vs
| 03/04/25 - Home | 9-8 W |
| 04/02/24 - Away | 10-21 L |
| 02/26/24 - Home | 5-6 L |
| 04/21/23 - Away | 15-7 W |
| 03/07/23 - Home | 6-24 L |
| + 5 more games |
Booker and Bayshore are an even 5-5 against one another since May of 2019, but likely not for long. Booker will head out to challenge Bayshore at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Booker will roll into the game after a wild two-game stretch: they didn't score any runs on Tuesday, then bounced right back against Gulf Coast H on Thursday. Booker put the hurt on Gulf Coast H with a sharp 17-5 victory. Considering the Tornadoes' hitters had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
Kennedy Cole made a splash no matter where he played. He pitched three innings while giving up just one earned (and four unearned) runs off four hits. That's the fewest earned runs he has allowed since back in February. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 1-for-2. Those two runs gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, Booker got a massive performance out of Joshua Azevedo, who scored four runs and stole four bases while going 1-for-3. What's more, Azevedo posted two RBI, the most he's had since back in February. Another player making a difference was Dameer Watford, who scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
Booker always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .529. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Gulf Coast H only posted an OBP of .333.
Meanwhile, Bayshore hadn't done well against DeSoto County recently (they were 0-6 in their previous six matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Saturday. Bayshore skirted past DeSoto County 5-3. Winning may never get old, but the Bruins sure are getting used to it with their third in a row.
The team relied heavily on Kaylam Rodriguez, who went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases and one RBI. He is becoming a predictor of Bayshore's success: when he posts at least two stolen bases the team is undefeated (and 5-6 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Diego Falcon, who scored a run and stole three bases.
Bayshore's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-6. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.8 runs on average over those games. As for Booker, their win ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 6-8.
Booker skirted past Bayshore 9-8 in their previous meeting on March 4th. The rematch might be a little tougher for Booker since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
