GBL lose inagural All-Star game vs. United League

SAN ANGELO, Texas – His teammate in Laredo had just gone deep off the clubhouse to give the United League a 4-2 lead, but Luany Sanchez was ready to one-up Dwayne White, just has he had done in their first at-bats. In the second inning, White doubled before Sanchez followed with a three-run homer to left-center, and this time, in the fourth inning, Sanchez launched the first pitch he saw from Bob Cramer over the left-field clubhouse to give the United League a 5-2 lead. The ULB All-Stars went on from there to win the first ever United League-Golden League All-Star Game, 8-5, in front of a sellout crowd of 4,421 at Foster Field.

Sanchez, of the Laredo Broncos, won MVP honors, with his two homers and four RBIs, and also picked off a batter to end a potential GBL rally in the second inning. White, also of Laredo, had two hits for ULB, as did Bryan Frichter of the hometown San Angelo Colts.

The Golden League got on the board first, scoring off starter Santo Hernandez of Laredo. With one out, Ryan Stevenson of St. George tripled just past Frichter in deep center, and was brought home on a single by Joe Jiannetti of Edmonton. The GBL All-Stars threatened again in the second off eventual winning pitcher Micah Posey of Amarillo, but a 4-6-3 double play to erase a leadoff single by former Major Leaguer and current St. George Roadrunners catcher Wiki Gonzalez, and Sanchez’s pick-off at first of David Bacani of Orange County with two outs and two on prevented the Golden League from scoring.

In the bottom of the second, the host league took the lead for good. With one out, Andres Rodriguez, the Home Run Derby champion from San Angelo, singled, and then White doubled to right and Sanchez launched a homer to left off starter and losing pitcher Even Greusel of Calgary to make it 3-1.

After the GBL got one back in the third on an unearned run off Laredo’s Gregorio Martinez, the ULB added to their lead on the back-to-back homers from White and Sanchez in the fourth. The Golden League drew closer again in the seventh, but another double play induced by ULB pitcher Luke Massetti of San Angelo wiped away a potentially larger rally. With no outs and runners on second and third, Jiannetti hit a grounder to short, which brought home a run. But Stevenson, the runner at second, tried to go to third on the throw from Alexandria shortstop Rafael Ozuna, and he slipped, allowing Ozuna to eventually tag him out in a rundown. Massetti then struck out Patrick Breen of Orange County to end the inning.

The United League responded with a run in the bottom half, as Ozuna was ruled to have scored ahead of a double play on the basepaths, as Bryan Sabatella of Alexandria was doubled off first on a sacrifice fly by his Aces teammate Luis Guance.

The Golden League got two more unearned runs in the eighth to again make it a one-run game, but Edinburg’s Julio Castro got a foul out from Jermy Acey of Orange County to end the inning with the tying run at third. ULB got those two back again in the bottom half, on the second back-to-back home runs of the night, solo shots from Danny Bravo of Amarillo and Palmer Karr of Alexandria. In all, the ULB stars hit five homers, accounting for seven of the eight runs.

The Aces’ Juan Carlos Ovalles finished things up, working around a leadoff walk in the ninth to pick up the save. On the final play, the third baseman Bravo knocked down a hard smash but recovered in time to throw out Orange County’s Mark Okano to end the game.

After this year’s contest, the two leagues are scheduled to renew acquaintances in next year’s All-Star Game in Orange County, California.

By: Frank Mentesana San Angelo Colts United League Baseball