Dogs earn individual accolades

Five River Dogs named to All-World Series team

MOSES LAKE — Five River Dogs were named to the Babe Ruth Senior World Series All-World Series team. There were two teams named, one the best players by position and the second best defensive player of the tournament.

Edward Rodriguez made it as a left fielder, Hawkins Gebbers as a second baseman and Jorge Reyes was one of the two pitchers named to the team.

Short stop Severo Rodriguez and right fielder Curran Redal made the all-defensive team for the series.

Catcher Brad Tracy and pitcher/first baseman Michael Rattigan also earned consideration.

Edward went 9-for-18 during the tournament, while scoring five runs and driving in nine runs. He produced several key hits during the series; including a four RBI performance in the loser bracket semi-finals against the team from Monterey Bay California.

Gebbers hit .533, going 8-for-15, scoring six runs and hitting two doubles.

Jorge Reyes pitched 9 2/3 scoreless innings for the River Dogs and earned two wins during the tournament.

This is the fifth time out of seven total World Series appearances that the River Dogs have finished in the top three.

"I was ecstatic," Boruff said. "We just kept getting better in the tournament."

Boruff said none of the players are completely satisfied with finishing third in the World Series.

"They were not ready to quit playing," Boruff said. "I would like to have played Mobile, Ala. (the World Series winner) one more time."

All three victories for the River Dogs were come-from-behind.

In the first game they were down 2-0 after one inning but in the third they exploded for seven runs and cruised after that to their game one victory.

After getting shut out in game two by Mobile, the Dogs found themselves trailing 3-0 in the fourth inning of an elimination game.

They came through again, scoring three runs in the fourth and one more in the top of the seventh to earn the 4-3 victory.

In the fourth game versus Monterey, the Dogs faced their biggest challenge-a five run deficit heading into the bottom of the first inning. It was not too much for them to overcome.

They scored three runs in the first, three in the third and three in the fourth, while shutting out Monterey for the remainder of the game.

The Dogs had one more comeback in the next game, the finals of the losers bracket, but it fell short as the Dogs left the winning run in scoring position in the seventh. They lost in extra innings.

"We were a team that had a lot of spit and a lot of heart and never quit," Boruff said. "I think it was a whole team effort."

Not since the 2000 16-year-old River Dogs took the field had Boruff seen so many comebacks by a team he coached.

The Dogs returned from Newark, Ohio on Saturday and are planning a banquet to celebrate this seasons success.