Arcadia Wins Legion Area 6 Playoffs, 7-5

Westlake-Royal players joked that it would have been nice if right-hander Maki Kramer could have pitched two complete games in the Area 6 American Legion playoffs Sunday.

Unfortunately for Westlake-Royal, the rules stopped Kramer before his arm or the Arcadia hitters did.

Arcadia beat Westlake-Royal, 7-5, in the Area 6 championship game at UCLA’s Jackie Robinson Stadium, but only after Kramer beat Arcadia, 10-5, earlier Sunday to send the double-elimination playoffs to a final game.

Kramer hadn’t pitched in two weeks because of a minor knife wound he suffered apprehending a shoplifter at K mart, where he works part-time. After winning the first game Sunday, he started the second game and pitched three scoreless innings. American Legion rules limit pitchers at 12 innings during any three-day period.

“We were joking about it,” Kramer said. “I feel like I could have gone another whole game, if I’d been allowed.”

Todd Singleton, who pitched seven innings Friday, relieved Kramer and kept Westlake-Royal in the game until the critical seventh inning.

Arcadia cleanup hitter Pete Paciorek was at the plate with the score tied, 3-3, and the bases loaded with two outs. Paciorek, the Southern Section Division IV Most Valuable Player last spring at San Marino High, hit a 2-2 pitch up the middle for a two-run single.

“I gave him everything I had up there and he rocked it,” Singleton said. “I did all I could.”

Justin Stewart drove in another run and Arcadia (34-8) added one more in the bottom of the eighth, taking a 7-3 lead. Westlake-Royal (29-7-1) scored two runs in the top of the ninth, but Arcadia’s Jason Cly retired pinch-hitter Jay Kenny with a runner at first for the final out.

Kramer threw 146 pitches in his 12 innings, giving up four earned runs, eight hits and three walks. He struck out nine.