A 10-8 loss in the semifinals of the Little League District Tournament at Franklin Sunday left the coaches and fans of the Logan County 9-10 All-Stars wondering what might have been if an umpire had not made a controversial call that they are convinced was wrong.
Logan County was trailing 7-5 in the bottom of the fifth inning with no one on and two outs, when a Bowling Green East batter lofted a pop up down the first base line. Pitcher Blake Wood, in an attempt to field the pop up, was run into by the batter, preventing him from making a play on the ball.
“By rule, the batter runner should have been called out,” says Coach John Myers. “However, the umpires ruled in their judgment Wood did not have a play on the ball. As a result, the batter eventually singled, followed by another single and a three-run home run to put BG East up 10-5.”
Logan County players did not quit. They fought back, scoring three runs in the top of the sixth and had the bases loaded when the game ended.
"Needless to say, we would have liked to have seen how the game would have turned out had what we and everyone else at the park felt was a horrendous call been corrected,” Myers said. “However, that one call does not take away from how these boys represented our league and community. They competed until the final out and put us in position to win this district tournament. It is tough to go out like this, but this tournament has been a great experience for these young men and I could not be more proud of their efforts and commitment over the last three weeks."
On offense, Jacob Burton doubled and singled, Zach Yates had two hits, Macon Barrow doubled, and John Carter Myers, Braxton Baptiste and Jesse Price added a hit each.
Barrow pitched three innings and Wood two.