Win Streak Reaches Four
Published on April 21, 2015 under California League (CalL1)
Bakersfield Blaze News Release
The suddenly streaking Bakersfield Blaze got a magical starting pitching performance from top prospect Ryan Yarbrough, and the Stockton Ports committed five fielding errors as the Blaze pulled away late for a 5-1 road win in the opener of a three-game set in Stockton.
Yarbrough (W, 1-1) was stellar for the second straight start, following up a six-inning shutout performance last Wednesday with a duplicate effort tonight. Ryan had to battle a bit more today than a week ago, but the results were the same. The big sinkerballing lefty struck out one Port batter but finished his day by keeping 12 of the final 13 batters he faced on the infield, working around a hit in each of his final five frames while stranding five.
Meanwhile, the Blaze were able to wiggle across an early run and add four late. In the 4th, Tyler O'Neill floated a flyball down the rightfield line. Stockton's starting rightfielder Tyler Marincov made an ill-advised diving attempt, and the ball rolled past for a triple. Tyler Marlette followed with a groundout to give the Blaze a 1-0 lead on Ports starter Dylan Covey (L, 1-2).
Covey would only allow one additional run in his strong seven innings, that coming on Austin Wilson's first homer of the year, a solo shot in the 7th.
In the 8th and 9th, the Ports relievers made good pitches, but the guys behind them did no favors. In the 8th, the Ports committed three errors (one, a bobble; one, a poor throw; one, a missed flyball) that led to a pair of unearned Blaze runs, pushing Bakersfield's lead to 4-0. In the 9th, another fielding miscue set the table for Ian Miller's RBI double, and the Blaze went up comfortably, 5-0.
Will Mathis worked in relief for the Blaze, taking over in the 7th and going 2.2 innings before running out of gas in the 9th. Emilio Pagan (S, 2) came on with two outs and two runners aboard and struck out J.P. Sportman for his second save of the year.
The victory is number four in a row for Bakersfield, who moves to the 500-mark for the first time on the season at 6-6. The win also secures a winning road trip, as the Blaze sit at 4-1 in the first five games of the seven-game trip, with two more coming against the Ports.
The series in Stockton continues on Tuesday in another 7:15pm start, as the Ports sent veteran Aussie Tim Atherton to the hill, and Bakersfield counters with Dan Altavilla, looking to bounce back off a tough start in San Jose.
Fans can tune in and enjoy every moment of thrilling Blaze baseball by navigating to the Multimedia link at BakersfieldBlaze.com or by downloading the TuneIn Radio app on a mobile device. Dan Besbris has the call, with pregame set to begin at 7:10pm.
California League Stories from April 21, 2015
- Defense and Cold Bats Betray Nuts in 5-0 Loss - Modesto Nuts
- Rawhide Homestand Preview: April 23-26 - Visalia Rawhide
- San Jose Giant Race June 6, 2015 at Municipal Stadium - San Jose Giants
- Defense Dooms Ports in 5-1 Loss - Stockton Ports
- Rancho Keeps Rolling with Win over Lancaster - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
- McDonald Hits Third Homer in Loss to Quakes - Lancaster JetHawks
- Win Streak Reaches Four - Bakersfield Blaze
- Giants Pitching Shines in 5-0 Shutout of 66ers - San Jose Giants
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