Hot, hot, hot. The red-hot, undefeated Palm Springs Power hosted the struggling, yet talented, Inland Valley Pirates at the arid Palm Springs Stadium.
The journey from the Inland Valley is far, but the gameday environment in Palm Springs is unparalleled in Southern California’s collegiate summer league scene.
A combination of misters and wind greeted the hundreds of fans in attendance to cool them down in the 100-degree heat.
A mix of classic Mexican music, rhythmic salsa, and world-renowned reggaeton serenaded the crowd in honor of Hispanic Heritage Night.
The beautiful view of the palm tree-scattered cityscape with the backdrop of barren desert mountains illuminated by the day’s last light falling beneath the jagged peaks of Mt. San Jacinto is a magnificent setting to take in a baseball game.
The combination of all of this makes Palm Springs Power games a unique experience and undoubtedly one of the more fun ways to take in a baseball game in the region during the summer.
The gameday experience became even more fun for the visiting Pirates as they dominated offensively in the first inning. Despite the difficulties of hitting against seven-foot-tall pitcher Brenton Thiels, Inland Valley manufactured three runs because of timely hitting from Landon Greenhouse and Connor Green.
After two quick outs in the bottom of the first, it appeared that the Pirates would be able to establish momentum, but the Power were able to start an improbable two-out rally.
After loading the bases, Palm Springs was able to drive in two runs on a single to left field. The Power could have tied the game, but catcher Max Shor ingeniously threw the trailing runner of a double steal out at second to end the inning and maintain the Inland Valley lead.
After the rough first, Thiels settled in, and even with some traffic, he was able to shut out the Pirates over the next three innings.
It was the opposite story for Inland Valley. Pirates’ pitching was never able to settle in allowing Palm Springs to log three consecutive three-run innings. This streak only ended in the fourth when they scored three to extend their lead to 9-3.
In the top of the fifth with a runner on first, the attention of those in the stands and dugouts was inadvertently directed toward the sky. High in the sky over Mt. San Jacinto appeared a giant smoke trail led by a spaceship lighting up the night sky.
Could the spaceship be a sign? A harbinger of an incoming Pirates comeback? Or maybe it was just an outgoing vessel venturing into the cosmos in search of things we do not understand.
Regardless of the potential symbolism, Inland Valley scored the runner from first, cutting the deficit to 9-4 with four innings left.
On defense, the Pirates finally put up their first scoreless frame. From the fifth inning on, Inland Valley did not surrender another run and only allowed two baserunners.
With pitching finally settling down, the Pirates had a chance to mount a comeback. In the sixth, Inland Valley was able to load the bases with two outs but only scored one before Andrew Pinedo came in to end the inning.
Pinedo halted the Pirates’ momentum and closed out the last 3.1 innings to hand the Power a 9-5 win.
Palm Springs is now 7-0 in the CPCL and has won a ridiculous 32 games in a row.
Inland Valley has been competitive but is still looking for its second win of the year. The Pirates will certainly have a lot of chances to get back on track this week with games on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday.
Wednesday’s game will be at Bonita High School at 4 PM, while the rest will be played at Cal Poly Pomona’s Scolinos Field.
Inland Valley Baseball Association 