MIDVILLE WINS 2007 MABL Wood Bat FALL SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP, UNDEFEATED AT 11-0

MIDVILLE: 3
LI TIGERS: 1

The Midville Dodgers etched themselves in the history books last night with their final playoff game during their 2007 fall season. The Dodgers were 9-0 during the regular season, and then they also won their final two playoff games to bring their season total to 11-0. Quite impressive. This latest title gives the Midville Dodgers unlimited team 4 championships total since their inception into the league in the summer of 2004.

“Winning never gets old,” said Dodgers manager John G. Billera. “Each time you win a championship the taste is sweeter and sweeter.” What makes this championship stand out is that there was no room for error. The two playoff games the Dodgers were a part of were both single elimination games. 'I don't care what league you play in, when you can say that you went 11-0 with a title, that's impressive,” said John Billera, Midville's catcher. “I think we were all pressing a little for this last one, because even though we finished in first place at 9-0, anything less than winning the championship would have been a serious disappointment.”

The Dodgers jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when cleanup hitter Ronnie Pette belted a two-out double into the gap, scoring David Dinkelacker. A resilient LI Tigers team answered back in their top half of the second, when pitcher Mike Forthofer threw away a double play ball with one out. That was all the scoring the Tigers would do for the evening.

The rest of the Dodgers’ story centers on Forthofer, who is Midville's ace pitcher. With the game tied at 1-1 in the bottom of the seventh, Forthofer stepped up with John Pratt on second and Ronnie Pette on third. Forthofer smacked a 1-1 fastball deep over the Tigers’ right fielder for a two run one out triple giving the Dodgers a 3-1 lead. Midville never looked back, as Forthofer was also dealing on the mound. He held the Tigers to just three hits while striking out 12. He threw 116 pitches for the night, but seemed to get stronger as the game went on.

“Mike's 8th inning was the key. He got the Tigers’ heart of the order out on less than 10 pitches, which lined up the bottom of the order for the 9th,” said manager Billera. “Forths had awesome stuff tonight; his pitches were as sharp as ever. Great stuff and great command is a tough combination to beat,” said catcher Billera. “Mike carried us on his back for this one, and walked us all across the finish line.”

The Midville Dodgers unlimited team has a franchise record of 111-49-5 with four wood bat championships, quite an accomplishment for a team that has been around for less than four years.

The Midville Dodgers unlimited team looks to continue their winning ways and defend their title in 2008 when they return to compete in both the weekend and midweek MABL leagues. You can follow the Dodgers all season long by logging onto their website at www.mvdodgers.com.