Baseball Game Preview: Pacific Ridge Firebirds vs. Liberty Charter Lions

The Pacific Ridge Firebirds will take on the Liberty Charter Lions in a tournament on Thursday. Pacific Ridge has given up an average of 9.8 runs per game this season, but Thursday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

Pacific Ridge is headed into Thursday's matchup looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Wednesday. They lost 13-3 to Crossroads.

Madden Lafleur made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. That stolen base marked the first that he snagged this season.

Meanwhile, Liberty Charter got themselves on the board against El Cajon Valley on Wednesday, but El Cajon Valley never followed suit. They were the clear victors by a 15-0 margin over the Braves. Considering the Lions have won five games by more than 11 runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.

The team relied heavily on Andruw Godinez, who went 3-for-5 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. Liberty Charter is 2-1 when Godinez posts three or more RBI, but 3-4 otherwise. Nathan Banks was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 1-for-3.

Liberty Charter always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .538. They are 5-1 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.

Liberty Charter has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests. That's provided a massive bump to their 5-5 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 17.8 runs over those games. As for Pacific Ridge, their loss dropped their record down to 3-6.

Pacific Ridge skirted past Liberty Charter 3-1 in their previous meeting back in May of 2019. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Firebirds since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.