The Cardinals’ Pat Tenorio gains some distance before his attempt to steal second base against the Braves in the playoffs of the 2024 Tan Holdings Saipan Baseball League at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field.
The Cardinals’ Nate Guerrero winds up for the pitch against the Braves in the playoffs of the 2024 Tan Holdings Saipan Baseball League held at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field.
THE defending champions, the Cardinals, are one step closer to winning the 2024 Tan Holdings Saipan Baseball League title after eliminating the Braves, 8-3, in the first round of the playoffs at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field on Monday.
The young Braves’ hunger for victory was seen right from the start with first at bat Joell Borja connecting a single and later making his way to second base for a scoring opportunity. Although the Braves were met with their first out, Josenio Alvarez managed to break the silence with a single turned RBI as he brought Borja home safely before the Cardinals retaliated with a double play, striking out a batter and picking off an attempted steal to third to turn over to the bottom half.
The Cardinals carefully picked their swings, allowing two of the first three batters to walk and load the bases for a quick scoring opportunity. Eli Aughenbaugh continued to feed off the Braves’ defensive struggle as he opted for another base on balls which brought in Jerald Cabrera for their first run. The two remaining runners, Nokki Saralu and Brian Camacho, also circled the field to widen the Cardinals’ lead, 3-1, before they were met with three consecutive strikeouts.
The Braves recovered in the top of the second inning.
At first, their second time at bat was looking to end swiftly as their first two batters struck out. However, Dre Jones relit the fire with a much-needed double which turned into a stolen run off an error followed by an RBI single by Borja to even the score, 3-3.
Throughout the next five innings, both teams fought vigorously to regain control of the pace while displaying stellar defensive performances with neither able to find an answer. The score remained tied after seven complete innings.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Cardinals finally took flight as they found their second wind with hit after hit. Pat Tenorio acted as the spark plug with an RBI single followed by another RBI single by Tony Tenorio. The team continued to soar higher as Jerald Cabrera led the highlight reel with his single that brought in two runners while Tony Tenorio stole his way home off an error for an 8-3 lead.
The Braves made one last attempt to stay alive in the top of the ninth inning, but they were met with three outs with two runners left on base and had to accept defeat at the hands of the Cardinals.
The Cardinals now advance to the semifinals and will face the no. 1 seed, Falcons, on Monday for a spot in the finals.
