It was a `must win' for Stahley's Jones

By Keith Groller
Of The Morning Call


It sounded kind of strange, but Stahley's Bar pitcher Ed Jones called his team's Tri-County League game with East Texas last night "a must-win situation."

Jones, a lanky right-hander who has been posting clutch victories for years, went out and secured the "must win" with a masterful two-hitter over 6-2/3 innings as Stahley's blanked the Rangers 5-0 in Scherersville.

Teams that are 20-5 and own the best record in the league -- as Stahley's was at the start of the night -- don't usually play "must win" games at this stage of the season. But the Bar boys have been in a downward spiral the past two weeks, dropping four of its last five after racing out to a 19-1 start.

"As crazy as it sounds, this was like a "must win" for us," Jones said. "We hit a skid and we needed to snap out of it. We were 15-0 before East Texas beat us 7-6 a couple of weeks ago. So, really, we've only been 5-5 in our last 10 games and we needed to get it going again because we've got tough games coming up and then comes the playoffs."

Whenever Stahley's needs a big win, Jones gets the assignment. The 1987 Dieruff High and '91 Lebanon Valley College grad likes the big-game challenge and usually responds with big efforts.

"Ed knows what he can do," said Stahley's player-manager Ray Ganser, who replaced Jones on the mound for the final out in an effort to rack up another appearance that will make him eligible to pitch in the playoffs.

"Ed needs a week's rest and when he gets it, he always does a good job. He hits his spots. He looks easy to hit, but he's not. He doesn't walk people and he doesn't get many strikeouts. He works fast and keeps his fielders in the game."

Jones allowed just three baserunners in the one-hour, 40-minute game. He yielded a single to Pete Spisszak to start the game, then retired 14 straight before giving up a hit to Scott Godshalk with two out in the fifth. Jeff Duke followed with a walk to give East Texas its lone threat.

But Jones got Raoul Feliciano on a first-pitch, fielder's choice grounder to squelch the scare.

"I haven't had much of a fastball lately, but I mixed it up," Jones said. "Greg Wotring has been catching me a long time, so we know how to work together and hit spots. East Texas has a tough lineup. It's not like I have anybody's number. I just try to keep them off stride and hope it works out. Tonight, it did."

And while Jones handcuffed the Rangers, Stahley's ripped 12 hits and got contributions from every spot in the lineup but the No. 9 hole.

The victim was 46-year-old Dan Waelchli, a crafty veteran making his first Tri-Co appearance of the season. Waelchli, who stars these days on weekends in the Men's Senior Baseball League, got the call on the hottest night of the summer to give Ranger manager George Horn some badly needed innings for his shorthanded staff.

"Dan's a little older and only pitches a game or two a year, but he always scares you," Jones said of Waelchli, who graduated from Dieruff two decades earlier than Jones. "He's so smart out there. I try to learn from a guy like him. I'm not a power pitcher, so I watch a guy like him close ... see how he works the hitters and approaches each situation.

"And hey, I have the utmost respect for a guy like him. It's hot and he's still out there battling hitters. I just hope that I can throw the ball when I'm that age."

Waelchli worked four innings and got nicked for four runs. Tony Galucy doubled twice, driving in a run in the third inning. Dale Weiss and Joe Teresavage each drove in one run and scored another, while Dave Lutte and Mookie Smith delivered back-to-back doubles in the fifth off reliever Troy Phillips.

"Our pitching is always going to be steady, but our hitting has been up and down," Ganser said. "If we don't hit, it seems like nothing goes in our favor. So, when we hit the ball like we did tonight, I feel very good.

"All teams are going to go through slumps and hopefully, we've had ours. Plus, we're playing first-class teams now. I'd like to win our division and finish with the best record (which means a first-round bye in the playoffs), but most importantly, you want to go into the playoffs on a roll."

East Texas, the defending league champ, will need to get on a roll just to make the playoffs.

"We missed three guys tonight and it's tough when you're always missing people," said Horn, whose team dipped to 16-12. "I've missed 10 games myself because of work and we've had a number of guys in the same boat. You've got to earn a living. It all comes with the territory.

"It's tough to repeat because everybody's gunning for you, but we've still got a shot to make the playoffs. We're bunched together with a number of teams right now. Once you make the playoffs, anything can happen."



keith.groller@mcall.com

From The Morning Call -- July 15, 1995

Copyright © 1995, The Morning Call