Baseball Recap: South Snaps Three-Game Streak of Losses on the Road

It may have taken eight innings to finish the job, but South ultimately got the result they hoped for on Tuesday. They walked away with a 9-5 victory over the East Bakersfield Blades. That's the second time they've managed to beat them this season, as they also won 4-3 back in March.

Josh Encinas

Batters Struck Out (Career)

04/08/25 @ East Bakersfield	12
03/22/25 vs Woodlake	9
03/12/25 vs West	9
05/08/24 @ North	9
05/16/24 vs Mendota	8

Josh Encinas made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single hit and allowing only one earned run while striking out 12 over five innings pitched. Those 12 strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also big at the plate, scoring a run and stealing five bases while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances. South is 7-1 when Encinas posts two or more stolen bases, but 3-4 otherwise.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jose Bojorquez, who went 4-for-5 with one home run, three stolen bases, and three runs. What's more, he posted four RBI, the most he's had since back in February. Alex Portillo was another key player, getting on base in four of his five plate appearances with one home run, three stolen bases, and two runs.

South lost a few balls and finished the game with two home runs. That's the most home runs they've managed all season.

South's win ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 10-5. As for East Bakersfield, they have been struggling recently as they've lost nine of their last 12 matches. That's put a noticeable dent in their 6-10 record this season.

South will have a chance to go back-to-back against East Bakersfield: the pair's next game is a rematch scheduled at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday.