River Dogs ready to kick off World Series
Jim McKiernan/Getty Images<br> The Columbia Basin River Dogs will host the 2009 Babe Ruth World Series tournament beginning this weekend at Larson Playfield in Moses Lake.
MOSES LAKE — The Columbia Basin River Dogs have played through a grueling schedule this summer.
After playing nearly 60 baseball games, they will kick off the 2009 16-18 Babe Ruth World Series Saturday at 8 p.m.
The River Dogs roll into the 2009 Babe Ruth World Series just one week removed from one of their most impressive performances of the season when Columbia Basin cruised to an impressive 6-1 record at the Toyota Bash tournament in Bellevue, Wash., including a 2-0 win over the Mudville Nine in the championship contest.
Following his team’s win at the Toyota Bash, River Dogs head coach Randy Boruff said his team is performing well heading into the Babe Ruth World Series.
“I think we are peaking at the right time,” he said. “We had a great last weekend.”
Columbia Basin started the Bash strong when Warden’s Arturo Reyes threw seven innings of no-hit baseball to help the River Dogs open tournament pool play with a 2-1 shut out.
The River Dogs continued to roll in their second tournament game when Brewster’s Stockton Taylor pitched five innings of no-hit baseball to help Columbia Basin improve to 2-0 in tournament play. Reyes and Taylor kept opponents hitless through the first 12 innings of the tournament and Boruff said his pitchers performed well.
“Our two young guys (Reyes and Taylor) didn’t allow a hit for 12 innings,” he said.
The only bump in the River Dogs’ road to the Toyota Bash title was a 13-2 loss to North Corner Tribe. Columbia Basin trailed just 5-2 heading into the sixth inning before North Corner Tribe broke the game open with an eight-run outburst.
Although the River Dogs dropped their match up with North Corner Tribe, Columbia Basin rebounded to win each of their next four contests en route to the championship.
The River Dogs knocked off the Mudville Nine 2-0 in the finals to bring the championship title home to the Columbia Basin. Othello’s Marc Garza went the distance for the River Dogs in the championship and head coach Randy Boruff was encouraged with his team’s performance at the Toyota Bash tournament.
While the River Dogs will take to the field for the first time Saturday night, this isn’t the first trip to the Babe Ruth World Series for River Dog players Marc Garza, Tyler Lesko and Derrick Webb. Garza, Lesko and Webb were members of the 2007 River Dogs team that finished third at the Babe Ruth World Series in Newark, Ohio.
This will be the second world series for Garza and he said it is an honor to host the annual tournament.
“It feels good knowing we are good enough to host it,” he said.
Garza isn’t the only world series veteran who is proud to play near his hometown. Lesko, of Ephrata, said he will enjoy playing in front of the Columbia Basin fans.
“It will be nice to play in front of the home crowd instead of the 30 that were there in Ohio,” he said.
The River Dogs will have the fortune of playing their tournament games in the friendly confines of Larson Playfield and Boruff is confident in his team after their performances over the past weeks.
“After 60 games you should be able to throw the ball in the middle of the field and say, ‘Let’s go play,’” he said. “If we can’t get up to play the world series in our own backyard, we did something wrong.”
The River Dogs open pool play Saturday night against Baxter, Tenn., and Boruff said his team should provide a spark for the local fan base.
“We should be very, very competitive,” he said. “I would be disappointed if we don’t make it out of pool play.”
Although the River Dogs are playing fundamental baseball at the most important time of the season, Boruff said his team has struggled offensively.
“The only surprise I’ve seen is that we didn’t hit quite as well as I thought we would,” he said. “Then again we were 39-20. One can’t complain about that. Our only concern is the clutch hit.”
While Boruff would like to see his team perform better at the plate, the River Dogs have played well throughout the season.
“I think our strength is that we have confidence in our pitching,” he said. “We have nine guys I don’t mind putting on the mound and we have been playing great defense. We haven’t committed an error in the last four games.”
The River Dogs fresh off of winning the Toyota Bash tournament and Webb said he is more prepared to play in the 2009 Babe Ruth World Series than he was in 2007.
“We are a lot more experienced,” he said. “We know what to expect.”
Columbia Basin River Dogs Babe Ruth Team
Marc Garza
No.: 23
School: Othello
Class: 2009
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 195
Bats/Throws: R/R
Miguel Garza
No.: 14
School: Othello
Class: 2009
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 175
Bats/Throws: R/R
Brett Gray
No.: 8
School: Ephrata
Class: 2009
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 200
Bats/Throws: L/R
Tyson Hubbard
No.: 1
School: Ephrata
Class: 2009
Height: 5’8”
Weight: 156
Bats/Throws: R/R
Jacob La Celle
No.: 16
School: Moses Lake
Class: 2008
Height: 6’0:
Weight: 192
Bats/Throws: R/R
Tyler Lesko
No.: 15
School: Ephrata
Class: 2008
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 220
Bats/Throws: R/L
Brock Lybbert
No.: 11
School: Moses Lake
Class: 2009
Height: 5’9”
Weight: 170
Bats/Throws: R/R
Drew Martin
No.: 21
School: Moses Lake
Class: 2008
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 220
Bats/Throws: R/R
Josh Martinez
No.: 13
School: Moses Lake
Class: 2009
Height: 5’9”
Weight: 180
Bats/Throws: L/R
Blaine Myers
No.: 5
School: Moses Lake
Class: 2009
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 170
Bats/Throws: R/R
Adam Ranger
No.: 18
School: Naches
Class: 2009
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 210
Bats/Throws: R/R
Arturo Reyes
No.: 3
School: Warden
Class: 2010
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 150
Bats/Throws: R/R
Brett Robinson
No.: 6
School: Ephrata
Class: 2009
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 165
Bats/Throws: L/R
Dylan Signorelli
No.: 10
School: Moses Lake
Class: 2010
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 165
Bats/Throws: L/R
Stockton Taylor
No.: 12
School: Brewster
Class: 2011
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 155
Bats/Throws: R/R
Eric Tinnell
No.: 4
School: Ephrata
Class: 2009
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 160
Bats/Throws: R/R
Shon Valdez
No.: 19
School: Othello
Class: 2010
Height: 5’7”
Weight: 165
Bats/Throws: R/R
Derrick Webb
No.: 2
School: Ephrata
Class: 2008
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 175
Bats/Throws: R/R