Baseball Game Preview: Hanford Bullpups vs. Tulare Western Mustangs

The Hanford Bullpups will challenge the Tulare Western Mustangs at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Hanford's pitching crew has only allowed 3.2 runs per game this season, so Tulare Western's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Tulare Western's hitters are going to have their work cut out for them on Wednesday: Hanford hadn't allowed a single run the last three times they've hit the field. Hanford never let Sierra Pacific get on the board and left with a 3-0 win on Saturday.

Hayden Keeney was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out nine over seven innings pitched. What's more, he gave up only one walk, the fewest he's had since back in February. He was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.

Manny Souza

Stolen Base (Career)

03/29/25 @ Sierra Pacific	3
05/02/24 @ Mission Oak	2
03/19/24 @ Tulare Union	2
03/28/25 vs Tulare Union	1
03/21/25 vs Dinuba	1

In other batting news, Manny Souza was excellent, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with three stolen bases. Those three stolen bases gave him a new career-high.

The home team had come away the winner the last six times Tulare Western and Centennial had met, but sadly for the fans who attended this one that wasn't the case. Tulare Western lost 15-1 to Centennial on Saturday. Mustangs fans who chose to attend the game sure picked the wrong one: it was the first time the team's lost against the Golden Hawks since on Saturday.

Tulare Western saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Chi'El Sanchez, who went 2-for-3 with one double.

Hanford is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six games. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-4 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.7 runs over those games. Tulare Western's loss dropped their record down to 3-7-1.

Hanford beat Tulare Western 9-4 when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Will Hanford repeat their success, or does Tulare Western has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.