Ballers hold off Coast on Wednesday to end losing streak
Oakland snaps season-long seven-game losing streak
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 0 |
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0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 3 |
By Gareth Kwok
LONG BEACH, CA – The Oakland Ballers (1-7, 23-33) grabbed their first win of the second half and snapped a season-long seven-game losing streak with a 2-1 victory over the Long Beach Coast (7-1, 44-12) on Wednesday night from Blair Field.
In his second start since rejoining the Ballers last week, left-hander Reed Butz threw 6.1 innings and allowed just one run on four hits and one walk and struck out four in a no-decision. At one point, Butz set down 10 consecutive Coast hitters. The only run he allowed was a two-out solo homer to Easton Jones in the second inning.
Long Beach starting right-hander Cole Percival delivered six shutout innings and allowed just four hits and one walk with five strikeouts to neutralize the Ballers offense.
In the eighth, Oakland finally broke through to grab its first runs and lead of the series. In his second game as a Baller, Tristan Moore collected his first professional hit and RBI with a one-out single that brought home Esai Santos from third. After Jake Allgeyer walked and Nick Leehey flied out, Cam Bufford hit a grounder to second base off Jonathan Kozasky (L, 1-1) that was muffed by Patrick Roche, allowing Moore to score the go-ahead run from third and give the Ballers a 2-1 lead.
After escaping a bases-loaded jam in the seventh, Valek Cisneros (W, 5-0) gave up a leadoff walk and a one-out single to put Long Beach runners on first and third. Langston Burkett (S, 2) entered the game and collected the final five outs, striking out two in the eighth and two more in the ninth to record the save and end Oakland's seven-game losing streak.
It's Oakland's first win on the road in Long Beach this season and its first win over the Coast since June 16.
The Ballers conclude their three-game road series against the Long Beach Coast with a rubber match on Thursday, July 23. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m from Blair Field. Fans can tune in beginning at 6:15 p.m on the Oakland Ballers YouTube Channel and HomeTeam Network.
