Game 75 Recap, Aug. 13: Better Situations to Win
Roadsters complete lopsided sweep of Ballers with 11-1 victory
by Nick Clementi
WEST OAKLAND—If it wasn’t obvious before, the Modesto Roadsters have made it crystal clear that they’re a serious championship contender.
This of course comes at the expense of the Oakland Ballers’ playoff hopes that took a dent after last night and this home series. RHP Hunter Day took the hill for Oakland, facing off against Modesto’s Ethan Roarke.
It started well for Day, retiring the side in order the first two innings, and allowing just one hit through three scoreless innings. The wheels came off an inning later, however. Ballers-killer and Cal alum Max Handron made it 2-0 after a leadoff walk to Logan Sutter, homering for the 12th time this year (eight of which have come against the B’s). Day then got a flyout and a strikeout, before a two-out walk prolonged the inning. Kingston Liniak singled and Hayden Dunhurst doubled to drive in two more runs for Modesto.
Day was pulled after 4.1 innings, allowing four runs on four hits and three walks. The lefty Tyler Bates was called upon by manager Aaron Miles, and Bates allowed back-to-back home runs in the 6th to the aforementioned Liniak and Dunhurst.
Meanwhile, the Ballers offense struggled to get anything going against the Roadsters starter. Ballers hitters struck out six times in Roarke’s first four innings, not reaching base until the 5th. Singles from Jeter Ybarra and Mitchell Sanford made things briefly interesting before Brendan O’Sullivan and Tristan Moore both flew out to end the inning.
An RBI double from Ybarra in the 6th inning would be the only run on the night from Oakland’s offense. The inning would be Roarke’s last, allowing one run, three hits, one walk, and striking out seven in six innings of work.
Right-hander Julio Rosario got the ball for the Ballers in the 7th inning, making his sixth appearance for Oakland. In an otherwise difficult game from Ballers fans’ perspectives, this inning provided a glimpse into the highs and lows of the former Royals prospect’s career. Rosario started the inning walking three in a row, followed by a hit-by-pitch to extend Modesto’s lead. What came next is the potential he brings to the bullpen—Liniak struck out swinging, Dunhurst struck out swinging, and Figueroa struck out swinging. A lot of 95 mph fastballs that are uncommon in the Pioneer League.
With translation help from Ballers social media guru Alex Espinoza, I spoke with the 23-year old Rosario after the game, and he explained his outing tonight and mentality as a pitcher: “It was kind of irregular [for me], usually I really attack hitters and attack the zone. The key for me is to get that first pitch strike and take control of the at bat early.”
Since coming over from Sioux City in late July, the Dominican native is in his first season of indy ball after three years in the Royals farm system. Rosario was in good spirits, telling Dispatches, “I’m having a great time here, I’m really connecting with my teammates. I feel like I’m in good form right now and just really thankful for the opportunity.”
Ballers reliever Langston Burkett was brought in to start the 8th, making his first appearance since Sunday. Bryce Cannon and Cole Fellows each had RBI doubles off Burkett to extend the Roadsters lead to 10-1.
Modesto’s bullpen trio of Alaniz, Smith, and Tremain closed the door on Oakland in the final three innings, securing the sweep at Raimondi Park for their 17th win in a row. Modesto is 26-1 in the second half and 53-22 overall.
While still sitting in a tie for the Ballers’ home run record with last year’s slugger Christian Almanza, 1B Jeter Ybarra has continued to produce, going 3-4 tonight with an RBI double. That’s three straight multi-hit games for the San Jose native, who spoke to Dispatches about his in-the-park success amidst the buzz of a HR chase. “Honestly, I’m just doing what I’ve been doing all year and trying to hit the ball hard and get hits. A lot of them have been going out, and right now I’m getting hits and they’re not going out. It’s just one of those things where I’m trying to stay consistent and not think about it.”
The Ballers fell to a second half record of 13-14 (35-40 overall), five games back of the (already in) Long Beach Coast and (still looking) Missoula PaddleHeads for a playoff spot. They head to Long Beach today to start a three-game series with the Coast before heading north to Modesto for three games.
Heading into a make-or-break road trip, Ballers assistant coach James Harris told me about this game and the series, “We gotta flush it. Long Beach is a good team and we have to go in there ready to compete. They’ve been one of the best teams in the league all year. Offensively, we need to take advantage of runners on base. I think we’re missing some opportunities to score. If we take advantage there we can put ourselves in better situations to win.”
Photos from Darrell Lavin Photography.
Video recap from Ben Verhoek.
Nick Clementi is an Oakland native and lifelong Oakland baseball fan. He enjoys long walks on the beach and summer nights at Raimondi Park. He’s a Scrappy enthusiast who doesn't believe in sacrifice bunts. Sports content moderator by day, Ballers beat writer by night. Find him on Instagram and Twitter.
