Bats alive, Wayne takes series lead
from the Daily Times posted 8/18/2020
By MattSmith mattsmith@21st-centurymedia. com @DTMattSmith on Twitter
NARBERTH » Wayne’s bats came alive Monday in Game 3 of the Delco League championship series. 
After a disappointing hitting performance in a six-run loss to No. 2 Narberth Saturday, the No. 1 seed and reigning champs showed they have plenty of firepower left in their sticks.
The offense was aided by solid starting pitching from Ashton Raines, who breezed through most of his outing. Despite some trouble in the latter innings, the Strath Haven and Bloomsburg product went the distance as Wayne regained control of the best-of-5 series with a 7-5 victory.
The Mudcats scored all five of their runs off Raines in the sixth and seventh innings. Prior to facing trouble, Raines was dominant. He retired 12 of the first 13 hitters he faced and needed only 62 pitches to get through the first five innings “I think a couple of times through the lineup, they’ve seen me and maybe fatigue set in,” said Raines, who allowed five runs on seven hits and struck out six. “I’m not as in-shape as I used to be, so toward the end I was definitely feeling a little tired. We had a nice cushion from our hitters, so I knew that I could keep going and get the outs eventually.”
Raines complimented his offense, which plated two runs in the top of the first inning and never let up. Much of the damage was done by 2-3-4 in the order: Alden Mathes, Ed Paparella and Will Peiffer. They combined to go 7-for-12 with two home runs, two doubles, a triple and four RBIs. The five-hole hitter, Luke Mutz, was 2-for-4 with a pair of run-scoring singles.
“We attacked fastballs in the zone early in the count and we kind of kept that mentality throughout the game,” said Peiffer, who was 3-for-4 with an RBI double and two runs scored. “That was biggest part, attacking fastballs early. ... We knew we had to come back after we only had a few hits the last game. We had to get guys on base and turn it on.”
Wayne scored five of its runs with two outs and produced 12 hits on the night.
“The key was two-out hits,” Wayne manager Brian Fili said. “There were a couple of innings where the first two guys got out and we ended up scoring, which was really big. ... Two-out hits in the playoffs to score runs are crucial.
“It’s the reason why those guys are (hitting) there in the order. And, you know, that didn’t happen the first couple games of the series, but they were hot today. Alden’s really started to pick it up, he’s the key. Digging in deep and getting those two-out hits when we needed to, that was huge.”
With a 7-0 lead in the sixth inning, Raines began to run out of bullets. Jim White slammed a two run homer to make it 7-2. In the seventh, Mike White led off with a single and Jim Quinn was hit by a pitch. Vinny Vaccone (2-for-4, two runs) collected an RBI single. With two outs, Jim White slugged a two-run double to make it 7-5.
Fili could’ve gone to the bullpen, but trusted that Raines would finish what he started.
“The good thing is he cruised early on, so his pitch count was down,” Fili said. “I had Culver (Hughes) getting loose just in case. I can now use Culver tomorrow for a more important time and not having him go back-to-back days is helpful, too. I’m trying to save as many arms as I can. I went out there (in the seventh) to make sure Ashton wasn’t tired and he told me, ‘I can get you two more outs.’” Raines’ funky three quarter arm slot was deceptive to the Narberth hitters for most of the game.
“I played around with it in high school, but I didn’t develop it until probably my sophomore year in college,” he said. “Once I had some success with it, I developed a couple of pitches ... and sort of ran with it. It’s been really successful for me.”
Wayne hit three long balls, including back-to back solo bombs by Mathes and Paprella in the fifth inning off Narberth starter James Kelly, who allowed five runs on eight hits while striking out three in 4.2 innings. Wayne continued to mash in the fifth inning off reliever Pat Toal, who gave up two runs on four hits. Luke Mutz added an RBI single in the fifth and Tommy Jacobs blasted a solo homer in the sixth to put Wayne ahead, 7-0.
Mutz and Dan Williams had two hits apiece for Wayne.
Wayne seeks its 17th Delco League championship, which it can win Tuesday back at Narberth Playground. First pitch is 5:30 p.m.
