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Late offense seems to have become a thing for the Visalia Rawhide, although this time they didn't need to hit a walk-off. The Reno Aces bullpen had to piece together 9 innings with their projected starter promoted to the majors and making his start tomorrow for the Diamondbacks. The Baybears continue to struggle to play fundamentally-sound baseball and have dropped their 3rd straight. Kane County got a solid effort from their starter and cruised to victory.
Snake Stars
3 Stars: Junior Garcia (Kane County) 5 IP, 6 H, 2 R (2 ER), 0 BB, 6 K, W (1-1)
2 Stars: Kyle Jensen (Reno) 2 for 4, 2 2B, 2 R, RBI
1 Star: Zack Godley (Mobile) 5 1/3 IP, 6 H, 2 R (2 ER), 2 BB, 6 K, L (1-1)
0 Stars: Gabriel Noriega (Mobile) 0 for 3, 2 K, fielding error
Reno 8, El Paso 5: With presumed starter Archie Bradley getting promoted to the majors, it was a bullpen game for the Aces. Adam Loewen got the first three innings, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits with one strikeout. The Aces bats wasted no time piling on Greg Reynolds, with 2 runs in the 2nd and 3 runs in the 3rd. Luke Irvine went the next 2 2/3 innings, allowing 1 run on two hits and striking out 2. Scott Rice got the next two outs, although he also gave up a run to make it a 5-4 game before Kaleb Fleck was able to end the 7th inning. Enrique Burgos came into the 8th and the Chihuahuas were able to tie after a fielding error, walk, and a single led to an unearned run. The Aces were able to answer with a 3-run 8th when Zach Borenstein doubled in a pair, then Jack Reinheimer doubling in Borenstein. Silvino Bracho pitched the 9th and emphatically shut the door with a 1-2-3 inning with 2 strikeouts.
Mobile 1, Jacksonville 4: It seems that the rain and long delay between games has really affected the Baybears game, as they have had sloppy play across the board. Zack Godley turned in a serviceable start, giving up 2 runs in his 5 1/3 innings of work, allowing 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6. The Baybear bats were unable to do anything outside of a Michael Perez solo shot in the 3rd. The Baybears had a chance in a 2-1 game, but sloppy misplays on the field led to 2 unearned runs scoring in the final two innings.
Visalia 7, Bakersfield 3: The Rawhide trailed from the get-go after the Blaze executed a double steal that included a steal of home. Ethan Elias had a decent outing, going 6 innings of 3-run ball, allowing 6 hits and 4 walks while striking out 6. The Rawhide bats did once again what they've done pretty much all series and that's make things happen late with 7 runs in their final 3 trips to the plate. The Rawhide tied things up with back-to-back RBI doubles from Victor Reyes and Cody Regis followed up by a sac fly from Rudy Flores two batters later. In the 7th inning, the Rawhide took the lead for good when Grant Heyman doubled in Dawel Lugo. In the 8th, Flores doubled in a pair and Henry Castillo plated the final run with a sac fly. Myles Smith and Jimmy Sherfy kept the Blaze off the board for the final 3 innings, with Smith picking up the win in relief. Every Rawhide batter had a meaningful contribution to the game, with either a hit or RBI.
Kane County 5, Quad Cities 2: Junior Garcia took the mound and this time pitched a gem. The Cougars offense helped him out with some early scoring with a run in the 1st and two in the 2nd. Joe Muñoz started the scoring with an RBI single in the first followed by RBI singles by Jose Queliz and Trevor Mitsui in the 2nd. Staked to an early lead, Garcia mowed through the River Bandits lineup, going 5 innings and allowing only 2 runs in the 5th inning. Garcia allowed 6 hits and struck out 6 while walking none. The bullpen pitched the final 4 innings, putting up a collective 0. Joel Payamps went 3 innings of 2-hit ball with 3 punchouts and Keegan Long had a 1-2-3 9th for his 3rd save.