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'Hats Flatten Mattress in Season Finale

7/28/2003 -- Madison – The Madtown M's concluded their season with a convincing 11-4 win over Verlo Mattress, led by a seven-run second inning, and a solid 5-inning pitching performance by starter JJ "KK" Kinkel. Although eliminated from a playoff berth by virtue of Monday's loss to the Kollege Klub Warriors, the 'Hats put forward one of their best effort in flipping the sagging Beds to make a strong finish to what has been the best season in team history.

After starting the season 0-5, the Mad Milliners of Bascom Mall went on to win 7 of the remaining nine games. Their 5-2 record in the second half was good enough to clinch third place in the round behind Top Promo and KK, both at 6-1. (Jordan's Big 10 Pub, also 5-2, finishes fourth having lost to the M's in the round.) The Meistro's team-record-setting 7-7 finish was good enough to place them fourth overall in the eight-team Pacific League.

After jumping off to a 1-0 lead, the Madmeisters exploded for seven runs as the bottom of the batting order loaded the bases with one out. Dane "County" Stangler, who has raised his batting average by over a hundred points by going 3 for 5 in the last two games, led off with a walk, and after singles by O'Callahan and Schwartz, Kinkel and Jesse "500" Reschke blasted a double and a triple, respectively. After that it was clear sailing for the M's, as Kinkel (2-0 for the season) kept the Queen Size Pillow Top hitters off balance with a bewildering array of zipping fastballs and slow curves dropping over the plate for strikes.

County Stangler pitched two scoreless innings to pick up his team-leading second save. Those innings were not without some excitement. Rob "D" Collins, who seems to attract noteworthy defensive plays wherever he is on the field, turned a nifty 1-6-3 double play to end the sixth. In the seventh, Stangler got into a bit of trouble by yielding a leadoff double and then plunking his record-smashing sixth batter. After a fly out to center, the next Box Springer grounded to Collins, who stepped on the bag and whipped a hard rely throw in the dirt to first. Kinkel, at first, scooped the throw, making the last play of the M's season a brilliant double play.

The M's second half success was attributable not only to such usually solid defensive play, but also to the team's new-found habit of scoring more runs than the opposition. "We didn't have enough practices before the season," said M's Skipper David Schwartz, "so I think a lot of the guys didn't realize that if you score fewer runs in a game, you lose. Once some of our newer players caught on, things started to pick up."

The M's outscored their opponents 92-90, thanks in large part to a powerful offense that included three players hitting .500 or better (Collins, Kinkel and Reschke), Sam "Legs" Cipriano's 15 runs scored, RBI production from Collins, Kinkel and Kauffman (18, 13 and 9, respectively), and Reschke's eye-popping 1.000 slugging percentage. Lance "Double or Nothing" Franke smacked six doubles out of his 10 hits, in addition to playing solid defense at catcher, third and short. Dan O'Callahan a/k./a Cal O'Danahan, Stangler, and Jim "Stumpy" Loter came on late in the season to raise their batting averages significantly. The team batted .328, with an impressive .459 on base percentage. Even the controversial "safe percentage" exceeded .400 for the team.

The 'Hats' pitching also gelled in the second half. The starting rotation of Dan "Larry" McMurtrie (2-2, 1.55 ERA), Stangler and Kinkel, with Collins going 2-1 with a save out of the bullpen, kept the M's in the pennant chase. Overall, the pitching staff posted a team ERA of 3.73.



Stangler Named New Manager

The Madtown M's have announced that Dane "County" Stangler will replace long-time skipper David Schwartz as manager for the 2004 season. Stangler assumed stewardship of the tattered Nike equipment satchel and the Michael Kauffman memorial ball napsack after the Verlo Mattress game, and will begin player development activities over the winter.

The M's organization denied rumors that Schwartz, who reportedly is moving to California, was fired due dissatisfaction with the team's failure to make the playoffs.

"How could we be unhappy with David's managing the team to a 7-7 season, when we went 8-22 over our previous two seasons?" said team spokesman James M. Loter, who added, "Hmmm, 8-22. Maybe we should have fired the guy."

Stangler, a third year law student and anchor of the pitching staff, is undaunted by the fact that he has never managed at this level. "I welcome the challenge," said Stangler. "And it's not like I have no managerial experience." Stangler managed several teams in "Statis Pro Baseball," a board game, throughout his early teens. And Stangler will many challenges, including the loss of several players to free agency or graduation, as well as the difficult decision about when to take himself out of a game when he pitches.

"I wish Dane the best of luck,"said a teary-eyed Schwartz, who vehemently denied any feelings of bitterness. "You guys will come to realize there's a lot more to managing than just showing up with the equipment bag."