Baseball Recap: John Richards can't quite lead Wyoming Valley West over Wilkes-Barre

By Team Reports May 7, 2024, 4:01pm

Baseball Recap: Wyoming Valley West Spartans vs. Wilkes-Barre Wolfpack

Wyoming Valley West was the 4-3 winner over Wilkes-Barre when they last played one another two weeks ago, but their luck changed this time around. The Wyoming Valley West Spartans lost 8-1 to the Wilkes-Barre Wolfpack on Tuesday. Wyoming Valley West's defeat continues a trend for the squad, making it three in a row.

Wyoming Valley West saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was John Richards, who went 2-for-3 with an RBI.

On Wilkes-Barre's side, James Bottger made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 12 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off five hits (and only one walk). Bottger has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in eight consecutive pitching appearances. Bottger was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.

In other batting news, Alex Hufford was excellent, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 3-for-4. Another player making a difference was Logan Sincavage, who scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.

Wyoming Valley West now has a losing record at 8-9. As for Wilkes-Barre, they are on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four matches, which provided a nice bump to their 5-13 record this season.

Wyoming Valley West will look to defend their home field on Wednesday against Dallas at 4:15 p.m. Dallas' pitching crew has only allowed 3.1 runs per game this season, so Wyoming Valley West's hitters will have their work cut out for them. As for Wilkes-Barre, they will head out on the road to square off against Berwick at 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday.

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