The Eaglecrest Raptors will head out on the road to square off against the Denver East Angels at 4:30 p.m. on Monday.
Eaglecrest came into their game on Thursday off a hard-fought close win, but unfortunately suffered a serious change of fortune. They came up short against Cherry Creek, falling 7-0. While getting shut out isn't ideal, the Raptors haven't been shut out since back in March.
Meanwhile, Denver East hadn't done well against Denver North recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Thursday. The Angels blew past the Vikings 12-5. With that victory, the Angels brought their scoring average up to 6.2 runs per game.
Kaeden Zirlin looked comfortable as he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Charlie O'Rear, who went 2-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Henry O'Rear, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base.
Denver East kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 14 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 4.6 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 games they've averaged 9.4.
Denver East is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matches. That's provided a massive bump to their 7-8 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Eaglecrest, the defeat snapped their winning streak at three games and leaves them with a 6-7 record.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Eaglecrest has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Denver East struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.9 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Eaglecrest was able to grind out a solid victory over Denver East when the teams last played back in May of 2024, winning 4-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Raptors since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
