CASTLE ROCK — Greg Pickett wasn’t getting it done over the first eight games of the season, nor were a lot of his Legend Titans teammates. Can you say slumping?
“I was,” the 6-foot-4, 215-popunder said. “I was slumping. I was trying to hit everything 500 feet.”
Actually, Pickett may have reqached 500 feet with his first home run on Monday and the second was another no-doubter. The MIssissippi State-bound lefthander showed off his pop with two moon shots as the Titans opened Continental League play with a 13-9 decision at Douglas County.
Legend, now 5-4 overall had to fend off the Huskies (also 5-4) , who plated six runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, and much of the thanks went to Pickett. He crushed a solo shot in the sixth that seemed to take off as if from Cape Kennedy well beyond the center-field fence. And he added a grand slam in the seventh that climbed the hill in right like a mountaineer.
“I had a few pitches to hit and I hit them hard,” Pickett said.
He entered the game batting just .278 with only five runs bagted in and three extra-base hits, all doubles.
“We had a few guys in slumps and we kind of broke out today,” Titans coach Scott Fellers said. “I thought we did a great job.”
Righthanded starter Peyton Remy, headed to New Mexico, went six strong innings for the victory. Pickett also had a double to give him 10 total bases. Second baseman Issac Rincones added two hits and two RBIs. First baseman Mateo Shannon had a two-run single among his two hits. Every starter but Remy hit safely and Legend banged out 13 hits.
“Peyton threw well and it’s nice to see your big guys do it,” Fellers said. “That’s all we can ask.”
The Titans had five-run innings in the fifth and seventh to break out of what had been a close game and they needed all of them. The Huskies, who opened their half of the first with a solo homer by Anthony Warneke and scratched out single runs in the third and sixth, were hitless from the second to the fifth. Then coach Mark Roberts’ guys, who also stranded eight runners for the game, battered Legend relievers in the seventh for six runs and seven consecutive safeties before fizzling out.
The Continental chase, which usually involves slugfests, continues on Wednesday, when Legend will be at nemesis Castle View and the Huskies will be at regular contender ThunderRidge.
Legend 011 051 5 — 13 13 3
Douglas County 101 001 6 — 9 10 2
Legend — Mathey cf 4-1-1-0, Rincones 2b 4-2-2-2, Pickett rf 5-3-3-6, Shannon 1b 5-1-2-2, Morse dh 4-1-1-1, Ross lf 0-0-0-0, Remy p 2-0-0-0, Pekol p 0-0-0-0, Wick p 0-0-0-0, Stephens ss 3-1-1-0, Maynard c 3-2-20, Cardona 3b 3-2-1-0, Marley ph 1-0-0-0. Totals 34-13-13-11.
Douglas County — Warneke 2b 4-2-2-1, Casas 1b 3-2-2-1, Montoya ss 4-2-1-0, Rubino lf 3-1-1-1, Kelsen cf 4-1-1-2, Lilley 3b 1-0-1-1, Brenner dh 4-0-2-2, Anderson c 3-0-0-0, Bowe ph 1-0-0-0, Acosta rf 2-0-0-0, Williams p 0-0-0-0, MInnick p 0-0-0-0, Hostetler p 0-0-0-0. Totals 30-9-10-8.
E — Warneke, Shannon 3, Montoya. DP — Legend. LOB — Legend 4, Douglas County 8. CS — Mathey, Acosta. 2B — Pickett, Kelsen, HR — Warneke, solo in first; Morse, solo in second; Picket (2), solo in sixth, grand slam in seventh.
Batteries — Remy, Pekoll (7), WIck (7) and Maynard; Williams, Minnick (5), Hostetler (7) and Anderson. W — Remy. L — Williams. PB — Anderson. WP — Williams.
T — 2:41.
Neil H. Devlin: ndevlin@denverpost.com or
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