Giants Silence Stockton in 2âÃâ¬Ã"0 Win
May 16, 2021 - California League (CalL)
San Jose Giants News Release
The San Jose Giants recorded their first shutout of 2021 with a 2-0 victory over the Stockton Ports on Saturday night at Banner Island Ballpark. Prelander Berroa, Luis Moreno and Chris Wright combined on a five-hitter while Luis Matos drove home both of the Giants' runs in the win. San Jose has now taken three of the first five games in the series against Stockton.
The two Giants run scoring rallies on Saturday began with leadoff walks with Matos ultimately driving in both runs. In the top of the third, Edison Mora worked a walk to start the frame. With one out, Marco Luciano's sharp grounder up the middle deflected off the glove of Ports second baseman Joshwan Wright for an error. The miscue allowed Mora to advance all the way to third. Matos was up next and he hit a sacrifice fly to left plating Mora with the first run of the game.
San Jose's second run came in the top of the seventh and again it was Mora who drew a leadoff walk. Abdiel Layer followed with a sacrifice bunt before Luciano's deep fly out to right moved Mora to third. Matos then beat out a slow grounder to shortstop for an RBI infield single as Mora came home to make it 2-0.
On the mound, Giants pitchers dominated throughout the game. Berroa started and worked 3 2/3 scoreless innings with two hits allowed, two walks and five strikeouts. The right-hander fanned three batters in the bottom of the first before notching single strikeouts in the second and third innings. Berroa was removed from the game with a runner on first and two outs in the bottom of the fourth when Moreno came in and promptly recorded the final out.
Moreno returned to the mound in the fifth and tossed a 1-2-3 inning. In the sixth, Lazaro Armenteros led off with a single, but was immediately erased when the next batter, Brayan Buelvas, grounded into a double play. Stockton again put the leadoff man on base in the seventh as Lawrence Butler drew a walk, but once more, Moreno induced a double play from the next hitter to keep the Ports at bay.
With the Giants ahead by two runs, Wright took over on the mound to begin the bottom of the eighth and gave up a leadoff single to Sahid Valenzuela, but came back to strikeout the next three hitters to retire the side. Then in the ninth, back-to-back strikeouts began the frame - Wright's fourth and fifth punchouts in a row - before Cooper Uhl grounded out weakly to first to finish the game.
GIANTS NOTES
Pitching Excels
The trio of Prelander Berroa, Luis Moreno and Chris Wright combined to strikeout 11 hitters on Saturday. Moreno (1-0) earned his first win of the season after pitching 3 1/3 innings with two hits allowed, two walks and one strikeout. Wright, who struck out five over the final two innings, collected his second save. Stockton had only one baserunner the entire night - Valenzuela in the bottom of the eighth - advance past first base.
Hitting Leaders
Marco Luciano (2-for-4, 2B) and Luis Matos (2-for-3, 2 RBI, SB) combined for four of the Giants' five hits to lead the offensive attack. Luciano's first-inning double to deep center was San Jose's only extra-base hit of the game. Matos extended his hitting streak to seven games - the longest by a Giants player this season.
Strikeouts
Giants pitchers have struck out 76 Stockton batters over the first five games of the series (15.2 per game).
On Deck
The Giants wrap-up their six-game series with Stockton on Sunday afternoon with first pitch at Banner Island Ballpark set for 2:09 PM. Ryan Murphy is San Jose's scheduled starting pitcher.
California League Stories from May 16, 2021
- Sixers Stop Storm for Third Straight Night - Inland Empire 66ers
- Ports Drop Series Finale to Giants - Stockton Ports
- Nuts Fight off Five for Fifth Straight Win - Modesto Nuts
- Four Homers Not Enough for Rancho - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
- Sunday Sweep: Fresno Brings out the Brooms against VisaliaÃâà- Fresno Grizzlies
- Ports Fall to Giants in Pitchers' Duel - Stockton Ports
- Fresno Improves to 5-0 at Chukchansi Park, Routs Visalia 14-4 - Fresno Grizzlies
- Storm Unable to Stop 66ers, Lose 9-3 - Lake Elsinore Storm
- Giants Silence Stockton in 2âÃâ¬Ãâ0 Win - San Jose Giants
- Nuts Fight off Late Comeback to Earn Fourth Straight Win - Modesto Nuts
- Rancho Drops Fourth Straight - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
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