Spuds sweep four-game series
The Spuds Chase Tunstall is able to keep his foot on first base to record the third out in the top of the second inning in Game 1 of the twin bill against the Pasco Sun Devils.
Brian Wulf lays down a sacrifice bunt to move runners over in the bottom of the second inning in the first game of the doubleheader.
MOSES LAKE - Coach Jameson Lange couldn't have asked for a better start to the Spuds inaugural season as the team is on a four-game winning streak to begin Central Washington league play.
The Spuds took both games of a twin bill on the road in Pasco Friday, then returned home to claim wins in doubleheader action against the Sun Devils Saturday at Larson Field.
"We swung the bats well and our pitches got a lot of ground ball outs in all four games," Lange said. "We ran well on the base paths .. played good small ball and moved guys into scoring position."
Spuds 11
Sun Devils 7
Game 1 on Friday was scoreless through the first two innings of play. The Spuds got on the board first with three runs in the top of the third. Pasco answered back with three in the bottom of the inning to knot things up 3-3.
The Spuds went up 5-3 in the top of the fifth only to see the Sun Devils answer back with two runs to keep pace, 5-5.
The turning point of the contest was a five-run output by the Spuds in the top of the sixth to push the score to 10-5. A run in the top of the seventh made it 11-5.
Pasco got two back in the bottom of the frame to try and make a game of it, 11-7, but that was all the runs the team could muster.
Erick Huberdeau had the hot bat for the Spuds going three-for-four at the plate with a double and three RBI. Chase Tunstall had two hits in four at bats and was the winning pitcher, going the distance giving up seven runs off 10 hits.
Spuds 12
Sun Devils 6
The Spuds scored 12 runs of 15 hits in a come-from-behind win over the Sun Devils in the night cap of the twin bill. Pasco jumped up top 2-0 after the first inning of action.
The score held up until the Spuds brought three runs home in the top of the third to take their first lead, 3-2. The Sun Devils regained the lead, 5-3 with three runs in the bottom of the inning.
The Spuds took the lead for good with three runs in the top of the fourth, two in the fifth and four in the seventh to put the game out of reach, 12-5. Pasco put a run on the board in the bottom of the seventh to bring the final tally to 12-6, Spuds.
Colton Kelly led the offensive attack for the Spuds with three hits in five at bats and three RBI. Cameron Ball was two-for-three with three runs scored, and Brett Moser finished with two hits in four plate appearances. Mason Mathews pitched six innings of five hit ball to record the win.
Spuds 8
Sun Devils 1
The Spuds made it three-in-a-row with an 8-1 win at home Saturday. Pasco got on the board first with a run in the top of the first.
Brett Moser got on base with a leadoff walk in the bottom of the inning and stole second on an errant pick off attempt by the Sun Devil pitcher. A ground out by Erick Huberdeau moved Moser to third.
Jacob Price was hit by a pitch to put runners on the edges for the Spuds. He was thrown out attempting to steal second. Moser scored on the play to even things up 1-1.
The Spuds took the lead for good with a run in the bottom of the second. Price led off the third with a solo shot over the left field fence to make it 3-1.
A two-run double by Elliot Sage in the bottom of the fourth, and a two-out home run by Jerry Reyes in the bottom of the fifth pushed the score to 6-1 and the rout was on.
Price went the distance on the hill for the Spuds to pick up the win.
"This was a solid win for us," Lange said. "Jacob (Price) pitched a great game, and Jerry (Reyes) came in for Chase (Tunstall) in the fifth and hit the first pitch he saw out of the park."
Spuds 9
Sun Devils 5
The Spuds took a 5-1 lead into the top of the fifth inning in the nightcap of the doubleheader. But Pasco hung four runs on the board to tie it, 5-5.
Back-to-back singles by Gunnar Raymond and Cameron Ball, a walk to Jerry Reyes and a sacrifice fly to center by Louie Reyes brought the go ahead run across the plate for the Spuds.
Ball got the start on the bump and gave up five runs over four and a third innings of work. Zach Wulf came on in relief and shut down the Sun Devils over the final two and a third innings to record the win.
"This was a nice series for us, but we still have a lot of things to improve on," Lange said. "We've got a good group of kids who are willing to learn and gain the experience to play better ball, which can only help them when the move on to the college level."
The Spuds are back on the diamond Tuesday when they host a doubleheader against the Kennewick Bandits. The start time for Game 1 is yet to be determined.