A fun little story in my league

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I just started up a new fictional league and had this occur so I wrote a little story about it. I hope some of you read this and enjoy it.

Jon Jones could not have imagined a worse start to the season. After being selected with the 49th pick overall in the league’s inaugural draft, he set out to make an impression on his new team, the Chandler Astronauts. When Jon first met his new GM Brian Ellis and manager Chad Heyman, they told him how excited they were to have him on the team. “We’ll put you right in the heart of the order.” They told him. They were looking for some right handed power, someone who could drive in a lot of runs during the year.

As Spring Training took shape, Jon showed off some of his potential with a couple of towering home runs and 10 RBI in 33 at bats. He was proud of the fact that he walked 10 times while striking out only 6. He felt ready for the season to begin. When reporters asked Heyman who would have an impact this year, Jon Jones was always mentioned.

Then the season started and everything fell apart. The Astronauts started with 4 games against the Glendale Ghosts and Jon failed to get a hit in any of them. He struck out in 14 of his first 17 plate appearances, and only walked once. His team had split the series but Jon had not been able to contribute at all.

Having 4 days off between series was not what he needed after that. He wanted to get right back out there and hit his way out of the slump, but all he could do was wait.

Next up would be a home series against the Peoria Pink Rabbits. Jon struck out 3 times in 4 hit less at-bats on Friday, and 2 more times without a hit in 4 at-bats on Saturday. He couldn’t afford to have another 0-fer during Sunday’s double header. He worried that might give his boss just enough of a reason to put him on the bench.

Jon’s first chance on Sunday was in the bottom of the 2nd inning. He came up with a man on first and took a cut at the first pitch he saw. He got on top of it and grounded into a 6-4–3 double play. “Sometimes it feels like you’ll never get another hit and your career will just be over.”

He grounded out to short again in the 4th and popped out to the 1st baseman leading off the 6th. He looked lost at the plate. One inning later, Jon let himself feel hope after working a walk. It was only his second walk of the season, but at least he was on base.

Going into the 9th inning, it looked like he might have to wait until the 2nd game of the double header before getting another chance, as his team held a 5 run lead. That is, until the Pink Rabbits rallied for 5 runs in the inning and tied the game. Jon stepped to the plate with one out in the bottom of the 9th and ended up striking out on 5 pitches. It was his 20th strikeout of the season, in just his 7th game, his 28th at-bat.

Peoria scored a run in the top of the 11th to take a 6-5 lead. Chandler was set to have the top of the order try to get it back. Jon would bat 5th in the inning if it got that far. Bench coach Roberto Brito found Jon in the dugout after he came back in from the field. “Hey. You got this man. I think...if you get up there this inning...you’re gonna do something good.”

A walk, a strikeout, an error, and a pop up brought Jon to the plate with two on, two out, and the game on the line.

He took the first two pitches for balls and stepped out of the box. He took a deep breath and stepped back in. The next pitch caught a little too much of the plate and Jon took a big swing. He hit a scorching line drive toward left. The shortstop jumped and stretched out his glove but couldn’t quite reach it. The ball dropped in for a hit. Jon ran hard but stopped after rounding the bag at first. He watched as the second runner raced home and beat the throw. Not only did have his first hit, but he drove in the tying and winning runs. The team all chased after him and pounded on his helmet, playfully throwing dirt on him and laughing. Jon let out a joyous scream that could be heard from miles away. “There’s no better feeling in the world than that!” He said after the game.

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Wild Game in Chandler

Friday, May 20, 2022

It was only the 13th game of the season, but when the Mesa Demons traveled to Chandler take on the Astronauts, the two teams showed up ready to play.

Mesa CF Jason Jones lined a two out solo home run to left center field putting the Demons on the board in the first inning. That would be the only run Mesa would be able to manage against Chandler southpaw Steve Cunningham until LF Michael Prevett hit a solo shot to nearly the same spot in the top of the 7th.

Mesa starter Dan Miller was also excellent for 7 innings. The Astronauts scored on a solo blast down the LF line in the bottom of the 3rd, but could not get anything else going through the 7th.

Heading to the 8th inning, the two teams had only combined for 3 runs on 8 hits. Cunningham was replaced by Ryan Bagwell, who set Mesa down in order in the top of the inning but the Demons let Miller head back out to the mound in the bottom of the frame and the wheels fell off. The big blow was a pinch hit, two run home run by Jon Jones (Yes, this is the same Jon Jones from the previous story written about this league. He has become a bench player now, but is having a great start to the year.) When Miller exited the game, the Demons trailed 4-2.

Jones stayed in the game at 1B as part of a double switch. Phil Donahue took to the mound for the Astronauts. He struck out the leadoff man but then gave up a double and a walk. Donahue came back to strike out the next man before walking another to load the bases. Larry Allen came in to pinch hit and crushed a 1-1 pitch the opposite way for a grand slam. Mesa took a 6-4 lead into the bottom of the 9th.

Allen took over at SS as Tony Betlach came in to try to get the save. After retiring the leadoff man on his first pitch, Betlach gave up a single, bringing Jon Jones back to the plate representing the tying run. And Jones delivered, smashing his second home run in as many innings. This one was a game tying 428 blast to left center field.

One out and two walks later, Jon Shaffer walked to the plate. He worked the count full and fouled off a couple of pitches before hitting a sharp grounder to short. You may remember that Mesa’s grand slam hero was playing short at this point. Larry Allen quickly went from hero to zero as he misplayed the grounder, allowing it to scoot into left field. George Ash raced around 3rd to score the winning run.

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Player Appreciation Post

Ryan Quade: Catcher-Peoria Pink Rabbits



First, a little information about the league Ryan plays in. I created a fictional league in Arizona called the Sun Valley Baseball Association. There is one SubLeague with two divisions, East Valley and West Valley. Each division has four teams, for a total of eight. The top team from each division moves on to the Sun Valley Series, a best of seven championship series. The regular season is 80 games long. I play as commissioner in this league, simply observing, without taking over as manager or GM for any one team.

The league started in 2020 and is currently one game into the 2022 Sun Valley Series. The Peoria Pink Rabbits and the Scottsdale Cannonballers are meeting for the third consecutive time in the championship. Peoria won the first matchup in six games and Scottsdale won the second in six games. Both teams had points during this season where it seemed like they might not make it to the series, but, in the end, they were able to outlast their opponents to get back.

Now for the story of Ryan Quade.

Quade was the 50th overall pick in the league’s inaugural draft, the 2nd pick in the 7th round. He had his 29th birthday about a month and a half before the league played its first game. He is a switch-hitting, right-handed throwing catcher from Phoenix who hits better from the left side of the plate. He is considered an above average defender at the position. Quade is 6’2” and weighs 215 pounds. He loves baseball, is loyal to a fault and likes to be considered one of the guys. He’s never really been interested in being viewed as a leader.

He’s got good power and a strong sense of the strike zone but doesn’t really hit for average and strikes out quite a bit.

We will begin by looking at his regular season performance.

During his first season, at age 29, Quade struggled in most offensive categories, slashing .194/.292/.432. He hit 15 doubles and 13 home runs, ending up with 31 RBI. He was solid defensively, but didn’t throw out enough potential base runners. In this league, that was good for 1.5 WAR, an OPS+ of 101, and a wRC+ of 103.

In his age 30 season, Quade actually played the same exact number of games, 64, and had the same exact number of at bats, 227, as the previous year. He was able to find a little more success offensively, slashing .207/.299/.493. He had 17 doubles, 16 home runs, and 48 RBI on the season. He had one more walk and 10 fewer strikeouts than in 2020 as well. He made the West Valley All-Star Team, and played solid defense again. His season was worth 2.4 WAR, an OPS+ of 128, and a wRC+ of 130.

This season, at age 31, Quade played 3 more games, and came to bat 17 more times than either of the previous two seasons. His walk total was down, and his strikeout total was the highest of his career at 97. Despite that, Quade still had a strong season, slashing .217/.284/.516. He hit 14 doubles, 1 triple, and 19 home runs, driving in 51. Quade was named to his second All-Star team, and had his best defensive season so far. His season was worth 2.5 WAR, an OPS+ of 117, and a wRC+ of 130.

Quade’s 19 home runs in 2022 is the most in a single season by any catcher in the league, with 1 more than the next closest player. He has 90 more career strikeouts than the next closest catcher on the leaderboard, and he has the three highest strikeout total seasons of any catcher. His name doesn’t appear once on the leaderboard for all position players. His best WAR season is 9th on the all-time Catcher leaderboard and 45th on the list of all players.

And now for the reason it’s post exists. Ryan Quade is an absolute beast in the postseason.

As a regular season player, Quade helps his team, but in the postseason, he carries them.

In the 2020 Sun Valley Series, Quade went 7-24 with 3 walks, 1 single, 6 home runs, and 10 RBI in 6 games. He did strike out 12 times, but he slashed .292/.370/1.042. He was named the Sun Valley Series MVP for his efforts.

In 2021, He played in all six games again, going 6-21, with 3 walks, 1 single, 1 triple, 4 home runs, and 6 RBI, striking out 7 times. His triple slash was .286/.375/.952.

In game one of the 2022 championship series, Quade went 2-3 with a walk, 2 runs scored, and a 2-run home run. His homer came in the bottom of the 8th inning with the Pink Rabbits trailing 4-3 against superstar closer Nate Hendershot.

Next, I will provide you with his place on the postseason leaderboards. Remember that the same three teams have played in all 13 postseason games, som many of the players have had a similar number of opportunities to produce.

Quade’s career postseason SLG is 1.042. 2nd on the leaderboard is .546.

Quade’s career postseason .OPS is 1.442. 2nd is .946.

Quade’s has 50 career postseason Total Bases. The 2nd highest total is 30.

Quade has 11 postseason home runs (in 13 games). The 2nd highest total is 4.

Quade has 18 postseason RBI. The 2nd highest total is 11.

Quade has the most walks (7), tied for the most runs scored (13), third most hits (15), third highest batting average (.313), second highest OBP (.400), and most strikeouts (19) in league postseason history.

I’ll follow up if he does anything else exciting during this postseason. I just had to take a break from the series to tell you about the guy who might be my favorite player in the league so far after his dramatic, game-winning home run in game 1.

I just watched game 2 and Quade went 1-4 with a solo home run as the Pink Rabbits won 5-2.

After a dismal 3 games on the road, in which Quade went 0-8 with 1 walk and 8 strikeouts, he crushed a 3-run home run in game 6 to help force a deciding game 7.

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Deleted for a variety of reasons.

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Fast forward a couple of seasons...

The Pink Rabbits failed to make the Sun Valley Series in 2024, but got back in 2025. Ryan Quade’s had an unbelievably bad series, going 0-22 with 1 walk and 8 strikeouts at the plate. The Chandler Astronauts won the series in 6 games.

I feel bad for the guy, and he’s not even real.

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I’m going to spend the next several posts detailing the 2026 Sun Valley Series. It’s one of the most exciting, memorable series that I have had the opportunity to experience in OOTP. I’ve been working on putting together this recap over the last couple of days.

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The Scottsdale Caonnonballers and Peoria Pink Rabbits have been two of the most successful franchises during the first seven years of the SVBA. Scottsdale is taking part in the Sun Valley Series for the fourth time, while the Pink Rabbits will be the West Valley representative for the sixth time. This will be the fourth time these two teams have met to decide the championship. They faced each other in 2020, 2021, and 2022. Through 19 postseason games against each other, The Cannonballers have won 10, and Peoria has won 9. Scottsdale has won two championships in 3 trips to the series. Though Peoria has only won once against the Cannonballers, they too have two championships. The Pink Rabbits won their second title in 2023, against the Chandler Astronauts. Peoria has been in the series six out of seven years, with 2024 being the only exception. Scottsdale is back in the series for the first time since their last championship in 2022. By the end of this series, five of the seven championships in league history will belong to one of these two teams. The other two were won by Chandler. This series feels a bit like comfort food, and fans of these two franchises are hoping for another epic battle.
Both teams had to withstand late charges to make it to the championship series. Scottsdale clinched the East with a win over 2nd place Chandler in game number 78. Peoria needed one more game to clinch the West, beating 2nd place Glendale before playing one last meaningless game. The Cannonballers ended the year with the better record, and earned home field advantage in the series.

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9/16/26
Game 1
PEO LHP Dan Frey vs. SCO RHP Rich Benites

Rich Benites did not want to leave the game in the top of the 3rd inning, but he was in so much pain that he didn’t have any other options. His right bicep had felt a little strange in the bullpen, but it didn’t feel like anything that should keep him from pitching in such an important game. He felt better as he mowed down the first three Peoria batters on only seven pitches. He only felt it a couple of times in the 2nd, as he worked around a couple of hits to keep the game scoreless. It was after his first trip to the plate in the bottom of that inning that he got worried. Something wasn’t right. He told his manager, former Peoria second baseman Jared Stillman, that he thought he was ok, but he would say something if it was going to hurt the club. Eight pitches and two outs into the 3rd inning, Benites knew he was done. He headed to the dugout to cheer on his team from there. That would be all that the veteran pitcher could do from this point on.
Veteran Cannonballers shortstop Bill Thomas crushed a line drive into the left-center field gap and raced toward second in the bottom of the 3rd inning when he decided to slide head first. Something went wrong with the slide and he ended up having to leave the game with a wrist injury. By the end of the game, Thomas was told that he should be able to play again the next night, but he had to watch the rest of the series opener from the dugout.
Benites and Thomas were sitting on the bench when they saw their teammates pick them up in the 4th. Catcher Mark Hines led off with a walk and moved to 3rd when veteran 3B David Romero snuck a 1-0 fastball into left-center field. Then, with one out, 1B Juan Vazquez lined a ball into left to drive in Hines and give Scottsdale a 1-0 lead.
It stayed that way until the 6th inning. Peoria tied the game when, with two out, 1B Justin Avers doubled and scored on a single by 3B Elias Vasquez. The game was tied at 1.
Each team threatened to score over the next couple of innings, but were unable to break through. In the top of the 9th, the Pink Rabbits veteran LF Josh McGuire doubled to deep center field with one out. The next batter was 2B Matt Clemons, who hit a rocket that dropped in for a single. It was hit so hard, and got to the fielder so quickly, that McGuire didn’t have a chance to score. Scottsdale closer Nate Hendershot retired the next two batters to end the threat.
The game remained tied after 9 innings and Hendershot stayed in for a third inning in the top of the 10th. He had to throw 17 pitches, but he struck out two, got a batter to pop out to second, and kept the score knotted at one apiece.
Max Buhl entered the game to pitch in the bottom of the 10th. He was the Pink Rabbits number four starter for much of the season and was ready to step into a long relief role as needed in the postseason. 25 year-old RF Keith Lewis stepped in to lead off the bottom of the inning against Buhl. Lewis is a third year player in the league, who has been named to the All-Star team twice, had a 23 game hitting streak during the 2026 season, and put together a .333/.390/.573 slash line while racking up 5.1 WAR during the year. The third pitch he saw from Buhl sailed high and deep to right field. The young star’s first postseason game was one to remember, as he sent the Cannonballers fans home happy with a 410 foot walk-off home run.
Scottsdale took a 1-0 lead in the 2026 Sun Valley Series in dramatic fashion.

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9/17/26
Game 2
PEO LHP Jake Rios vs. SCO RHP Francisco Gallardo

Rios and Gallardo both breezed through the first two innings, but the Peoria starter found himself experiencing uncharacteristic control issues in the bottoms of the third. He walked three batters in the inning to load the bases with two out. Game 1 hero, Keith Lewis, came to the plate. Rios got ahead of Lewis 0-2 before the Scottsdale right-fielder pulled a scorching drive down the first base line and into the corner, scoring two. At the end of 3, the Cannonballers had a 2-0 lead.
Peoria answered back quickly, as CF Matt Kellogg and 1B Justin Avers hit back-to-back home runs to tie the game.
Both starters settled back in, and the score remained 2-2 going into the bottom of the 6th. Keith Lewis once again got ahold of a Jake Rios pitch and sent it deep over the fence into the right-field bleachers.
Peoria kept the game close until the bottom of the 8th inning when Scottsdale broke it open. The Cannonballers got a 3-run home run from C Mark Hines and an RBI double from 1B Juan Vazquez to take a 7-2 lead. That would be the final score as Scottsdale took a commanding 2-0 lead in the series.

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9/19/26
Game 3
SCO RHP Jon Creekmore vs PEO RHP Jared Trembly

Keith Lewis continued his remarkable postseason with a leadoff home run on the second pitch of the game. You could sense the tension fill the stadium, as the Pink Rabbits and their fans knew they couldn’t afford to fall behind 3-0 in the series. Trembly retired the next three batters, but Scottsdale was up by a run.
Nervous cheers filled the night air as the Pink Rabbits loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the first for 3B Juan Vazquez. Creekmore jumped ahead 0-2. Vazquez laid off a breaking ball before driving an opposite field grand slam to give Peoria an early lead, and a boost of confidence. They added another run on an RBI double by 2B Matt Clemons, and Peoria held a 5-1 lead after 1.
The Pink Rabbits added to their lead in the 3rd, when Vazquez scored on a sacrifice fly by Clemons. Then, in the 4th, Peoria added two more as Kellogg and Vazquez each drove in a run to extend the lead to 8-1. Justin Avers made it 9-1 with a solo home run in the 6th.
Keith Lewis hit his second home run of the game in the 8th inning, but Elias Vazquez answered back again in the bottom of the inning, giving him 6 RBI in the ballgame. Peoria finished the game with a 10-2 victory, and felt like they were back in the series, down 2-1.

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9/20/26
Game 4
SCO RHP Jaiden Grove vs PEO RHP Dan Frey

Jaiden Grove was supposed to be pitching out of the bullpen in this series, but when Rich Benites was injured in game 1, Grove moved back into the rotation. The 25-year old right hander spent the 2025 season moving from the rotation, to the bullpen, and back again, and struggled in the process. During the 2026 season, he was firmly entrenched in the back end of the rotation for the Cannonballers. He rewarded them by going 7-5 with a 3.73 ERA (3.74 FIP). He pitched a scoreless inning in game 2 of the Sun Valley Series, on a day he would have thrown on the side anyway. Now it was his turn to start a game in the championship series.
Grove retired the first five batters he saw, but fell behind 1-0 when Peoria catcher Ryan Quade, the league's leading postseason home run hitter who had an awful Sun Valley Series in 2025, hit his first postseason home run since 2023 in the 2nd inning.
Dan Frey scattered 3 hits and a walk in the first 3 innings, but one of those hits was a game tying homer in by 3B David Romero..
Frey struck out the first two batters he faced in the top of the 5th, before getting into trouble. He allowed three straight singles. The third of which was hit by veteran SS Bill Thomas to drive in a run. The score was 2-1 Cannonballers
It stayed that way until the 7th, when Frey was replaced by Ramiro Lopez. 1B Juan Vasquez extended the lead with a solo home run to left-center field. Lopez then retired the next two batters, but gave up another home run to LF Kelvin Ferrell before getting the final out. Scottsdale was up 4-1 headed into the 7th inning stretch.
Jaiden Grove was out of the game, being pinch hit for in the top of the inning, and was replaced on the mound by right-handed Greg Norris. Grove’s final line was 6 innings, 3 hits, 1 run, 1 walk, and 4 strikeouts. An outstanding performance by a young man who hadn’t expected to be put in that role.
The first batter Norris faced was Elias Vazquez, who pulled the Pink Rabbits back within 2 by crushing a home run to right. Norris then escaped the inning without any further damage.
Peoria came to bat in the bottom of the 9th inning down by 2, and facing closer Nate Hendershot, who had already pitched a perfect 8th. Justin Avers and Elias Vasquez each struck out before Ryan Quade hit his second home run of the game, making the score 4-3. the next batter, SS Scott Schmitt was hit by a pitch to bring up pinch hitter Josh Bertram, representing the winning run. Bertram just missed on a 1-1 pitch and flied out to center to end the ballgame.
Scottsdale came away from the game leading the series 3-1. No team had overcome a 3-1 deficit in the Sun Valley Series in the first six years of the league, so the Cannonballers were in great position to win their third championship.

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9/21/26
Game 5
SCO RHP Francisco Gallardo vs PEO LHP Jake Rios

Peoria was facing elimination, but manager Steve Krane said he felt good about their chances of getting the series back to Scottsdale for game 6. He was happy to have Jake Rios on the mound. Rios won the Rookie of the Year Award in 2023, struggled a bit in ‘24, but came back strong with great seasons in ‘25 and ‘26. The 2026 season was his best campaign so far, as he finished 8-6 with a 2.67 ERA. He had a 0.95 WHIP, a FIP of 2.77, and 3.3 WAR. He pitched well in game 2, but he would need to be better in this game.
Rios quickly retired the three batters he faced in the 1st. Scottsdale’s Gallardo allowed two hits in the inning, but escaped without allowing a run. One of those hits was a single by Peoria’s Star CF Matt Kellogg, who left the game with an injury. He was replaced by 26 year old prospect Josh Bertram. Bertram has been named the team’s top prospect, and the 10th best prospect in the league, by the OSA. He’s been a solid hitter in the minor leagues, but has only 15 hits in 94 big league at bats spread out over two different seasons. That seemed like a big loss for the Pink Rabbits when trying to extend the series.
In the bottom of the 2nd inning, Scott Schmitt gave Peoria a 1-0 lead with a solo home run. That lead was short lived, though, as Cannonballers 1B Juan Vazquez tied the game in the next inning with a home run of his own.
Rios scattered 4 hits over 7 innings before being lifted for closer Brock Nickerson to start the 8th. Rios has done his job, keeping his team in the game. Nickerson gave up a lead off single to Jason Bauerle, who was pinch hitting for Gallardo, but escaped the inning with the score still tied at 1.
Gallardo was replaced by lefty Aiden Freeman. He pitched a clean 8th inning.
Both Nickerson and Freeman pitched scoreless 9th inning as well. .
That’s when Steve Krane made a curious decision. He left Nickerson in to pitch the 10th inning, despite the fact that he had already pitched 2 full innings, throwing 32 pitches. The tired closer walked the first batter he saw in the 10th, and then allowed a single to Juan Vazquez to put runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. Krane stuck with Nickerson and the next pitch was driven into the gap in left-center. It bounced around, and two runs scored as Scottsdale CF Julio Quinto slid into 3rd base with a triple. Nickerson still remained in the game, and gave up a fly ball to center that was deep enough for Quinto to tag up and head toward the plate. Josh Bertram caught the ball and threw a strike to catcher Ryan Quade just in time to get Quinto for the second out. Nickerson retired the next batter to send the game to the bottom of the 10th. The Cannonballers had a 3-1 lead and were now 3 outs away from a championship.
Greg Norris came in to pitch for Scottsdale. Cannonballers manager Jared Stillman didn’t want to take any chances by leaving Freeman in. However, because closer Nate Hendershot had already pitched five innings in the series, including two in game 4, Stillman went with reliable setup man Greg Norris. Peoria 2B Matt Clemons sent his first pitch over the fence in right to make it a one run game. Dan Fox then came in to pinch hit, and quickly fell behind 1-2. He hit a sharp ground ball to short, where Bill Thomas misplayed the ball, allowing Fox to reach base. Peoria had the top of order coming up with the tying run on and nobody out.
Josh Ley stepped up to the plate. Ley had a breakout year in 2026. The previous two seasons he had struggled, but this year, he made his way into the starting lineup and hit .324. His postseason, however, was off to a slow start. Ley was 0-18 coming into game 5. He singled in the 1st, but was 0-3 since. Norris got too much of the plate on his first pitch and Ley took a big swing. He hit a hard line drive into right field for a single, advancing the tying run to third.
Josh McGuire hit a ground ball to short that allowed Bill Thomas to look Fox back to the bag and throw to first for an out. With two outs and runners on at the corners, Josh Bertram walked to the plate. Since entering the game due to the 1st inning injury, Bertram had grounded out, singled, and reached on an error. He had a chance to do something that would be remembered for a long time if he could come up with a hit in this situation. Norris threw a good pitch, but Bertram took a quality swing. The ball lifted into center field. Julio Quinto raced toward the ball. Fox and Ley had moved forward, hoping to take off. The ball dropped just out of Quinto’s reach. He lost his balance just a bit in shifting his body to knock it down. Fox and Ley were off to the races. Fox scored easily from third, and Ley never hesitated. He had made his mind up early and took off. Quinto grabbed the ball and threw with everything he had. It wasn’t enough. Ley crossed the plate and the stadium erupted. Josh Bertram and the Pink Rabbits had forced game 6 with a wild 4-3 come from behind victory.

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9/23/26
Game 6
PEO RHP Jared Trembly vs SCO RHP Jon Creekmore

Creekmore struggled in game 3, but said that he felt like he figured out what had caused the problem. He worked on fixing a minor issue with his mechanics and felt like he was back to where he needed to be.
After one inning, it was not looking good for the Scottsdale right-hander. He retired the leadoff man, but then hit Josh McGuire with a breaking ball that didn’t break. Matt Kellogg then hit a ball off the wall in right-center to put runners on 2nd and 3rd with only one out. Kellog came up from his slide in pain. He was replaced by Josh Bertram for the second straight game. This time, it was an oblique strain. Justin Avers hit a hard ground ball into right to drive in two runs, giving the Pink Rabbits the lead. Creekmore then hit Elias Vasquez with a pitch before escaping the inning, thanks to a double play.
Manager Jared Stillman stuck with Creekmore despite the rough inning, and he was rewarded for his faith in the pitcher. The right-hander only allowed one more hit and two walks before leaving the game with two out in the 7th.
Offensively, the Cannonballers came to life in the 4th inning. Julio Quinto led off with a double, and scored as Mark Hines singled three pitches later. Hines stole second, and moved to third when David Romero singled. The fourth batter of the inning drove in the game tying run with a fielder’s choice. Juan Vazquez then gave Scottsdale the lead, with a two run home run to cap the scoring for the inning. Scottsdale led 4-2.
That remained the score until Keith Lewis hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 7th. Creekmore, having been replaced in the top of the inning, jumped up in the dugout,cheering on his teammates.
The Cannonballers went to their closer, Nate Hendershot, asking him to get six outs to seal the championship. Josh McGuire led things off with a strikeout. He was followed by game 5 hero, Josh Bertram, who drew a walk. Hendershot hit Justin Avers with the next pitch, bringing the tying run to the plate in Elias Vasquez, He fouled off three tough pitches before demolishing a fastball for a game tying 3-run home run down the left field line. Hendershot had allowed 1 run in 5 innings in the series prior to that home run. The next pitch was to Ryan Quade, who gave Peoria the lead with a mammoth home run to right. The Pink Rabbits lead was 6-5 going to the bottom of the 8th.
Peoria manager Steve Krane called on Jimmy Holten for a six out save. He successfully set down all six batters he faced to send the series to game 7.

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9/24/26
Game 6
PEO LHP Dan Frey vs SCO RHP Jaiden Grove

Peoria forced game 7 despite falling behind 3-1 in the series. Scottsdale had home field advantage, and hoped their crowd would help them get the title.
Josh Ley led off the game by reaching on an error committed by 2B Mike Scott. Jaiden Grove, who was coming off of his impressive game 4 start, was able to retire the next three batters without allowing Ley to score.
Dan Frey came into the game, having allowed just three runs in 12 innings so far in the series. Three pitches into the bottom of the first inning, Julio Quinto doubled to deep center. He moved to third on a fly out and scored on a ground out. The Cannonballers had an early 1-0 lead.
That lead didn’t last long. Ryan Quade doubled to lead off the 2nd. Then with one out, Matt Clemmons doubled to drive him in. Grove retired Frey for the second out, but Josh Ley tripled into the right field corner, and Peoria took the lead 2-1.
Jaiden Grove led off the bottom of the third by singling into left field. He came around to score on a Julio Quinto triple to tie the game. The next batter was Kelvin Ferrell, who lifted a fly ball deep to right. It was caught, but Quinto tagged and scored easily. The Cannonballers were back on top 3-2.
That lead didn’t last long. Matt Clemons doubled again to lead off the top of the 4th. He later scored on a single by Josh McGuire to tie the game at 3.
Grove left the game after six innings, and was replaced by Joe Lemke, who gave up a two out double, but kept the Pink Rabbits off the board.
With the score still tied going to the 8th inning, it was once again Nate Hendershot taking the mound for the Cannonballers. The first batter he saw was Ryan Quade, who had hit the winning home run in game 6. Quade worked a full count, but struck out. Scott Schmitt grounded out to short on an 0-2 count for the second out. Then Matt Clemons got his third hit of the game. This one was a home run that put Peoria on top 4-3. Hendershot could not believe it had happened again.
Jimmy Holten was once again called on to get six outs. If he could do it this time, Peoria would take home the trophy. Kelvin Ferrell grounded out to start the 8th, but Bill Thomas singled through the hole into left to get things started for Scottsdale. Keith Lewis worked a full count, fouled off a tough pitch, and then just missed one, as he flied out to right for the second out of the inning. Mark Hines hit a hard ground ball toward first, and Avers dove toward the line to knock it down. He beat Hines to the bag for the third out.
Peoria was held scoreless in the 9th, and the Cannonballers came to the plate needing one to tie or two to win.
Jason Bauerle pinch hit to lead off the inning, and grounded out to second for the first out. Mike Scott grounded out to second as well. Peoria needed just one more out to win the championship. Juan Vazquez lined a 1-0 pitch into left field, and the tying run was aboard. Jason Urena was announced as the pinch hitter. He quickly fell behind 1-2 before crushing a ground ball just to the left side of second base. Scott Schmitt dove and gloved the ball. He was able to flip it to Clemons at second for the force out, and the Pink Rabbits began to celebrate their third Sun Valley Series Title.