Cory Richardson didn’t expect to figure in the final stats of Seabrook Subway’s game against Camden Saturday afternoon in the final game of pool play of the Jim Hill Wood Bat Tournament at Eddie Bryan Field.
But when Subway coach Mike Langley called on Richardson in the fourth inning, he was ready to perform. Richardson responded with a base hit in his first at bat, singled in his second at bat and started a 4-6-3 double play that ended the game in extra innings as Subway slipped past Camden 5-4.
“I just wanted to come in and do what I could to help out, make a play or get a hit,” Richardson said. “I got two strikes on me in the first at bat and said I wasn’t going to strike out. I was swinging at the next pitch and I got a hit.”
Richardson’s hit was part of a three-run scoring burst in the sixth that helped Subway erase a 3-1 deficit.
He then led off the seventh with a single after Camden tied it at 4 in the bottom of the sixth. A misunderstanding between Richardson and Langley gave Richardson a stat he didn’t want — caught stealing.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“We had a miscommunication on signs,” Langley said. “He thought I gave him the steal sign. I didn’t think I did. I might have. We have some pretty simple signs so I may have accidently given it to him. But it wasn’t intentional.”
With R.J. McGregor at the plate, Richardson broke on the pitch and Camden shortstop Dillon Fogle was waiting at the bag with the ball before Richardson could even make up his mind to stand or slide. He pulled up at the last second and surrendered himself.
Camden got out of the inning without damage and Josh White took care of business on the mound in the bottom half to send the affair to an international tiebreaker rule extra inning.
Alex McDonald started the extra frame off at second base, according to the rules, and went to third when Tyrone Jordan singled through the right side. McDonald stayed there as Percy Arnold popped out to Fogle behind the bag at second as Camden caught Jordan trying to swipe second. Lee Moore drew a walk, setting the table for Wyatt Jones with runners at the corner and one out.
Camden catcher William Dever attempted to pick off Moore at first and the ball sailed into right field, allowing McDonald to cross the plate with the go-ahead run and Moore attempted to score from first as Camden booted the ball around the infield. Moore was eventually gunned down by Fogle at the dish in a head-on collision with Dever.
Camden had a chance in the bottom of the eighth with runners at first and third with one out when Scotty Carmody hit the grounder to Richardson who flipped to Arnold at second base. Arnold fired a strike to Jones at first to complete the twin killing in a bang-bang play that was contested to no avail by Camden.