Tournament fields narrow as Championship Saturday gets closer

Wednesday night’s games in the ZLL Rec tournament featured tight ballgames and big action once again as the young competitors strive for Championship Saturday.

The final candidates for Championship games have been defined in two divisions.  In Rookie 6/7 baseball, the Tigers and Rockies will duke it out on Saturday at 10 AM, and in Rookie 7/8 baseball, the Indians and Jays battle at 11:45 AM.  For many of these kids, it will be the first time they ever play on ZLL’s signature diamond, Field 2.

The field in AA baseball will narrow down to a final two tonight, as the Nationals take on the Braves and the Tigers will be tested by the Diamondbacks.  The winners of those two games will compete on Saturday at 1:30 for the AA Championship.

The AAA baseball field has narrowed to three teams.  The Phillies defeated the Rockies Wednesday night 6-5 and advanced to the AAA Championship Saturday at 4 pm.  The Rockies and Jays, each with one loss in the double elimination tournament, face each other Thursday evening to determine who takes on the Phillies.

Majors baseball is still a wide open field, but the candidates have narrowed down to a final four.  On Wednesday evening, the Orioles came from behind to snatch victory from the Giants in a thrilling come-from-behind win that featured a grand slam by the Giants Jake Meyer and a game winning hit by Cody Copeland in the bottom of the 6th inning.  Later the Brewers downed the Dodgers.  As it now stands, the Orioles and Brewers are the survivors in the elimination bracket – each with one loss.  They play each other on Thursday to survive another day in the double elimination tournament.  Also tonight, the Cardinals take on the A’s to determine the first contestant in Championship Saturday.  The losing team stays alive, however, and plays the Orioles-Brewers winner on Friday to determine the second contestant in the Championship.

The Championship field has been set for the inaugural 50-70 Championship.  The White Sox, without a loss in the tourney, take on the Yankees, the survivor of the elimination bracket.  The Yankees defeated the Cubs on Wednesday to move to Friday night’s Championship game on Field 6.

The Majors softball tournament is taking shape, as the Tide advanced to Championship Saturday with a victory over the Gators.  They will play tonight’s winner of the Bulldogs and Orange Crush.  The Championship game in Majors softball is Saturday at 7 pm on field 3.

Minors softball is down to a final four.  On Thursday, the Yellowjackets tussle with the Jayhawks and on Friday the Bruins take on the Wolfpack.  The winners will vie for the Minors softball Championship Saturday at 4 pm on Field 3.

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