By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY

Staff Writer

The Southern California Vintage Base Ball (SCVBB) 2022 league champions, the Crestline Highlanders, who are sponsored by the Crestline Chamber of Commerce, played the last game of the regular season on Harich Field in Twin Peaks on Saturday, Sept. 9.

The championship trophy that has been on display in the Crestline Chamber of Commerce office this last year since it was won by the Crestline Highlanders last year.

The Highlanders played the Riverside Smudgepots at 11 a.m. They brought the league trophy they won last year when they won the 2022 championship to the game so they could see it again, since the Smudgepots had previously had possession of that trophy for two years.

For two years in a row, the Highlanders had been undefeated all season until the last playoff game, when they lost to the Smudgepots, which allowed the Riverside team to become SCVBB league champions for those two years. So, beating the Smudgepots is an important issue for the Highlanders.

The Highlanders were in first place in league standings before Saturday’s game began. After beating the Smudgepots, this time 14-2, they are a game-and-a-half ahead of the second-place team. This means several of the play-off games will be played at Harich Field at 675 Grandview in Twin Peaks since it is the Highlanders’ home field.  The first play-off game will be in two weeks.

The Highlanders did not want to get behind in the scoring as they did in the game two weeks ago, when they allowed the other team to score nine runs in the second inning, before picking up their bats and beating them by one run at the end of seven innings of regular play.

The Highlanders used four of their players as pitchers this game: Slider, Ace, Ol’Hoss and Kid. All players play using nicknames they earn during the season, said the Highlanders’ manager Glovebox. Chris Dodd earned that nickname because players would arrive at games without their gloves. They don’t use mitts, but instead use regular size gloves, which are small enough to be carried in their car’s glovebox, as Glovebox would often remind them, thus earning his nickname. The umpire is called “The Sir,” a name of respect.

Crestline Highlander Sensei, the Sir (umpire) and Highlander Ant-man holding the score board as they won the final game of the regular SCVBB season, placing the Highlanders in the first-place position

So, this week, the fired-up Highlanders scored five runs in the first inning and another six in the fourth inning before allowing the Smudgepots to score their first run in the top of the fifth inning, with the Highlanders replying with two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Both teams scored one run in the sixth inning. That was it, with the ending score after the regulation seven innings (remember they are playing 1886 rules) 14-2 with the Crestline Highlanders winning.

This day was going to be a double hitter, but the Perris team had too many injured or ill players to field a team and forfeited the game against the Arrowhead Loggers and the 2 p.m. game was not played.

Harich Field ballpark is at the 5,777-foot elevation level. It has the smallest outfield of any of the ballparks used by the vintage base ball league, so it is considered the home run ballpark, because more out of the park home runs are hit at Harich Field. It has also been the site of three SCVBB league championship games during the league’s history.

The next game will be the first playoff game, which should be officially announced to be held on Sept. 23 at 11 a.m. at Harich Field.