Printer Friendly Version - Dodgers Down Yankees in Deep River Horseshoe League Championship

The Dodgers claimed the 2018 Deep River Horseshoe League title after posting a 4-2 win over the Yankees in the championship match on Aug. 25. Pictured are the members of the Dodgers: Pete Perkins, Cris Christiansen, Ken Fox. Missing from the photo is substitute player Don Wilson. Photo courtesy of Deep River Horseshoe League

The Deep River Horseshoe League’s 2018 season came to a close with the Dodgers standing at the top of the pack after they defeated the Yankees by a 4-2 final in the best-of-seven championship series on Aug. 25. The 5th-seeded Dodgers had previously earned 3-2 victories in their first- and second-round playoff series to advance to the championship against the No. 3 seed Yankees. The Dodgers’ team consisted of Cris Christensen, Ken Fox, and Don Wilson, who was a substitute for Pete Perkins. Howie Fisher, Dean Henry, and Mike Zanelli, Sr., represented the Yankees in the final.

In the championship series, the Yankees started strong by winning the first two games thanks to Zanelli totaling 40 points or greater in both matches. Then, the Dodgers won the third game by one point and also took game four. In the fifth game, Christensen pitched four doubles, and Wilson contributed a score in the high 20s to give the Dodgers a 3-2 lead after five contests. It looked like the Dodgers would run away with the sixth game as they led by 13 points entering the sixth frame, but the Yankees fought back with the help of Zanelli and Fisher’s doubles to narrow the gap to two points going into the next frame. In the 12th, Don Wilson scored a ringer that gave the Dodgers a three-point win for the championship. The victory marked Christensen’s second championship in three years, while substitute player Wilson also won a championship last year.

The Yankees had advanced to the final by notching a 3-0 sweep over the Tigers. The Dodgers earned a 3-2 win against the Cubs to reach the title bout. That match came down to the last frame, where the Cubs had a one-point lead, before the Dodgers’ anchor man Christensen tossed a ringer that sent his club to the final.

The first round of the playoffs saw a trio of three-game sweeps as the No. 1 seed Cubs swept the 8th-seeded Astros, the 2nd-seeded Red Sox blanked the No. 7 seed Tigers, and the 3rd-seeded Yankees defeated 6th-seeded Orioles by a 3-0 score. The matchup between the 4th-seeded Pirates and the No. 5 seed Dodgers series came down to the final two frames of play, which were won by the eventual champion Dodgers.

The Yankees finished as the runner-up in the Deep River Horseshoe League for 2018. Pictured are Howie Fisher, Mike Zanelli, Sr., and Dean Henry, who led the Yankees to a pair of 3-0 victories, before they took a 4-2 loss to the Dodgers in the final. Photo courtesy of Deep River Horseshoe League

Robert “Skip” Robinson, Tony Cutone, and Dave Steuewald led the Cubs to the best regular-season record and the No. 1 seed in the Deep River Horseshoe League playoffs by posting a record of 70.5-43.5. Photo courtesy of Deep River Horseshoe League