Ports Win 5-3 Via Late Clutch Hitting
May 16, 2025 - California League (CalL)
Stockton Ports News Release
STOCKTON, Calif. - It was a resilient effort for the Ports on Thursday night at Banner Island Ballpark, reclaiming the lead each time the Giants tied the contest and coming away with a 5-3 victory in game three of the six-game series.
The Ports (17-19) led 2-0 and 3-2, with the Giants (20-16) tying the game twice before Stockton took the lead for good in the bottom of the seventh and tacked on an insurance run in the eighth.
Cameron Leary belted a ball 379 feet out to right center with Gunner Gouldsmith on base for his seventh home run of the season, tying him for the league lead and putting Stockton out in front 2-0 in the third inning. San Jose tied the game at 2-2 in the fifth on a base hit from Carlos Gutierrez and a sac fly from Jakob Christian against Nathan Dettmer.
Gutierrez tried to catch Dettmer napping and steal third after the ball came back to Dettmer, but the Stockton starter threw to third and nabbed Gutierrez there to end the top of the fifth. It was a good, rebound start for Dettmer, who allowed just two runs in five innings on six hits with three walks and six strikeouts.
The Ports answered immediately to reclaim the lead when C.J. Pittaro singled into center to score Gouldsmith again and go back in front 3-2. But the Giants evened up the game in the top of the seventh when Leary over ran a ball that dropped behind him to score Walker Martin for a 3-3 game.
It looked like the Ports were going to go ahead again in the sixth when Davis Diaz lifted a fly ball to left with the bases loaded and one out, but Lisbel Diaz made a great play to get to the ball and then fire a perfect strike home to gun down Tommy Takayoshi at the plate and keep the game knotted up at three apiece.
Pittaro doubled into left to start the bottom of the seventh and a Jared Sprague-Lott bunt got him to third, as the Ports did a great job executing some small ball on the night. With two outs Cesar Franco ripped a double just inside the first base bag to score Pittaro and put Stockton back out in front 4-3.
Franco would come through defensively in the top of the eighth, making turnabout fair play when he threw out Diaz at home plate on a would-be sac fly to maintain the one-run lead. Stockton would load the bases in the ninth and get an insurance run on an error at short to go up 5-3 to score Gouldsmith for the third time.
Riley Huge would work a 1-2-3 ninth for his first professional save, as the lefty who turned 23 just yesterday lowered his season ERA to a sparkling 1.84. Ryan Magdic earned his first win as a pro by allowing just one run in three innings of work on three hits with one walk and four punch outs.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: The Ports are now 6-1 when they don't commit an error this season, 14-5 when they score first, and 14-7 when they hold their opponents to four runs or less. Naylor extended his on-base streak to 12 games with a walk in the fifth, and Pittaro had his second three-hit game of the season, with the last one coming exactly a week ago at Inland Empire.
UP NEXT: The Giants will start LHP Greg Farone (2-0, 1.37) against the Ports LHP Wei-En Lin (1-1, 3.58) on Friday night, and the first 1,000 fans through the gates will walk away with a Splash Squish Pillow presented By San Joaquin County Department of Child Support Services.
Single game tickets, mini plans, and group outings are all on sale for the 2025 season. For more information, call the Ports front office at 209-644-1900.
California League Stories from May 16, 2025
- Rawhide Ride Early Surge to 9-6 Win Over Nuts, Even Series at Two Games Apiece - Modesto Nuts
- Early Offense, Excellent Bullpen Quiet Friday Night Storm - Fresno Grizzlies
- Quakes Dominate 66ers Again on Friday - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
- Rawhide Celebrate Community Heroes in Homestand Versus Storm - Visalia Rawhide
- Ports Win 5-3 Via Late Clutch Hitting - Stockton Ports
- Martinez Shines as Modesto Blasts Visalia 13-3 to Take Series Lead - Modesto Nuts
- Quakes Take 66ers Again on Thursday - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
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