Game 5 - Maroon vs.
Blue
By Johnny Betts
June 11, 2002
It was a magical night for Johnny Betts as he completely took over the game and
single-handedly led his Maroon team to a 16-15 victory over the Blue. The best
way to view Johnny's TOTAL domination is to examine each of Johnny's dominating
plays.
INNING 1: With the score tied 3-3 and with bases loaded and two outs, Johnny stepped
up to the plate...
Here's the pitch, Johnny swings and IT'S A LINE DRIVE TO CENTERFIELD! THE INCOMPARABLE
JOHNNY BETTS HAS JUST DRIVEN IN TWO RUNS TO GIVE HIS TEAM A 5-3 LEAD.
INNING 3: In what was becoming a furious back-and-forth matchup the Blue team had
taken a 7-6 lead...
Johnny's up to bat. Johnny's 1 for 1 today with a 2-run single. He's got a man
on first, let's see if he can pull through in the clutch yet again. Here comes
the pitch, Johnny swings and it's a high fly ball to center. The ball keeps
lifting, it won't stop. IT'S OVER THE OUTFIELDERS' HEADS! THE RUNNER IS HEADING
HOME AND HE SCORES! JOHNNY IS ON HIS WAY INTO THIRD BASE WITH A STANDUP TRIPLE!
What an amazing hit! Johnny Betts has tied this game at 7-7.
INNING 4: The top of the 4th inning was a rough one for the Maroon. They were
now losing 14-9 and time was running out. Johnny was the leadoff batter in this
inning, and it was up to him to start the rally...
Johnny Betts is up to bat and he is simply having an amazing night. He's got 2
hits in 2 at-bats, and he's driven in 3 runs. Can he pull through in the clutch
and help mount a furious comeback? Here's the pitch and OH WHAT A HIT! IT'S GOING,
GOING, OH, IT BOUNCES AT THE WARNING TRACK AND HITS THE FENCE! JOHNNY HEADS TO
3RD BASE AND HAS HIS SECOND TRIPLE OF THE GAME! Folks, I don't know if I've EVER
seen a player just take over a game like this. It's almost as if Johnny is willing
his team to victory.
Johnny did indeed spark a rally as the Maroon roared back to tie the game at 14
runs apiece. The Blue team scored a run in the top of the 6th, but Johnny caught
a fly ball (his 4th catch of the evening) to end the inning and to prevent at
least two more runs. This led us to the bottom of the 6th where everything was on
the line...
INNING 6: The Maroon is down 15-14, there's a man on first, and Johnny Betts is up
to bat. The question on everybody's mind is what will he do next? Will he hit a
homerun to end the game? Here's the first pitch ... ball one. That wasn't even
close. Here comes the second pitch ... it's an illegal pitch, that's ball two. It
looks like the pitcher is throwing away from Johnny. The third pitch is on its way ...
ball three. Yep, the pitcher is scared of Johnny and doesn't want to give him anything
to hit. Here comes the fourth pitch ... Johnny digs his foot in the batter's box ...
he's waiting ... here comes the ball ... BALL FOUR! BALL FOUR! JOHNNY BETTS HAS JUST
PICKED UP A WALK! Folks, this couldn't be any more exciting if Ali Landry was out there
playing in a swimsuit.
The pitcher obviously was scared of Johnny. A couple of batters later the game was
tied and Johnny had reached third base. Let's pick up there...
There's one out and bases are loaded. Here's the pitch and the ball is hit to left
field. It looks like it may drop ... Johnny's about three steps off the base ...
uh-oh, the fielder caught it ... Johnny hurries up and tags 3rd, he should probably
stay there ... HE'S HEADING HOME! ... This is going to be close, folks ... the fielder
throws it, Johnny's diving into home plate and makes contact with the catcher's glove
and ... HE'S SAFE! MAROON WINS! MAROON WINS! JOHNNY BETTS HAS JUST WON THE GAME
WITH AN AMAZING SLIDE INTO HOME PLATE!
It was an amazing game indeed. The 16-15 win moves the Maroon's record to 2-3, and
they've got momentum on their side. More importantly, they've got Johnny Betts on
their side.
"What can I say?" Johnny rhetorically asked. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime game.
Although my motto is if you can do it once, then you can do it again. I can't really
explain it, I was just 'on.' This is the type of game that every player lives for.
Now if I was just making $50 million a year rather than having to pay $30 a year
to play it'd be perfect, but still, I'll take it."
And what did Stephanie think of Game 5?
"That was a genuinely exciting game. I wish I had known Johnny back in high school.
I would've loved to have seen him playing baseball back then, but I'm happy to savor
moments like these. He put on an amazing performance. I barely read my book at all,
that's how good the game was."
Yes folks, the game was good, but not nearly as good as the man who WAS the game. No,
we're not talking about HHH, we're talking about the Internet Hero, the Rider Reviewer
himself ... Johnny Betts.
Game 6 is set for Tuesday, June 18.
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