The Spitters playoff run deserves a great rewind

Before we dive into this, I would just like to say that I messaged the Cobras asking if he wanted to do it, but he did not reply. Therefore, I decided to do it myself. I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas, and I wish a Happy Kwanzaa to those who celebrate it.

We are in PK Park in the beautiful city of Eugene, Oregon. The Spitters are one out away from securing their first world series win, and it would be in their home ballpark too. With men on 1st and 3rd, a home run here from the Orioles will tie this ballgame. This at-bat could possibly change the outcome of two cities forever. But before we show what is about to happen, we need to understand the crazy path that got the Spitters here in the first place. We need to show how unlikely this moment seemed one year ago. And lastly, we need to see how this at-bat is so much more important than people think. We need to rewind.

Eugene has not experienced any baseball for what seems like an eternity. The same Spitters folded after 11 seasons of FB play (from 28-38). All Eugene had were trash teams that stayed for 1-3 seasons, the last of them being the Eugene Hippies, which folded in 43. The city of Oregon did not even have a team until the Grizzlies were founded in 70. A lot of new teams joined Portland, including the Cobras and the Jballerz. But then, what shocked Eugene is when the grandson of the previous manager, who was named Al Hurtan, decided to bring back the team to raise funds for the city. Nobody expected them to be good. But after some smart offseason acquisitions, they won their division in 92. However, they lost in the 2nd round of the league playoffs to the Gilbert Suds. This season was expected to be a step back, as their amazing manager that bought them here retired.

The Orioles story is a bit sadder. They have made the World Series 2 times since Season 80. The first time was against the Boston Monarchs. A lot of the same players on their team today witnessed the Boston Monarchs walk the third game off in the bottom of the tenth. In Season 91, they got swept by the San Diego Bombers. This one hurt a lot less. The Bombers are an FB legend, and of course, they would win against the Orioles. The city of Baltimore had high expectations, and of course, the team delivered. 47 wins, a playoff sweep, and some nice wins against Aurora and Columbus bought them here. Now, let's look at the Spitters more complicated run.

Eugene won 45 games. Pretty good, but not good enough to breeze through the playoffs. A tough 3 game series against the Suds, a sweep of the Bisons, and a classic series against the Hugo Eagles capped off with 4 run top of the 10th in game 3. And that was just to get to the World Playoffs. However, something lucky happened. You know San Diego? Yeah, they got eliminated by the Lightning in the Delta finals. That proved to be a deciding factor. The Spitters probably would have gotten killed by the Bombers. However, they got to play the Lightning, and clutch pitching advanced them. They got an easy win against the Cyclones and a bye to the World Series.

In the first FB games played on Christmas, Eugene delivered in Camden Yards and took a close games 1-2. But game 3 was close in its own way.

8 combined hits seem like a doozie of a game. But it was anything but. A leadoff homer to start the game off for Baltimore. An early 1-0 lead. But then Gabriel Gay delivered. He went 5-0 before this point with a sub 3 ERA, and hopefully, he could lead them to victory tonight. In the 7th inning, Arrelano and Calloway each delivered homers to lead 4-1.

In the bottom of the 9th, Norman and Baca got on base. With 1 out to spare, Baca hit a single to make the tying run come up to the plate. A homer would even it at 4. An out would secure a championship. The 25-year-old Montrel Hernandez was up to the plate. And after a pitching replacement, Mauricio Begley was looking to close out the world series in front of their home crowd.

You understand how each of these runs seemed impossible, and how whatever happens next has a huge implicant on the game. Welcome to a moment in history.

"AND HERNANDEZ DRIVES A BALL TO LEFT FIELD, ON THE MOVE IS VILLEGAS AND HE MAKES THE CATCH! THE EUGENE SPITTERS, YOUR SEASON 92 CHAMPIONS!"

Thank you guys for reading. Just a reminder to all teams that today is Kwanzaa and bidding day! Please make safe bids and do not break the unwritten rule (10-minute rule).

Tacoma Storm