Mt. Lebanon baseball ends Canon-McMillan’s long section winning streak after wild 7th inning

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, April 5, 2018 | 11:12 PM

One minute Canon-McMillan baseball players were celebrating what they thought was a successful hidden-ball trick that would have got them out of a seventh-inning jam.

The next minute, Mt. Lebanon was celebrating a 5-4 walk-off victory Thursday afternoon at Wildcat Field in Mt. Lebanon.

Mark Linkowski's single off the glove of second baseman Cam Weston allowed James Stocker to score the game-winning run as the Blue Devils ended the Big Macs' 19-game section winning streak.

It was No. 2-ranked Canon-McMillan's first section loss since they fell to Peters Township, 10-3, on April 18, 2016.

Trailing 4-0 after three innings, Mt. Lebanon scored three runs in the fourth and the tying run in the sixth, setting the stage for a strange finish.

With one out in the bottom of the seventh, James Stocker tripled down the right-field line. Canon-McMillan coach Tim Bruzdewicz held a meeting on the mound with the entire Big Macs infield to discuss strategy, or so it seemed. Instead they were setting up the hidden-ball trick, which appeared to work when third baseman Zach Rohaley tagged out Stocker when he stepped off the third base bag.

However the two umpires ruled the ball was not back in play, thus there was still time out on the field.

“The batter stepped in and the ump pointed to the pitcher,” Bruzdewicz said. “The field ump never saw it because he was looking at the ground.”

Bruzdewicz and the Big Macs complained about the umpires' decision before Bruzdewicz was ejected. After play resumed, Linkowski singled home Stocker and the Blue Devils began celebrating.

“I'm not going to inject myself into an argument between another manager and an umpire,” Mt. Lebanon coach Patt McCloskey said, “but from my understanding, the umps said they never put the ball back in play.”

Canon-McMillan starting pitcher Cam Weston helped himself with a leadoff homer in the second inning. The Big Macs added to their lead in the third when Ian Hess and Weston delivered RBI singles followed by a sacrifice fly by Rohaley.

Mt. Lebanon left seven on base in the first three innings, but finally dented the scoreboard on back-to-back RBI doubles by Mark Palmerine and Matt Dalesandro, who would later score on a sac fly by Ethan Cuccarese.

A key swing in momentum came in the top of the fifth when an error and Hess' double put runners on second and third with nobody out and chased Blue Devils starter Linkowski. Cam Knox came in for the Blue Devils and retired Weston, Rohaley and Brandon Kline without a run allowed.

A botched double play ball kept the bottom of the sixth alive for the Blue Devils, and Dalesandro scored the tying run on a Dante Borris sac fly, setting the stage for the wild seventh inning.

“That team has destroyed us the last couple of years,” McCloskey said. “They are a very good team, and for us to hang in there and battle and come back to win is huge.”

Spencer Curran picked up the win in relief for Mt. Lebanon (2-4, 1-0 Section 3-6A). Hess took the loss in relief for Canon-McMillan (4-2, 1-1).

Don Rebel is a TribLive High School Sports Network broadcaster and staff writer. Reach him at drebel@tribweb.com.

Tags: Canon-McMillan, Mt. lebanon