Stockton Stifled in 8-5 Loss to San Jose
June 2, 2006 - California League (CalL1)
Stockton Ports News Release
STOCKTON, Calif- Two out of four ain't bad.
This is what Ports fans are telling themselves after an 8-5 loss on Thursday night at Banner Island Ballpark. With the loss, the Ports settle for a split of a four game series in which they had a chance to gain significant ground on the Giants in the Cal-League North Division. After jumping out to an early 2-0 lead in the series, the Giants held their ground and showed why they are indeed the defending Cal-League Champions.
Stockton's offense got started early, as Myron Leslie clubbed a three-run homer off Giants starter Alex Hinshaw. Hinshaw had trouble finding the plate in his two-plus innings of work as he walked six batters, the second consecutive start in which he has issued a half-dozen free passes. Stockton, however, could not cash in on the freebies after that. They stranded two in the second and one in the third.
With two on and no outs in the bottom of the third, the Giants summoned Brooks McNiven (3-3) from the bullpen. McNiven's first pitched induced a double play ball off the bat of Leslie, and he went on to get Landon Powell to foul out to catcher Todd Jennings. That would begin a string of eleven straight Ports set down by McNiven, leaving the Ports stagnant in the middle innings. McNiven would go on to earn the win after going five full, allowing two unearned runs on just two hits while striking out six.
The Giants, on the other hand, were able to manufacture runs and cash in on Stockton's defensive miscues. San Jose swiped four bases on the night and evenly dispersed their scoring throughout the game. Their biggest inning came in the fifth, where they loaded the bases and scored three times, aided by two fielder's choices that went awry and a hit batsmen that walked in a run. Though the Giants didn't mash the ball against Ports pitching, they filled up the bucket every time they went to the well.
Ryan Ford (2-5) took the loss for Stockton after yielding six runs on eight hits while striking out four. Brad Davis allowed two unearned runs in relief and fell victim to two errors in his one inning of work. A bright spot on the mound for Stockton came in the presence of Brad Sullivan. Sullivan tossed three shutout innings and allowed just one hit while striking out four.
The Ports would scratch together two more runs in the seventh to make matters interesting, but came up empty in the final two frames. Brian Anderson (SV, 14) pitched a flawless ninth for the Giants to earn his league leading 14th save of the season.
After splitting their four game set with San Jose, the Ports will square off with the Modesto Nuts in a three game weekend series at John Thurman Field. Michael Rogers (5-2, 3.60) will be on the hill for Stockton, opposed by Humberto Cardenas (3-4, 4.56) for the Nuts. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.
California League Stories from June 2, 2006
- JetHawks Open Homestand With Win - Lancaster JetHawks
- JetHawks Honor Record-Setting AVC Softball Team - Lancaster JetHawks
- Glenallen Hill takes over as Nuts Manager - Modesto Nuts
- Stockton Stifled in 8-5 Loss to San Jose - Stockton Ports
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
