Kings clinch pennant, defeat Yankees, 11-4

There was little love lost between the home plate umpire and the Northen Yankees on Sunday as the Budweiser Kings downed the pinstripers, 11-4, at Francisco M. Palacios Baseball Field amidst a sea of confusion.

The Kings clinched the 2006 Budweiser Saipan Major League pennant with their ninth win of the season under the watchful eye of second-year manager Melvin Tenorio by utilizing their unique blend of speed and power.

Mike Taitano logged most of the time on the hill for the Kings allowing four runs off of four hits and fanning three, but he was just one of the tools in manager Melvin Tenorio’s kit.

Taitano was able to pitch relaxed as his teammates gave him a comfortable cushion that allowed him to make a mistake here and there. Despite the room, the hurler played tough on the mound 6 2/3 innings before handing the ball off to rookie James Kintol, who went the rest of the way with just a hit to mar his outing against three strikeouts.

Jerome Delos Santos had his power stroke working as the spry left fielder went 2-for-5 with four runs batted in, while big brother Jon went 2-for4 with a pair of singles and an RBI.

Youngster A.J. Allen performed well in primetime with two base hits and two runs batted in, and his skills personify the Kings’ winning ways.

Player-coach Joey Dela Cruz paid respect to his manager and said that his team has been focused on winning the pennant since the start of the season.

“This has been our goal since the beginning. Our manager Mel Tenorio put a great team together. He took time off of work and away from his family to come and put the Bud Kings together, kept us together for the whole season, and look at where we are now. Nobody thought that the Bud Kings would do it. We just happened to beat the defending champion Ford Rangers and the defending pennant champion [Northern] Yankees,” he said.

Dela Cruz said that one of the reasons for his team’s success is the blend of youth, confidence, and sense of purpose. The all-star and former Ranger said that he hopes that the accomplishment is just the first of many good things to come.

“We play every game like it’s our championship game no matter who we’re playing. Our oldest player is Tony Celis, 27, and our youngest player is probably 16-17. We’re looking to keep this team for the next 10 years or more if we can. That’s why we’re stuck together with the young players,” he said.

The Kings took the lead early with a four-run first to open the game, and while the Yankees answered with a run in the second, the Bud boys added another five in the top of the fourth inning off of five hits to take a commanding 9-1 advantage.

Things were quiet for the next couple of innings but the Yankees started making some noise in the bottom of the seventh when they rallied for three runs. That’s when the controversy entered the game.

With one out, a full count, and the bases loaded, Pat Camacho looked to take an apparent ball four, but when he tossed his bat toward the Yankees dugout and began running toward first base chaos ensued.

Mel Sakisat trotted from third base toward home plate what appeared to be the Yankees’ fifth score of the game, but head umpire Al Taitano motioned for strike prompting Dela Cruz to instruct his catcher to tag Sakisat, which he did for the third out.