Boys Will Be BoysOn little sleep, The youthful U.S. baseball team received an early wake-up call, then beat Nicaraguaby Michael Bamberger
THEY WERE a bunch of kids playing grown men. U.S. baseball players stayed up late, savoring the opening ceremonies experience, returning to their rooms around two in the morning and rising four hours later to play Nicaragua in the opening game of the eight-team round-robin tournament. And while the Americans watched fireworks and listened to Gladys Knight, the Nicaraguans—the starters, anyway—skipped the ceremonies. They were rested and ready for the kids.
Chad Allen couldn't elude Julio Cesar Osejo's tag,
And for the first four innings of yesterday's game at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, Nicaragua played superior baseball. Starting pitcher Asdrudes Flores, 35 and wily, was nibbling on the corners and changing speeds much like big league countryman Dennis Martinez of the Cleveland Indians.
However, the kids chipped away where they could, and Kris Benson, who grew up down the road in Marietta, Ga., pitched eight innings and struck out seven in a 4-1 U.S. victory.
"I think we were a little tired, a little nervous, even though we had a lot of adrenaline," said U.S. catcher Matt LeCroy. "We've never played in a stadium this big, in front of a crowd this big [40,458]. It took us a while to get going. We weren't swinging at pitches we could hit."
The kids mounted two-run campaigns in the fifth and sixth innings, each time making the most of one hit. Flores, who gave up three hits and struck out four in 5-1/3 innings, was masterful.
Benson, the former Clemson pitcher and the No. 1 overall pick (by the Pittsburgh Pirates) in last month's major league draft, showed his immense talent too. He seemed to tire in the seventh, walking the leadoff hitter, giving up a one-out single, feeling the effects of the 92° day. But he got out of that jam and started the eighth with two fastballs that were as fast as the temperature was high.
"I think my main pitch tonight was my curveball," Benson said, his days and nights plainly confused. Baseball is not meant to be played at 10 a.m., not after Little League, anyhow. As the hour got more civilized, Benson emerged from his grogginess. He allowed the run in the first, but over his next seven innings only one
base runner reached second.
The Nicaraguans couldn't blame their struggles on lack of experience: Their youngest player is almost two years older than the oldest player on the American team. Even though the Americans are all first-time Olympians and many of the Nicaraguans had been here before, the visitors also knew they had their hands full in their opener.
Darrin van Tassell, the Nicaraguan coach (except when he's at his regular job, as pitching coach at Georgia Southern), was impressed. He acknowledged that the Americans are vulnerable to lefthanders with good control. But they saw one in Flores, on a day their bats were sluggish, and it was not enough. "Their chances for a medal are fantastic," Van Tassell said.
Van Tassell is a native son of Georgia despite his coaching affiliation. His words were spoken with a hint of pride.
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