I drove up to Williamsport yesterday with some friends for the last day of the Crosscutters season. A former teammate of their son at George Mason, by name of Shawn Griffith, was drafted this year by the Blue Jays and earlier last week promoted to the visiting Auburn Doubledays. We got seats just off the visitors' dugout.It was a singularly pretty day for baseball, with blue skies laced with clouds. We even saw a Monarch butterfly, a rarity this year, dancing in the breeze. The Crosscutters wore vivid red jerseys and white pants; the Doubledays, bright blue jerseys and road grays. They were a sight against the lush green of the field. The game was a bit raggedy but in the end the Crosscutters hung on for a 7-6 win. The big blow was a 5th-inning grand slam by Leandro Castro. A righthanded pitcher, Griffith came in in relief after the slam. He had to work through a jam but got out of it unscathed. Not a flamethrower, he nonetheless brought Billy Wagner to mind. Maybe it was their similar build and delivery.
The 'Cutters held on to win 7-6, making most of the 1300 very vocal fans in attendance for Fan Appreciation Day happy. The team finished the season 42-34, falling just shy of a play-off berth. The stand-out player of the game for me was rangy Jiwan James, who went 4 for 5 with a triple and three singles.
