🥎07.10.26 THE GREAT ALMOST-COMEBACK

Well… this one started ugly. Team Deloach came out swinging like they were hosting a hitting clinic, not a ballgame. By the end of the fifth inning, the scoreboard looked like a typo: 17–1. Team Ayers had exactly one lonely run on the board and a whole lot of “what just happened.”

But before we get to the fireworks, we need to spotlight our Birthday Boy, Ron Thompson, who turns 88 tomorrow and decided to celebrate early by putting on a pitching clinic. He held the visitors to one run in five innings, proving once again that age is just a number and Ron’s number is apparently “still unhittable.”

 Team Deloach’s bats were blazing all morning:

• Gutenberg: 3‑for‑4
• Aponte: 3‑for‑4
• Testa: 4‑for‑4
• Thompson helped himself by scoring one 

Then — finally — Team Ayers woke up. Maybe it was pride. Maybe it was caffeine. Maybe someone whispered “free lunch at Red Lobster.” Whatever it was, they exploded for 7 runs in the 6th and 7 more in the 7th, turning a blowout into a “wait… are they actually doing this?” moment.

 Big bats for Team Ayers:

• Hudson: 4‑for‑4
• Williamson: 4‑for‑4
• Dampier: 3‑for‑3

 And the spark plug of the whole comeback? Marino, who kicked off rallies in BOTH the 6th and 7th innings like he had somewhere important to be and needed the game to get interesting fast.

 In the end, the mountain was just a little too tall. Final score: 20–15, Team Deloach.

Ugly start. Beautiful finish. And one heck of a birthday warm‑up for Ron.  Happy Birthday Ron!