The Brewster Farmers Babe Ruth baseball team fell one game short of a trip to the Babe Ruth World Series, losing the regional championship game to Sandy, Oregon, by a score of 6-2 on Saturday, July 24, in North Bend, Oregon.
The Farmers, a collection of 14-and-under players from Okanogan County including Liberty Bell Mountain Lions Damon Alumbaugh and brothers Lucien and Remi Paz, made it to the Saturday finale by winning all three of their round-robin games on Wednesday and Thursday (July 21-22), earning a bye on Friday (July 23), and defeating the Centerfield Roosters from southwest Washington, 1-0, in the semi-final round Saturday morning.
Each of the three Methow Valley representatives played well, particularly on defense, according to assistant coach Bret Alumbaugh.
“There were just a couple of untimely errors in the first inning,” which led to a 3-0 lead for Sandy after the opening half inning, Alumbaugh said. The Farmers scored runs in the first and third innings and looked to be back in the game at 3-2, as Damon Alumbaugh pitched well to keep it close. Sandy added three more runs late and the Farmers couldn’t respond. With the title game win, Sandy advances to the Babe Ruth World Series in Ottumwa, Iowa, and the Farmers’ season comes to a close.
Coach Alumbaugh credited all three Mountain Lions with some solid play.
“Our defense was really great through the whole tournament. In the pool play, Lucien and Remi hit really well,” said Alumbaugh. “Remi ran down some amazing balls in the outfield. Damon had a solid tourney, pitching and catching.”
The coach said he didn’t recall a single wild pitch or passed ball in the tournament, giving credit to both the pitching and receiving behind the plate.
If there was a weak spot in the week for the Okanogan County contingent, it might have been at the plate.
“The bats just went cold,” Alumbaugh said. Indeed, in the Farmers’ semi-final 1-0 win, they took advantage of some walks and an error to score the only run of the game while Centerfield’s pitching was credited with a no-hitter, even in the loss.
“The kids weren’t fazed by the tournament,” said Alumbaugh. “This group of kids is going to be really good. The trip was a really good experience in preparing them for high school baseball and the post-season district and state tournaments.”
Damon Alumbaugh and Lucien Paz will be freshmen at Liberty Bell this fall. Remi Paz is entering the eighth grade. Incoming freshman Quincy Scott played with the Farmers through their season but did not make the trip to Oregon.
