Morgan Hill Pony Baseball weekend games roundup
Bronco Division
White Sox 15, Angels 4
The White Sox lit up the Angels on Saturday for 15 runs on 20 hits, while the Angels had trouble generating any offense, scoring four runs on only two hits. The White Sox opened the scoring with one run in the first inning on a lead-off double by Chase Chadband, two walks, and a RBI single by Isaiah Campos. However, with the bases loaded and no outs, Angels pitcher John Forestieri refused to allow any more runs with two strikeouts and a grounder hit to first baseman Nelson Pyle. The White Sox added two runs in the third inning on a leadoff walk to Dominic Bejarano, who stole second and scored on a double from Jordan Dexter. Dexter advanced on a sacrifice from Joey Donato and scored on a sacrifice from Austin Rutledge. However, the Angels recorded a double play after the sacrifice when first baseman Pyle alertly threw to third baseman Michael Dukes to tag the runner trying for third. The Angels kept the game close, scoring a run in the bottom of the third on a walk to Tyler Pederson, who took second on a passed ball, stole third and then took home when the Sox catcher overthrew third base.
The White Sox stretched their lead in the fourth inning, scoring two runs on singles from Patrick Hanne and Trillo and a double from Chadband. The Angels added a run in the bottom of the inning when Pyle was hit by a pitch, stole second and third, and then came home on another error on the pickoff attempt at third base. The Sox ended the inning with two strikeouts from pitcher Chadband and a great sliding catch of a long fly ball by right fielder Nick Blocker to preserve their 5-2 lead after four innings.
The Sox broke the game open in the fifth, scoring four runs on singles from Dexter, Campos, Donato, Jacob Hershey, and a double from Hanne. The Sox piled on their lead in the sixth inning, scoring another four runs on singles from Chandband, Dexter, Campos, Rutledge, and Hanne, and a walk to Bejarano. The Angels found some offense in the bottom of the sixth, scoring two runs on a single from Conor Havstad, who took second when Howard was hit by a pitch. Havstad stole third and then took home on the throw to second base when Howard stole second.
The White Sox capped their morning by scoring two runs in the seventh inning on singles by Blocker and Chadband, who went 4-for-5 in the game, and a two-RBI double by Campos, who went 5-for-5 in the game.
Cubs 4, Giants 2
This past Saturday The Cubs and Giants battled again, adding to their exciting Opening Weekend match. This time however it was the Cubs coming out on top and ending The Giants run of four straight wins to start the season. It was a hard fought game from both sides, with pitching being the deciding factor. With one out in the bottom of the first, Cubs shortstop Elaskary doubled, stole third and scored by a called balk on The Giants, making the score 1 – 0. The score remained the same through five full innings, mainly due to solid pitching from Harrington of the Giants (11 strikeouts) and a masterful (no hit) performance by Silveira of The Cubs, also pitching five innings. In the top of the sixth inning, the Giants finally came alive with a pair of doubles, taking a 2 – 1 lead. However, it was short lived as The Cubs came back with three runs in the bottom of the sixth, highlighted by a game winning two-RBI double from Ross. In the top of the seventh the Giants were retired in order by Styczynski, closing out the victory. During the course of the game outstanding defense was played by both sides, including a highlight reel performance from the Cubs’ Ryan Mitchell at first base. Solid pitching and outstanding defense was the key to victory.
Mets 5, Braves 1
Brent Newton and Jason Struzik combined to pitch a one-hitter for the Mets as pitching dominated this second contest between National League teams. The Mets chipped away at the Braves with at least one run in each of the first four innings to build a 5-0 cushion, negating a nice pitching performance by Jackson Gion and Ben Hartl of the Braves. The Braves mounted a rally in the seventh with Tyler Lerma reaching on an error and Frankie Tomasello drawing a walk, but then Mets’ pitcher Struzik induced consecutive ground-outs to end the threat. Newton pitched five shutout innings for the Mets, allowing one hit with 14 strikeouts. Hunter Sutton had two hits, a RBI and scored a run for the Mets. Jordan Lozada and Derek Rousseu each scored runs for the Mets and Struzik added a hit. Newton had a double and scored a run, while Parker Tamura had a hit and also scored for the Mets. Hartl had the only Braves’ hit, while Lerma walked and worked his way around the bases.
