Slammers third baseman Danny Zardon raced into foul territory, stretched out over the fence and made a backhand grab of a popup.
It was the next-to-last game of a disappointing 2017 season, but Zardon didn’t play out the string at Slammers Stadium.
“Any chance you get to put on a jersey, you’ve got to cherish it and make the most out of it,” he said.
Second baseman Melvin Rodriguez was the only 2016 regular who played all of this year. He also chose to look at the bright side of the season that ended Sunday for Joliet (42-54) with a 6-4 win over Lake Erie.
“I’m disappointed because it came to an end,” Rodriguez said. “I had fun with these guys. We didn’t play like we did when we made the playoffs, but we had fun still.”
Joliet went from Frontier League East Division champ in 2016 to one rung from last place, another example of how standings can flip in independent baseball.
One reason the Slammers won’t have any postseason fun this year was their record in close games. The Slammers were 16-33 in games decided by two runs or less.
“That’s just a pitcher getting an out in a key situation or coming up with a key hit,” Joliet manager Jeff Isom said.
“We had a lot of opportunities with guys in scoring position to get runs, and we just weren’t able to do it.”
The Slammers put together a 12-4 stretch to climb to 20-20 by the end of June. But when the pitching improved, the hitting slumped.
“I thought the starting pitching for the most part did a good job,” Isom said. “We got in trouble a little bit with middle relief in the mid part of the season. When the pitching settled down, then we weren’t scoring runs.”
It didn’t help when slugger Juan Silva left in July to play in Mexico and first baseman Edwin Gomez missed several weeks because of an injury.
Left-hander Joseph Ortiz, a reliever for the Texas Rangers in 2013, was unable to make a strong comeback. He finished with a 5.94 ERA in 19 games, including five starts.
“I thought he was going to offer a little more,” Isom said. “I don’t think his arm bounced back after surgery like he thought it would. He’s coming in throwing low 80s and wasn’t getting guys out like he should have been.
“The good thing is when we didn’t go and fill in with experienced guys and brought rookies in, we gave them a lot of experience. So next year, we know what to expect with them. And they know what to expect.”
Several regulars indicated to Isom they’d like to come back in 2018, including infielder/outfielder Ridge Hoopii-Haslam, the team’s leading hitter with a .321 batting average.
It’s possible to return to the top in just one season. Schaumburg went from the bottom of the East Division in 2016 to division champ this year.
Catcher Spencer Navin witnessed the multiple roster changes in his first season with the Slammers.
“You have so much turnover, that’s one thing I’ve learned here in independent ball,” Navin said. “There’s a revolving door of players. Once a team clicks and you can play well together, then you’re going to do well like Schaumburg.
“Maybe this team for Joliet next year will be that dominant. You just never know.”
Tim Tierney is a freelance writer for the Daily Southtown.
