Ybarra’s two homers not enough in Thursday night loss
Oakland outslugged by Long Beach in rubber match
By Gareth Kwok
OAKLAND, CA – The Oakland Ballers lost the rubber match to the Long Beach Coast by a final score of 12-8 at Raimondi Park on Thursday night.
After Oakland (12-15) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first on a Jaden Collura RBI double, Long Beach (21-6) scored in every inning from the second through the seventh. Jacob Jablonski drove in two of Long Beach's three runs in the second with a two-run homer and Cooper Vest hit a two-run shot in the fourth to put the Coast ahead by five.
Starting right-hander Aidan Risse (L, 1-3) pitched into the fifth but lasted 4.1 innings, allowing a season-high eight runs on a season-high 11 hits with three walks and two strikeouts to receive the loss.
A three-run homer from Derek Laferriere in the fifth and a two-run double from Anthony Mata in the sixth gave Long Beach its biggest lead of the night at 11-2 through five and a half innings.
Former Baller Nick Bautista (W, 3-1) received the start for Long Beach and threw five innings, allowing three runs on eight hits with one walk and five strikeouts to earn the win.
For the third time in four contests, Jeter Ybarra delivered a multi-homer game. His solo shot in the fourth and his two-run blast in the ninth now gives him 14 on the season, which continues to lead the league. The San Jose native has seven homers in his last four games.
Nick Leehey continues to enjoy his best stretch at the plate after hitting a three-run homer in the sixth. After his two-hit night, the second-year Baller is batting .432 over his last eight games and is on an eight-game hit streak.
The Ballers begin a three-game home series on Friday night against the Modesto Roadsters. Right-hander Charlie Hurley is scheduled to start for Oakland. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m from Raimondi Park. Fans can tune in beginning at 6:15 p.m on the Oakland Ballers YouTube Channel and HomeTeam Network.
