Brewers, Astros clinch Brewton Little League season titles

Published 7:49 am Wednesday, May 19, 2010

As the Brewton Little League regular-season faces its final couple of games, the excitement of championship races final came to a conclusion Monday night.

And, just as it should, both age divisions went right down to the wire before the 11-12 Brewers and the 9-10 Astros clinched their respective championships on the last week of the season.

The Brewers needed a Thursday win against the Rockies and a huge come-from-behind win Monday vs. the relentless Tigers to do it, but the 11-7 win was enough to claim the title. In the younger division, an inside-the-park grand slam home run broke a 4-4 tie and vaulted the Astros to the championship.

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BREWERS 11, TIGERS 7

Down 7-4 with one out in their last at-bat, the Brewers (11-2) rallied for seven sixth-inning runs to win the game.

Caleb Winton doubled to lead off, and after a strikeout, Joshua Winton singled and Tyler Baxter got hit by a pitch before the top of the order took over. From there, Brooks Brown, Tyler Hoomes, Jared Cooper and Christian Alvarez all had hits to seal the victory. The big blow was Hoomes’ 3-run double that provided the eventual game-winning RBI as the Brewers sent 11 batters to the plate in the deciding frame.

Ethan Tyree and Alvarez (2 RBIs) got two hits apiece in the Brewers’ 11-hit attack, while Brown (RBI), Hoomes, Cooper, Dakota Stokes and both Wintons had one hit apiece.

The Tigers watched as the Brewers led off the first inning with a 4-0 run, but stormed back to take the lead. Austin Holmes pitched brilliantly and held the Brewers at bay through five innings. He helped his own cause with his first career home run, a towering 3-run blast in the bottom of the first that got the Tigers going.

Holmes added another hit – his team slapped 13 hits on the night – and had three RBIs. Teammate Jonathan Lucas was 4-for-4 with a pair of doubles, while Will Smith and Stokes Jennings stroked a pair of hits each. Ethan Bollenbacher, Markail Mitchell and Noah Morris each had hits as well.

ASTROS 8, BRAVES 4

As hot as Daniel Blair has been on the mound as of late, teammate Davis Wade has been equally heated at the plate. Blair – who got an error-free defensive effort from his teammates – won his third straight decision in the biggest game of the year by getting a complete-game victory in the Astros’ title clincher. In doing so, Blair yielded four hits and four walks, but struck out five.

But it was Wade who made the difference with one swing of the bat. With the scored tied at 4-all in the second inning, Wade crushed an inside-the-park grand slam that ultimately sealed the Braves’ fate. Blair, A.J. Walker, Adam Holmes, Joseph Nance and Micah Flores each had singles and scored runs.

Russell Smith had a triple to lead the Braves.

ROCKIES 7, RANGERS 6

With the Rangers holding a 6-4 lead with time expired in the fourth inning, the Rockies benefited from a few walks and one hit to complete the come-from-behind win.

For the Rockies, the combination of Christopher Gehman, Alex Daugherty, Jake Najor and Kellyn Winn took the win on the mound, striking out seven. Offensively, they made the most of their three hits, as Trippe Floyd blasted a line drive, two-run home run while Gehman and River Johnson each had RBI hits. Najor scored twice.

The Rangers countered with six hits. Tim McDonald led the way with three, including an inside-the-park home run. Christian Mancil contributed a pair of singles and Drew Williamson a triple.

See Saturday’s paper for the remaining Brewton games from the week.