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07/26/2023 10:31 AMWith only five weeks left of the season, the majority of teams in the Deep River Horseshoe League are thinking playoffs. It was another week of heat and humidity, but there were blue cloudless skies and enough of a breeze that made the humidity tolerable in Week 12.
The second place Giants were without Mike Zanelli Sr., the league’s leading scorer as they took on the first place Cardinals. With Ed Turner substituting for Mike, the handicap the Cardinals had shifted to the Giants. Ed Turner’s 112 point series was his season’s best and he came out ahead of Cardinals’ Kris Toohey who said, “I just couldn’t find my spots.” The Giants won the first three games without using their handicap, but did make use of it to win game four. With the 4-3 win, the Giants closed the gap to 3-1/2 games.
The Mets ended their streak of not having seen three wins since week four with a 4.5-1.5 win over the third place Tigers. Mets’ Bob Cifaldi’s 119 point/29 ringer series and his 33 point/9 ringer game were season’s best. He was able to beat Sheryl Serviss, the league’s second leading scorer. He got good support from Frank Durinick, whose 81 point series was second best for the “C” division players, just behind the Tiger’s Sue Feaster’s 83 point series. With the loss, the Tigers fell to fifth place.
The Yankees and Braves were tied for fifth place going into the week. The Braves won the first game by 18 points behind Mike Zanelli Jr.’s 44 point game, and it continued into game two with a 21 point win. The Yankees turned it around behind Frank Jolly as they won three of the last four games and tied one. Frank’s 113 point series was the second highest among “B” division players. The Yankees won 3.5-2.5 and moved into 4th place. Mike’s 144 point series was the top scorer for “A” division players. The Braves held onto sixth place.
The Royals are the top scoring team in the league behind the scoring duo of John Sciacca and John Hutra, but they could only manage two wins against the Dodgers and their hopes of moving up in the standings will need to wait another week. They remain in seventh place.
The Cubs and Pirates were both under .500 and vying for a playoff spot. In a hotly contested match, the first four games were decided by a total of nine points. The Pirates won the first three games before the Cubs came back to take the next three. Pirates’ Skip Robinson’s 123 point series was the second leading “A” division score. The teams ended the night separated by four points (Pirates 277 and Cubs 273). The match within the match was between Cubs’ Ted Dubay and Pirates’ Brady Miller. In their head-to-head battle, they tied at 26 points in their first game, Brady won their second game 29-25 and Ted returned the favor in their third game and they were tied going into their last game at 80 points each. Ted won their last game 31-25 and his 111 point series was the third best for the “B” players.
Other top scorers on the week included Reds’ Pudge Goodrich with a 122 point series for A” division, Red Sox’s John Durinick with a 127 point series for “B” division, and Orioles’ Paul Chrystal with a 73 point series for “C” division.
The top eight teams make the playoffs. Currently, the top eight teams are:
1. Cardinals (50 - 22)
2. Giants (46.5 - 25.5)
3. White Sox (44.5 - 27.5)
4. Yankees (43 - 29)
5. Tigers (42.5 - 29.5)
6. Braves (42 - 30)
7. Royals (38 - 34)
8. Cubs (35.5 - 36.5)