Lexington – The Blue Sox and Expos became the first Intercity League teams since 2006 to play consecutive 1-0 games in the playoffs. The teams accomplished this Wednesday night when Middlesex defeated Lexington 1-0 one night after the Blue Sox opened the semifinal series with a 1-0 win.

There have now been 11 1-0 playoff games with Lexington playing in six with a 3-3 record. Middlesex has participated in the last four games going 2-2.

The other time two 1-0 games were played in a playoff season was in 2010. On August 8 Testa Corp. defeated Wakefield 1-0 and four days later Watertown edged Andre 1-0.

List of 1-0 playoff games

August 7, 2006           at Cassell 1, Wakefield 0

August 16, 2007         at Cassell 1, Watertown 0

August 8, 2010           Testa Corp. 1, at Wakefield 0

August 12, 2010         Watertown 1, at Andre 0

August 23, 2013         Andre 1, at Lexington 0

August 21, 2018         at Lexington 1, Alibrandis 0

August 14, 2019         at Lexington 1, Andre 0

August 10, 2022         Middlesex 1, at Lexington 0 (Morelli)

August 16, 2023         Andre 1, at Expos 0 (MC)

August 6, 2024           at Lexington 1, Middlesex 0 (8) (EBS)

August 7, 2024           at Middlesex 1, Lexington 0 (MRVTHS)

 

By Bruce Hack Lexington Team Historian

Sportstats

Lexington – The Middlesex Expos turned the tables on Lexington and won their own 1-0 game Wednesday night at Minuteman Vocational Technical High School in Lexington.

The win evened the series at 1-1. Game three will be held at Lexington High School if the field is playable. If it is not playable the teams will return to Minuteman Tech.

The Expos got on the board in the bottom of the fifth. Aidan Sengenberger reached on an error to start the inning.  After a strikeout, Manny Castro grounded a ball into the shortstop hole, Blue Sox shortstop Charlie Walsh made a sliding stop and tried to get Sengenberger at second, but his throw was late. Jose Paulino then blooped a ball down the right field line that dropped in fair, and Sengenberger raced home with the game’s only run.

Matt Donovan started for Middlesex and pitched a 3-hit complete-game shutout. He walked four and struck out six. Donovan set down eight straight Blue Sox from the third through sixth innings. He only allowed two Sox runners to reach in the sixth when Max Dushney singled and Jake McElroy walked to put runners on first and second. A fly ball out to center allowed Dushney to move to third, the second Blue Sox to reach third. Pinch-hitter Julian Alvarez hit into a fielder’s choice to end the threat.

Lexington starter Ryan O’Rourke pitched a 2-hitter over six innings. The southpaw walked two and struck out seven. He set down 10 of 11 Expos from the first through fourth innings.

The only extra-base hit in game two was a first-inning double by Lexington’s Ben Leonard.

The offense has been tough to generate for both teams in the first two games of the series. The Expos and Blue Sox have combined for two runs, 12 hits, and two extra-base hits. The five pitchers used, have combined for 32 strikeouts in 28.2 innings.

By Bruce Hack, Lexington Team Historian

East Boston – Max Dushney’s two-out single in the bottom of the eighth scored Ben Leonard from second and delivered a game-one victory for Lexington in the semifinals against Middlesex.

Leonard started the winning rally by reaching on an error, the only one of the game. A sacrifice by Dom Gabardi moved him to second. After the second out Dushney delivered the walk-off win on the second pitch he saw from Expos starter Dan Shaw.

Jake Zawtsky won by pitching an inning in relief of Blue Sox starter Matt Draper. Zawatsky retired the first two batters he faced and then walked the next two. A wild pitch moved the go-ahead run to third putting the Expos ninety feet from taking the lead. Zawatsky reared back and struck out Idelson Taveras on a 3-2 pitch.

Draper pitched seven shutout innings, the longest outing for a Blue Sox pitcher this season. He scattered three hits and struck out six. Draper didn’t walk any Expos but did hit four batters. The righty finished second in the ICL with a 0.77 ERA and tied with Middlesex pitcher Louis Cespedes with a league-best six wins. Draper stranded six runners, including one in scoring position in the third and sixth (third base).

For Middlesex, Shaw was making his third start against the Blue Sox. He started both regular season games and had a tie and a loss. He went the distance, scattering four hits, giving up a run, unearned, walked two, and struck 11, six of them looking.  He left runners in scoring position in the first, second, fifth and seventh innings.

The only extra-base hit in the game was a two-out double by Lexington’s Anderson Jimenez.

This is the third meeting between these two teams in the postseason. In 2021 Lexington won its 16 ICL title by sweeping the Expos in the finals. In 2022 Middlesex won the title by defeating Lexington in four games. This is the first meeting in the semifinals between the two teams.

By Bruce Hack, Lexington Blue Sox Team Historian

The Stoneham Sabers and Middlesex Expos will meet on Monday at 8:15 PM at Maplewood in the Intercity League’s 2024 Play-in game.

The Expos finished the regular season in fourth place with a 15-8-2 mark while the Sabers finished in the fifth spot at 10-15-0.

The winner of Monday’s Play-in game will move on to meet the #1 seed Lexington Blue Sox (19-4-1). The opening game of the Expos/Sabers vs. Blue Sox best of five semi-final series will be on Tuesday at 8:00 PM in Lexington.

In the other seni-final series, the #3 seeded Melrose Americans (16-7-1) travel to meet the defending champion #2 seed Andre Chiefs (19-6-0). Game one of that series will be played at Maplewood on Tuesday at 8:00 PM.

Sunday’s final regular season game between the Blue Sox and Americans was cancelled due to thunderstorms. The game will not be made up.

The Melrose Americans got a complete game three-hitter from Ronnie Luke to turn back the Al Thomas A’s 7-2 at Morelli Field. Jack Beverly led the way with a homer and four RBI’s while Chris Klein hit his fourth home run of the year and had a couple of RBI’s. Luke (2-0), struck out seven. It was the eighth straight win for the Americans.

Robbie Cobb came on in relief in the bottom of the sixth inning and pitched out of a bases loaded nobody out jam, to spark the Lexington Blue Sox to a 3-2 win over the Middlesex Expos at Minuteman Vocational. Ben Leonard. Charlie Walsh, and Dylan Walsh drove in the Blue Sox runs. Cole Donato (2-0) got the win and Ryan O’Rourke threw a scoreless seventh for the save. Dan Shaw (2-3) went the distance for the Expos and struck out eleven.

Mitchell Schroeder went 4-4, with two doubles, and drove in five runs, to lead the Andre Chiefs to a 13-1 five inning win over ADSL at Howard Park. Paul Frisoli (3-0) allowed just one hit in four innings, striking out six, to record the win.

In other action, the Boston Padres edged the Lexington Bulldogs 5-4 and the EI Braves beat the Stoneham Sabers 21-6.