Oh, mercy, mercy, me!: Albany Academy @ Lansingburgh (baseball), 4/7/18

A week ago, Section II took a vote on whether or not to implement a mercy rule for baseball. Some leagues are putting it to use right away. Others, such as the Suburban Council, will save it for the sectionals next month. Guess which side the Colonial Council chose?

The Colonial opted to use the rule in the sectionals, too, but after today, they may want to rethink that strategy. Seriously.

After opening the season with 4 games in Myrtle Beach, SC, Albany Academy, the defending Section II Class B champs, made the first of what will be three visits to Troy today, paying a call on Lansingburgh in a mid-morning game. After getting rained out of a game yesterday at LaSalle, Dave Rider's club was hungry for some action. That said, the game felt more like a picnic lunch.

In the first inning, Cadets third baseman Brett Young, headed for Virginia Commonwealth in the fall, cracked a 2-run home run to start the scoring. Young finished 4-4 on the day, a triple shy of the cycle, with 4 RBI's and 5 runs scored. A ground rule double in the 4th was just inches shy of being a grand slam instead. In that same inning, Derek Bender, a freshman, opened the inning with a solo homer. In all, the Cadets racked up 9 runs in the frame, and led 13-0 after 4 innings. Knights pitching hardly slowed down the runaway train, and Lansingburgh's offense finally came to life in the home 7th, but it was too little, too late. When the highlights air tonight, parental discretion may be advised. The final score ended up 18-3, but had the mercy rule been in effect, the final tally likely would've been 14-0.

The mercy rule, by the way, would go into effect if a team is leading by 10 runs or more after 5 innings, or 4 1/2 if the home team is leading. I think there might've been some Knights coaches looking for white flags after the 5th.

Albany Academy's next trip into North Troy figures to be April 27 vs. Catholic Central at Knickerbocker Park, just a short distance from Lansingburgh High. The road game vs. LaSalle has yet to be rescheduled.