Ports Drop Fifth Straight, Lose 8-3
June 5, 2016 - California League (CalL1)
Stockton Ports News Release
STOCKTON, Calif. - The Stockton Ports dropped their seventh straight home game and their 15th game in their last 18 contests on Saturday night at Banner Island Ballpark. The Visalia Rawhide scored four runs over the first two innings on their way to an 8-3 win over Stockton in the opener of a four-game set.
Both Stockton and Visalia scored in the first inning. The Rawhide got a two-out solo homer from Marty Herum, while Stockton got a one-out RBI single from Joe Bennie, who went 4-for-4 on the night.
Visalia's biggest inning came in the top of the second. With two on and two out, Victor Reyes tripled to the left field corner and scored on an ensuing passed ball that gave the Rawhide a 4-1 advantage.
Stockton got one of the runs back in the fourth. Bennie singled with one out and scored later in the inning on an RBI groundout by Seth Brown to cut the Visalia lead to 4-2. Visalia, however, answered right back in the top of the fifth. With runners at the corners and nobody out, Herum hit a sac-fly to right to make it a 5-2 game. Dawel Lugo followed and reached base on a fielder's choice force play. Lugo stole second, went to third on a throwing error committed by the catcher Iolana Akau and scored on a strikeout/wild pitch to run the Rawhide lead to 6-2.
Ports starter Zack Erwin (2-6) suffered the loss, going a career-high seven innings and allowing six runs (five earned) on seven hits while walking two and striking out two.
Rawhide starter Brad Keller (4-4) pitched into the sixth and gave up three straight hits, back-to-back singles to Bennie and Sandber Pimentel and then an RBI double to Brown that made it a 6-3 game. Brown's double put runners at second and third with one out and chased Keller from the contest. Josh Taylor came on from the bullpen and recorded back-to-back strikeouts of Akau and Jose Brizuela to extinguish the Stockton rally.
Keller earned the win, going 5.1 innings and allowing three runs on nine hits while striking out four.
Visalia's bullpen, a combination of Taylor, Gabriel Moya, Luis Ramirez and Jency Solis, combined to pitch three-and-two-thirds scoreless innings of relief down the stretch.
Visalia padded its lead in the eighth facing Ports reliever Matt Stalcup. With the bases loaded and one out, Colin Bray singled to left to drive in Oscar Hernandez. Reyes followed with a sac-fly to right to make it an 8-3 Visalia lead. Stalcup allowed two runs on four hits in his lone inning of relief.
Victor Veliz pitched a perfect ninth for the Ports.
The Ports and the Rawhide play the second game of their four-game set on Sunday afternoon at Banner Island Ballpark. Kyle Friedrichs (0-1, 48.60 ERA) makes the start for Stockton, opposed by Visalia right-hander Ethan Elias (3-3, 5.18 ERA). First pitch is set for 2:09 p.m. PDT. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.
California League Stories from June 5, 2016
- Quakes Hold off Sixers for Sunday Win - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
- Rawhide Rally in Ninth, Sink Ports 6-5 - Stockton Ports
- Nuts out Slugged in 15-8 Loss - Modesto Nuts
- San Jose Giants Celebrate 7 Million Fans Through Municipal Stadium Gates - San Jose Giants
- JetHawks Go Deep Five Times in Roasting of Nuts - Lancaster JetHawks
- DeCarlo Clubs Giants in Win - Bakersfield Blaze
- Blaze Power Surge Sinks Giants - San Jose Giants
- Yo Joe - Bakersfield Blaze
- 66ers Open Series with 5-4 Win over Quakes - Inland Empire 66ers
- Ports Drop Fifth Straight, Lose 8-3 - Stockton Ports
- Quakes Fall to Sixers in Series-Opener - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
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