Whalers post-season review: a winning team

WINSTED — After finishing the regular season with an overall record of 13-9, the Winsted Whalers now look to the 2010 Tri-State Playoffs that begin Saturday, Aug. 7.

The Whalers made the best of home field advantage this season, going 10-3 while hosting opponents at Walker Field. On the road the Whalers were 3-6, and were 5-5 while facing teams within their own division.

Winsted falls into the seventh seed, which pits them against the 10th seed Terryville Black Sox (11-11) in the first game of this year’s playoffs.

In their final three hometown  outings of the regular season, Winsted was 3-0, and all three victories were demonstrations of the Whalers’ strengths and flaws throughout the year.

Winsted right-hander Adam Piechowski pitched two of the three final home games, tossing complete game shutouts in both appearances. Over the course of those two games, Piechowski tallied 20 strikeouts, while only giving up two walks. The Whalers finished fourth overall in runs allowed this season, giving up just 68 runs over the course of 22 games, and Piechowski’s low-hit, high-strikeout performances were certainly a major component of the team’s defensive success.

The final home game of the year allowed Donny Crossman to take the mound. He had a spectacular outing, claiming a complete-game shutout win against the Amenia Monarchs. Crossman tallied eight strikeouts while giving up only a handful of hits, making him another suiting starter in this year’s post season as well.

While the Whalers’ pitching and fielding has been quite solid this season, their offense has struggled throughout the year. Winsted produced only two games this year where they score more than five runs, with a 10-6 early season win over the Burlington Hunters and a 9-7 late season lost against the Bethlehem Plowboys.

In their final three home game outings, the Whalers scored a total of six runs, defeating the Torrington Rebels 3-0, the Tri-Town Trojans 2-0, and finishing out the season with a near 1-0 victory over the Monarchs.

Charlie Putnam remained a leading presence at the plate in their final three hometown appearances. Putnam tallied three hits and worked two walks over the course of those three victories. Ricky Langer had two hits, a walk and an RBI over three games, while catcher Chance Rueger drove in three of the Whalers six final hometown runs.

Winsted recognizes their need for offensive production, especially in the post season against high-scoring teams, but can find some comfort in their ability to shut down an opponent — particularly in close games.

The Whalers are still looking to reclaim the championship title they won just two short years ago, but will need to generate some liveliness from their bats if they hope to work deep into this year’s playoffs.

Check the Tri-State Baseball League’s website, tristatebaseballct.com, for field locations and times. All the games are free.

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