Charlie Reynoso’s Pirates met at Mt. SAC to battle Matt Cordero’s Legends. The two teams were set to play four games this year, and the Legends took the first two games.
The third game was played last week, in which the Pirates were finally able to turn the tide and get their first win over the Legends. The game on Monday, July 7, is the final game of the season series between the CPCL’s top two teams.
The Legends came in with the opportunity to win the series, while the Pirates had the chance to tie it.
From the start, the Pirates looked strong. Starting pitcher Landon Martin set the tone, continuing the dominance he’s displayed all season.
Martin pitched four scoreless innings, striking out seven along the way and only allowing one hit. Martin’s teammate at Cal State Fullerton, Chris Hernandez, came in to pitch in the fifth, and he continued the high-quality pitching.
After allowing one run in his first inning, Hernandez threw two and a third scoreless innings.
Legends starter Jayden Daya also looked good through his first two innings, but things changed in the third after he got hit by a line drive. The comebacker, combined with an error, saw the impressive pitcher leave the game early.
The third inning was a rough one for the Legends. Pirates’ second baseman Dominic Garcia drove in the first run of the inning. Vaughn Coleman hit a ball hard to the shortstop, but reached on an error, bringing in the second run.
Singles from Hunter Meyer and Esteban Olazaba brought in two more runs, and a fifth and final run came in when Waldy Perez drew a bases-loaded walk.
Two innings later, the Pirates had another five-run inning. Legends’ pitching issued a walk to Diego Ortiz with the bases loaded to extend the lead to five. Olazaba then hit a double down the right field line to score two more runs. The last two runs came on a Fielder’s Choice and a passed ball.
Pirates pitching continued to shut the Legends down until the eighth, when they finally got some momentum behind them.
Blake Helsper hit a line drive single the other way to bring Austin Owens in to make the score 10-2.
Despite the deficit, the Legends kept on fighting.
With their back against the wall and two outs in the ninth, the Legends started a huge rally. They drew two walks, and one batter was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Andrew Alva hit a line drive up the middle to bring two runs in, making the score 10-4.
Tyler Shigenaka hit another single to bring in one more run, and an error allowed for a sixth run to come across.
Unfortunately for the Legends, but fortunately for the Pirates, the rally finally ended on the next batter, and the game came to a close
The final score was 10-6, meaning the Pirates and Legends split the season series.
The two teams will continue to battle for first and second place through the end of the regular season, which is next Tuesday.
Inland Valley Baseball Association 