Oakland Takes Series over Yolo in 11-3 Win
The Ballers secured their first home series win of the season behind a stellar performance from Elijah Pleasants on the mound.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
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0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | X | 11 | 14 | 1 |
By Davis Ellington
OAKLAND, CA
The Ballers secured their first home series win of the season behind a stellar performance from Elijah Pleasants on the mound. Oakland logged a convincing 11-3 victory over the High Wheelers and secured a 4-2 series win against their California rivals.
The Ballers sent former Tennessee Volunteer, Elijah Pleasants, to the mound for the final game of the series. Pleasants made a brief relief appearance earlier in the week, but was looking to pick up his second win of the season against a Yolo squad that had aspirations of a weekend sweep, and a series split.
Pleasants was dominant through six full innings of work, as the 6'5" right-hander allowed just two runs during his outing. Pleasants had full command of his arsenal on the mound, striking out nine and yielding just a single walk all afternoon. Elijah picked up his second win of the season, as he got run support early and often from his teammates.
Oakland utilized the long ball to jump on the High Wheelers early in this one. Ballers hitters Martinez, Burckel and Covino each left the yard in the first four innings, to give the Ballers an early 4-0 advantage. Oakland wasn't done, as they struck for three more runs in the bottom of the 5th inning, thanks in part to some aggressive baserunning from Trevor Halsema and Noah Martinez.
The back end of the bullpen was solid for the Ballers to close out the Sunday matinee. Connor Richardson and Jake Dahle combined to pitch the final three innings, surrendering just a single run and striking out four Yolo batters. The Ballers 13 strikeouts as a staff today will put them back at the top of the Pioneer League for total strikeouts after their first 18 games of the season.
With the win, Oakland improves to 11-7 on the season, and remain just four games back of the Missoula PaddleHeads for the best record in the Pioneer League. The Ballers will have the day off tomorrow, before they play host to the Rocky Mountain Vibes. Oakland took 5 of 6 from the Vibes just last week in Colorado Springs. The series begins Tuesday, with first pitch for that game set at 6:35pm. You can get your tickets at oaklandballers.com, or tune in to listen live on 860 AM The Answer.
