Baseball Game Preview: Santa Ana Valley Falcons vs. Morningside Monarchs

The Santa Ana Valley Falcons will head out on the road to face off against the Morningside Monarchs at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday.

Santa Ana Valley is leaving town to face Morningside after disappointing their home crowd in their season opener. Santa Ana Valley came up short against Westminster on Tuesday, falling 17-3. Sadly, the loss continues a streak the team started last season, making it seven in a row.

Meanwhile, Morningside had to travel to play their first game of the season, but the final result was worth the trip. They were the clear victor by a 14-7 margin over Locke on Tuesday.

Jose Navarro made a big impact no matter where he played. He tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-low in earned runs (zero). He was even better at the plate, scoring three runs and stealing six bases while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. He is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now stolen at least one in each of the last five games he's played dating back to last season.

In other batting news, Morningside got a massive performance out of Ramiro Hernandez, who scored two runs and stole six bases while going 2-for-4. Edison Macias was another key player, scoring a run and stealing five bases while going 2-for-3.

Santa Ana Valley took their win against Morningside when the teams last played back in March of 2024 by a conclusive 23-2. The rematch might be a little tougher for Santa Ana Valley since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.