Baseball Preview: Yuma Criminals vs. Thunderbird Titans
The Yuma Criminals will head out on the road to square off against the Thunderbird Titans at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. Yuma will be looking to extend their current six-game winning streak.
Yuma scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Thursday. They were the clear victor by a 13-3 margin over Mohave. With that win, Yuma brought their scoring average up to 6.3 runs per game.
Eli Lujan was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching three innings while giving up just two earned runs off two hits (he also didn't allow any walks). Lujan was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing two bases while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
In other batting news, Damian Cabrera was a standout: he scored three runs and stole three bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Jaime Ruelas was another key contributor, scoring three runs and stealing four bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, neither Thunderbird nor Deer Valley could gain the upper hand on Wednesday so the two teams had to settle for a 6-6 draw.
Yuma's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 12-7-1. Those victories were due in large part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.3 runs per game. As for Thunderbird, with that tie, their record moves to 10-10-1.
Thunderbird's pitching crew has a tough task ahead of them: Yuma hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .329. It's a different story for Thunderbird, though, as they've only averaged .259. Will they be able to contain Yuma's hitters?
Yuma came out on top in a nail-biter against Thunderbird when the teams last played back in April of 2023, sneaking past 4-2. Will Yuma repeat their success, or does Thunderbird have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
