, while sending seventeen batters to the plate. Six Gnats hitters batted twice in the inning, and all Gnats batters reached base at least once. The inning also marked Carruthers eleventh walk of the season, a new Sand Gnats record!

Game 24: Gnats Fall Apart Late!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats struggled defensively with only nine players and fell 18-8 to Ricki Jo Rebels. The Gnats played with two regular outfielders in the infield, and relied on call-up Steve Gilliam to patrol centrefield. Errors in the outfield and middle infield cost the Gnats late in the game.
Off to a good start offensively, the Gnats scored three runs in the first inning and one in the second. The Rebels also scored three in the first and went ahead in the second scoring five runs to take a 8-4 lead. The Gnats hung tough scoring four more runs in the fourth inning thanks to a Gilliam homerun. The defense played well in the middle innings including turing two double plays. First baseman Don Harris fielded a grounder with the bases loaded, touched first and threw home to get the runner. The next inning with men on first and second, Third baseman Kerry Felstead fielded a grounder, touched third and then threw to first to get that runner. Gilliam also made a diving catch early in the game to make the highlight reel.
Unfortunately the wheels fell off in the fifth inning as the Gnats committed error after error giving up 10 runs, ruining any chances of pulling out the win.
John Carruthers tied the team Walk record in the third inning and needs one more in the remaining four games to break the old mark set last season by Harris.

Game 21-23: Gnats Go 2-1 in Webmasters Absence!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats won two and lost one since the absence of the teams webmaster. They lost to the Screaming Eagles 8-6, and beat the Brawlers twice by scores of 11-7, and 20-6 (after 5 innings).
Not much is known about these games, although it was noted that in the final game against the Brawlers that both Josh Gullion and Nick Pietrangelo hit for the cycle. Gullion's homer was an inside the parker, while Pietrangelo hit his out. After Pietrangelo's homer, Pete Saddler also hit one out of the park but was called out because of the one homer per game rule.

Harold Ahle has informed the Gnats that he is medically unable to play the remainder of the season due to the injury sustained on August 2nd (see injury report below). The Gnats Outfielder is hopeful for a return next season.

Game 20: Gutsy Win For Sand Gnats!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats played with eight players against After Hours and pulled off a Miracle 10-6 victory.
The Gnats had a different look to them as Robb McLean played shortstop and Kerry Felstead played third filling in for the absent Mike Pietrangelo. Both put in stellar performances at their respective positions. Felstead moved to right field to replace a hobbled Harold Ahle who switched to third after he pulled his calf muscle and couldn't run, let alone move. It was a gutsy performance by Ahle as he could have pulled himself out of the game. If he had, the Gnats would've had to forfeit the game. Ahle even managed a single late in the game and hopped on one leg to keep an inning alive.
Great all around defense and a strong pitching performance by John "Golden Arm" Carruthers. Carruthers struck out two batters in the sixth and had After Hours batters popping a lot of balls up. Robb McLean had his first extra-base hit of the season knotting a double. Josh Gullion had two doubles, and Pete Saddler had a double and a triple. All Gnats batters had a multiple hit night.

Game 19: Sand Gnats Electrify!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats "shocked" the youngest team in the league, Janz Electric, with an easy 15-6 victory.
The Gnats jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead, but saw that lead quickly evaporate as Janz tied it up after the first inning. The Gnats bats fell silent as they were shut-out the next three innings while allowing Janz to take a 5-3 lead after four. The Gnats took the lead for good in the fifth as they scored four runs and allowed Janz to score their final run in the game to take a 7-6 lead after five innings. The Gnats added three runs in the sixth and five in the seventh to secure their 15-6 victory.
All Sand Gnats batters had multiple hit nights with the exception of Nick Pietrangelo who was the only Gnat batter to go hitless. Kerry Felstead's consecutive hit streak was snapped in his second at-bat in the game. The streak ended at nine consecutive hits. He still went 3-for-5 in the game and continues to be the Gnats batting average leader.
Kyle Lentz played in his last game for the Gnats as he and his wife Cindy now move to Kingston. Although Lentz didn't have the "final ending" offensively as he had hoped, but he continued to show why he was the best defensive player in the Regency. The Sand Gnats will surely miss his athleticism and strong arm at the shortstop position. The Sand Gnats organization would like to wish the Lentz family the best as they move on in their lives. Enjoy the Kingston winters! :-)

Game 18: Sand Gnats Rule Sinclair's

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats absolutely owned their "brother" team Sinclair's, by giving them a 15-0 thrashing in only five innings.
The Gnats set the tone by scoring five quick runs in the first inning. By the fourth inning, the Gnats had all the offense they required and lead 15-0 thanks to solid pitching by Nick Pietrangelo. Pietrangelo allowed only four hits in the game while striking out two. The Gnats defense was not tested in the game and a Sinclair's runner never advanced past second base.
Pietrangelo helped himself on offense going 3-for-3 at the plate. Kerry Felstead and Josh Gullion also had perfect nights batting. It was Felstead's second straight game going perfect at the plate. He now has eight consecutive hits dating back three games ago.
All Sand Gnats batters recorded at least one hit in the game. Kyle Lentz and John "Golden Arm" Carruthers each had a triple, and Steve Dever hobbled to second with a pulled hamstring for the only double of the game.

Friday's game will be the last appearance by Gnats M.V.P. Kyle Lentz before his move to Kingston.

Game 17: Early Closing Time for Barhoppers

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats snapped their two game losing streak by easily defeating the Barhoppers 18-6 in a shortened five inning game.
The Gnats got off to a decent start scoring two runs in the first inning thanks to a Kerry Felstead single which scored Kyle Lentz and Pete Saddler. In the second inning the Gnats bats exploded for eight runs as the team batted through the order, with nine singles in the inning.
The Gnats defense allowed Barhoppers to score two runs in the fourth inning on three errors. In the bottom half of the foruth, the Gnats again lit up Barhoppers pitching for 6 more runs to take a commanding 16-2 lead heading into the fifth inning.
Needing three outs to end the game, the Gnats defense again had some mental lapses and allowed the Hoppers to score 4 runs to make the score 16-6. This forced the Gnats to bat and score 2 runs in the fifth to get the mercy. New Gnats recruit Steve Arcuri lead off the inning with a double and scored on a Kyle Lentz single. Pete Saddler then hit a double to move Lentz to third. Felstead was then intentionally walked as the pitcher had mentioned to his teammates that he was perfect at the plate all night. Mike Pietrangelo came up and had a chance to end the game with a hit or deep fly ball. He flew out to short right-centre, but Lentz was unable to tag up on the shallow fly. Mike McLean then came up and made good on his chance with a single to score Lentz and put the Barhoppers out on the curb.

Tuesday's game looks to be the last appearance by Gnats M.V.P. Kyle Lentz before his move to Kingston.

Game 16: Gnats On a Two Game Losing Skid

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats lost their second straight game 13-10 to Sombuddy's on a very hot and humid Friday night.
The Gnats started off well leading 3-1 after the first inning thanks largely to a Nick Pietrangelo homer. Somebuddy's answered that with three runs of their own to take a 5-3 lead. The Gnats regained the lead the next inning and in fact lead 7-5 after four innings. The wheels fell off in the sixth inning for the Gnats as they gave up eight runs to give Somebuddy's, (who to their credit hit the ball extremely hard) a cozy 13-7 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh. The Gnats tried to stage a last inning rally but were dealt the losing hand.
A questionable call in second inning killed a Gnats inning. With one out and Don Harris on first after hitting a single, Steve Fish hit a fly ball out to right-centre field, with the fielder diving for the ball. The umpire initially said the ball was not caught, and signalled safe, but then reversed his call when the fielder came up showing the ball in his glove. The umpire changed his call and claimed the ball had been caught which left Harris in limbo as he went to second after the initial call. Needless to say, he was doubled off as the call had changed. The umpire's first instincts appeared to have been correct as it was heard from a number of players that the ball had been trapped. After this, the Gnats had their fun with the umpire by showing the ball high in the air after each time the ball rolled to the outfielders.

Game 14 & 15: Gnats Split Their Two Recent Games

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats won and loss their two most recent games, defeating Mofia (Manhattan Bar and Grill) 6-3, then suffering a loss to Sin City 11-5.
Against Mofia, both teams had good games defensively. The game was scoreless through the first three innings before the Gnats scored two in the fourth inning. Mofia countered with a single run of their own. The Gnats opened up the game in the fifth scoring three runs to make the score 5-1. An insurance run in the sixth made the score 6-1, and the Gnats defense only allowed two more Mofia runs in the final inning to secure the victory. The Gnats only managed two extra-base hits in the game, a triple by Kyle Lentz and Mike McLean.
The game against Sin City was also a closely contested battle. The Gnats opened the game with three quick runs in the first inning and another in the second, before Sin City scored four of their own in the second to knot the game at four, after four. From there, the Gnats bats fell silent, and Sin City's bats rang up six runs in the fifth to take a commanding 10-4 lead. Each team managed a single run in their last at-bats to end the scoring at 11-5. Simple errors in fielding judgement lead to many of the runs in the fifth inning, as the Gnats allowed Sin City runners to advance bases on unnecessary throws. The only extra base hits in this game went to Ryan Hodges and Pete Saddler who each had a double.

Game 13: Gnats set off Fireworks on Fourth of July!

It was pad your stats night at the Regency Sports Park as the Sinclair's Sand Gnats celebrated Canada Day and the U.S. Independence Day with some fireworks of their own by absolutely destroying "Budz" 25-2 in only five innings.
The top of the first inning saw a Sand Gnats record established. After Ryan Hodges lead off with a fly-out, the Gnats batters strung eleven consecuive hits before Kyle Lentz flew out in his second at bat of the game. The Gnats had three more hits in the inning and took a comanding 12-2 lead after the first inning. All Gnats batters had a hit in the first inning. Budz were unable to score anymore runs after the first inning thanks to great defense.
The Gnats scored five runs in the third inning, seven in the fourth inning, and one in the fifth and final inning. The offense was lead by Pete Saddler who went 5-for-5, including a triple. Seven of the ten Gnats batters in the line-up had extra base hits. Mike McLean had an inside the park homer in the first inning as he hit a perfect shot to the gap that went to the fence.

Game 12: Gnats Get Squashed!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats had an abismal showing offensively enroute to a 10-5 squashing.
The Gnats have now lost three games this season, all when playing with only nine players. The Gnats scored no more than 2 runs in any inning, while giving up at least one run in all but one inning.
The Gnats were lead offensively by Kyle Lentz who is starting to regain his MVP form from last season as he went 3-for-4. A number of Gnats showed patience at the plate as there were six walks taken. unfortunately there was not much run support to score the baserunners.

Game 11: Gnat-tastic Defense Shines!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats rebounded from their Tuesday night defeat to trounce The Brawlers 15-2 after only five innings.
The Brawlers were short-staffed, playing with only nine players. The Gnats signed Steve "Seabiscuit" Gilliam to a one game contract to fill in for a number of Gnats absentees. Gnat pitcher John Carruthers showed that he is a true "team player" by holding off his trip to Goderich for a day to ensure the Sand Gnats would not be short-staffed as well.
The Gnats jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to Kyle Lentz first homer of the season. Lentz who has struggled at the plate in his sophomore year, looks to have come out of his slump as he was a triple away from hitting for the cycle. Ryan Hodges and the Mike & Mike duo (Pietrangelo & McLean) all tripled. Carruthers was the only Gnat not to get a hit in the game, and was the third out in four of the five innings played. Defensively the Gnats were solid, only allowing the two runs in the first inning.

Game 10: Gnats Struggle at Plate and Defensively

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats lost their second game of the season falling 15-8 Tuesday night.
Playing with only nine players, the short-staffed team just couldn't cover enough ground in the outfield as their opponents, "Bill French", hit shots to the gaps for numerous extra-base hits. A few Gnats errors also allowed some unearned runs to score.
Offensively, the Gnats managed 15 hits in the game, but left too many runners on base in key situations. Harold Ahle lead the team with a three hits on the night, and Pete Saddler doubled for the Gnats only extra-base hit.


Game 9: Gnats Dominate

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats continue their stellar play easily defeating After Hours 16-5.
The Gnats took an early 5-0 lead in the second inning thanks to the middle and lower portions of the batting order. After Hours came back to score four in the bottom of the second, and one more on the third to tie the game up.
The Gnats tightened up the defense and turned up the offense rattling off 6 runs in the fourth inning to take a commanding lead. Two insurance runs in the fifth and three more in the seventh inning made any comeback attempt by After Hours an after thought. Gnats pitcher Nick Pietrangelo found his groove and pitched four scoreless innings to get his second straight win. Ryan Hodges went 3-for-3 on the night, Josh Gullion had the only triple of the game, and Christian Oliver, Nick Pietrangelo, Mike Pietrangelo, and Pete Saddler had the other extra base hits. All Gnats batters had a hit in the game.


Game 8: Gnats Win low Scoring Affair

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats won a defensive struggle 4-3 over Janz Electric on Tuesday night.
Both teams played solid defense as no runs were scored until the fourth inning when the Sand Gnats scored one as Kyle Lentz scored on an error. Janz Electric got the run back in the bottom of the fourth to knot the game up.
The Gnats scored two in the fifth inning as Harold Ahle scored Josh Gullion, and Christian Oliver scored Ahle. Ryan Hodges was attempting to score on the same play, but was ruled out at home on a questionable play. Many believed the catcher was off the mat when the catch was made. The out stood, and gave the Gnats a slim 3-1 lead. The Gnats held on defense and scored the winning run in the sixth inning as Nick Pietrangelo scored on a Fielders Choice play.
Nick Pietrangelo got his first start on the mound and pitched brilliantly forcing a number of fly balls. He also struck out two in the game.


Game 7: Gnats Lose First of the Season

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats lost their first game of the season to the "other" Sinclair's sponsored team 18-12.
Playing with only nine men, Sinclair's opened up a can of whoop-ass in the first inning scoring 11 runs. That put the Gnats in a huge hole they couldn't crawl out of. The Gnats didn't give up and managed to pull within six runs as the games time limit expired.
Christian Oliver played a great game patrolling centre-field, chasing down a number of fly balls hit to the gaps. Offensively, Pete Saddler notched his first dinger of the season with a shot over centre-field. Mike McLean had a triple, and Don Harris and Kerry Felstead both had their first extra-base hits on the season.


Game 6: Gnats Wipe Barhoppers Clean!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats continued to take advantage of short staffed teams easily beating Barhoppers 18-6 in only 6 innings.
The Gnats appeared to have the game won after the 5th inning, after going ahead by 10 runs. The umpire erroneously called the mercy rule after the 10 run lead. However, the Regency rules state a 12 run lead after 5 innings qualifies for the mercy.
The game resumed after the short confusion/delay. Although the Gnats didn't score runs in the 5th to end it, they did score 4 runs in the 6th to end the Barhoppers misery.
Kerry Felstead lead the offensive charge going 4-for-4 on the night, the only perfect plate performance on the night. Steve Fish moved up to second in the batting order and didn't disappoint, going 3-for-5 including his first regular season triple ever.
Defensively, Don Harris showed his golden glove, by swarming and gobbling up everything hit his way. John Carruthers scored his 4th win of the season, and also walked, giving him 5 base on balls this season (half way to tying the record set last season by Don Harris).

Game 5: Gnats Crush Trailer Park Boys!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats handily defeated the short staffed Trailer Park Boys in 5 innings by a score of 20-8.
Trailer Park Boys lead 8-7 going in to the bottom of the 4th inning. That is when the Sand Gnats opened up the flood gates and turned the Regency Diamond #1 into New Orleans. Sixteen batters came to the plate, and all twelve of the Gnats batters in the line-up scored at least one run in the inning, giving them a commanding 20-8 lead. The defense took over in the top of the 5th inning, setting down the TPB batters in order.
Ryan Hodges was perfect at the plate going 3-for-3, with two triples. All Gnats batters had at least one hit, except Nick Pietrangelo who went 0-for-2, with a walk. Ten Gnats batters had 2 hits in the game.


Game 4: Gnats Rally Late, Settle for Tie!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats played one of the quickest games in hstory, completeing a 7-inning game in under an hour. Somebuddy's pitcher Josh Lennox threw some quick pitches which may have caused the Gnats to rush a little at the plate.
In a low scoring affair, the Gnats trailed 6-2 going in to the bottom of the 7th inning, when the top of the order came through scoring 4 runs. Kerry Felstead singled with two outs to move Josh Gullion to third. Mike Pietrangelo had a chance to be the hero, but instead popped up to second to end the rally and the game in a 6-6 tie.

Game 3: Gnats Win Championship Re-Match!

The Sinclair's Sand Gnats met Sin City Friday night in a re-match of last seasons playoff championship. The late game time made it interesting as the fog began to roll in for the last few innings making it extremely difficult for the outfielders to pick up any fly balls. During pre-game warmups, Don Harris beaned starting pitcher Robb McLean on the wrist causing him to have his entire hand go numb. McLean refused to leave the mound for another position, and fought through the injury to complete the game. Despite all of these challenges the Sand Gnats won the game 17-11.
The Sand Gnats played strong defense throughout the game keeping Sin City base runners stranded in scoring positions in a number of innings. The Sand Gnats bats were also hot during the game as the scored runs in every inning. Christian Oliver hit his first tater of the young season, and Robb McLean notched his first hit since 2004. Ryan Hodges, Oliver, Josh Gullion, and Steve Dever all had triples. Kyle Lentz had a double, as did Gullion, and Hodges had 2 doubles.


Game 2: Budz Get Smoked!
The Sinclair's Sand Gnats laid the smackdown on Budz Friday night with a mercy in the 6th inning winning the game 14-2.
Once again the bats were slow to get hot, going hitless in the first inning. Rookie Nick Pietrangelo, playing his first game in a Sand Gnats uniform owned the plate going 3-for-4, including the teams first homer of the season sending a bomb over the right centre fence.
Pete Saddler played despite his wonky ankle in a gutsy performance and managed to leg out a double in the 3rd inning, before being replaced by the late arrival of Josh Gullion.
The defense was solid throughout the night highlighted by Kerry Felstead fielding a ground ball and flipping it out of his glove (ala Roberto Alomar) to shortstop Kyle Lentz to get a force out at second.


Game 1: THE CHAMP IS BACK!
The Sinclair's Sand Gnats opened the 2006 season last Tuesday, when they faced the Ricki Jo's Rebels.
It took a few innings to remove the off-season rust, but the Sand Gnats squeaked out a 16-15 victory in a time limit shortened game.
The Sand Gnats trailed early in the game, being down 8-1 after the second inning. Then the patient bats of the Gnats came alive. The team scored 3 runs in the third, 5 in the 4th and 7 in the 5th inning, thanks to timely hitting and numerous walks taken.
The Sand Gnats set a team record in the game by taking a total of 12 walks. John Carruthers and Steve Fish each had 3 walks in the game, and are pace to shatter Don Harris' walk record of 10.



SPONSOR: Sinclair's Eatery and Sports Bar


2006 SCHEDULE
HOME GAMES IN CAPS


Date Time Opponent Diamond Score Regular Season Record
Tues. May 16 8:30 Ricki Jo's Rebels 2 W 16-15 1-0-0
Fri. May 19 8:30 BUDZ 2 W 14-2 (mercy 6th) 2-0-0
Fri. May 26 9:45 SIN CITY 1 W 17-11 3-0-0
Tues. May 30 7:15 SOMEBUDDYS 2 T 6-6 3-0-1
Fri. June 2 9:45 TRAILER PARK BOYS 1 W 20-8 (mercy 5th) 4-0-1
Tues. June 6 6:00 BAR HOPPERS 2 W 18-6 5-0-1
Fri. June 9 6:00 SINCLAIR'S 1 L 18-12 5-1-1
Tues. June 13 8:30 Janz Electric 1 W 4-3 6-1-1
Fri. June 16 6:00 After Hours 1 W 16-5 7-1-1
Tues. June 20 8:30 Bill French 1 L 15-8 7-2-1
Fri. June 23 7:15 Brawlers 1 W 15-2 8-2-1
Tues. June 27 6:00 HAMBLET ROOFING 2 L 10-5 8-3-1
Fri. June 30 6:00 RICKI JO REBELS 2 PPD
Tues. July 4 7:15 Budz 2 W 25-2 9-3-1
Fri. July 7 6:00 Mofia 1 W 6-3 10-3-1
Tues. July 11 8:30 Sin City 2 L 11-5 10-4-1
Fri. July 14 8:30 SOMEBUDDYS 2 L 13-10 10-5-1
Fri. July 21 8:30 BAR HOPPERS 1 W 18-6 11-5-1
Tues. July 25 6:00 Sinclair's 1 W 15-0 12-5-1
Fri. July 28 8:30 Janz Electric 1 W 15-6 13-5-1
Tues. Aug. 1 6:00 After Hours 1 W 10-6 14-5-1
Fri. Aug. 4 6:00 Screaming Eagles 1 L 8-6 14-6-1
Tues. Aug. 8 8:30 Brawlers 2 W 11-7 15-6-1
Fri. Aug. 11 6:00 BRAWLERS 1 W 20-6 16-6-1
Tues. Aug. 15 8:30 Ricki Jo Rebels 2 L 18-8 16-7-1
Fri. Aug. 18 7:15 TRAILER PARK BOYS 1 W 18-6 17-7-1
Tues. Aug. 22 8:30 SIN CITY 2 L 12-6 17-8-1
Fri. Aug. 25 6:00 BARHOPPERS 1 L 7-5 17-9-1
Tues. Aug. 29 7:15 SOMEBUDDYS 2 L 14-11 17-10-1



***PLAYOFF SCHEDULE*** (games will be added once announced)

Date Time Opponent Diamond Score Playoff Record Season Record
Fri. Sept. 8 9:45 RICKI JO REBELS 1 W 14-10 1-0 18-10-1
Tues. Sept. 12 6:00 AFTER HOURS 2 W 10-5 2-0 19-10-1
Tues. Sept. 12 8:30 Janz Electric 2 W 12-5 3-0 20-10-1
Fri. Sept. 15 7:15 Sin City 1 W 14-4 4-0 21-10-1
*Championship Game*
Fri. Sept. 22		 8:30 Sin City 2 W 8-3 5-0 22-10-1