Game 4: Braves 16, Athletics 7

Shaking off rust that built up after two rainouts, the Braves defeated the determined As 16-7 Saturday morning at Water Tower.
Connor led the parade of lumber-thumpers with 4 hits, including two homers, and six RBIs. Nick scored three times, and Evan was 4 for 4 with two doubles. Many players contributed today on offense with their legs as well as their bats.
The Braves took a 4-0 lead in the first inning through a combination of singles and aggressive baserunning. But the As took a 5-4 lead in the second inning, hustling to take advantage of a few Braves miscues. The Braves tied in the third by manufacturing a run with 2 outs: Nick singled, stole second and scored on Connor's single.
In the top of the 4th, Evan tomahawked a double into the outfield, and scored on Ryan's hit. Then Tyler ripped a fly ball into the right field that the As outfielder couldn't handle. Tyler zoomed around the bases to score. While an official scorer in major-league baseball might rule that as a single and a three-base error, I am not going to be the one to tell Tyler it wasn't an inside-the-park home run.
The As scored two in the bottom of the fourth to make it 8-7, but that's as close as it would get. In the fifth inning, Alec reached safely, then Connor brought him by crushing a homer to center field. With two outs in the same inning, Evan doubled again, stole third on a passed ball and scored on another Ryan single. 11-7, Braves.
Alec took the mound in the 5th, bringing the Big Red Express with him. Stridingly confidently toward the plate, he pounded the strike with fastballs. Will speared a liner at second base to contribute to Alec's one-two-three inning.
The Braves broke the game open in the 6th. Will, Matt and Alec all reached safely. Then Nick ripped a triple into the right-center gap. Connor followed with his second homer of the game, a booming shot over the right-center fence.
Alec closed out the game in the 6th, with Nick knocking down a line smash and stepping on first base for the final putout. (Alec needed only 16 pitches over the final two innings.)
In pitching notes, Matt and Tyler picked up the Braves in the middle innings. Through no fault of his own, Tyler found himself pitching with the bases loaded and no outs, but kept his composure. He induced two grounders to third that the sure-handed Anthony grabbed and threw home to induce forceouts.
Former Braves skipper Dave Pritchard watched our game this morning. He promises an update on Braves alums Chris and Jason in the near future.
Probable talking points from the game:
Good: Only two called third strikes on the Braves today. The boys took Coach Ross' exhortation to swing the bats to heart, and it showed.
Less good: This is my opinion, not the coaches. Boys needs to remember to run everything out, whether it is a fly ball to the outfield, a pop-up near the plate or a grounder to an infielder. This is Little League. You can never assume the other kid will make the play and give up. The very act of running as hard as you can might make an opponent drop a ball or throw it wildly.
NEXT GAME
It's 6 p.m. Monday May 17 vs. the Cubs. Coaches ask that your Brave be at Water Tower by 5 p.m.