The Middletown Mustangs will challenge the Cloverdale Eagles at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. Middletown will be strutting in after a victory while Cloverdale will be coming in after a defeat.
Middletown is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They were the clear victors by a 15-0 margin over Willits on Wednesday. The win continues a trend for the Mustangs in their matchups with the Wolverines: they've now won three in a row.
Cody Perez
Cody Perez made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out seven over five innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Middletown is 2-1 when he allows at most two earned runs, but 0-2-1 otherwise. Perez was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 2-for-3. Those hits marked the first that he got this season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kelby Shook, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 1-for-4. He also put up two RBI, which were his first of the season. Another player making a difference was Jon Hawkins, who scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, while it was Cloverdale who put the first points on the board on Monday, it was Santa Rosa who put up more. Cloverdale came up short against Santa Rosa, falling 21-8. While the Eagles didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Panthers 4-0 in the first period.
Coby Haug was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring three runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Damian Guerrero was another key player, scoring a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Cloverdale now has a losing record of 2-3. As for Middletown, the victory was their first on the road , bumping their record up to 2-3-1.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Middletown has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Cloverdale struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Middletown beat Cloverdale 5-2 when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Does Middletown have another victory up their sleeve, or will Cloverdale turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
