Baseball Preview: Shafter Generals vs. Taft Wildcats
Shafter is 1-8-1 against Taft since March of 2017 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Shafter Generals will head out on the road to take on the Taft Wildcats at 6:30 p.m. Shafter is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last five games.
In what's become a running theme this season, Shafter gave their fans yet another huge victory on Thursday. They put the hurt on Kennedy with a sharp 9-3 win.
Jesus Paez spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered three runs (all of which were unearned) on four hits and racked up 11 Ks.
On the hitting side, Christopher Espinoza was excellent, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-2. The team also got some help courtesy of Alex Casanova-Balderrama, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Taft, who bounced back after a tough loss on the road on Tuesday. They walked away with a 9-6 victory over Wasco on Thursday.
Carson Rodart made a splash while hitting and pitching. He struck out seven batters over 4.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off five hits. Rodart has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive pitching appearances. Rodart was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Ethan Ward, who went 1-for-2 with a home run, two runs, and two RBI. Dylan Clark was another key contributor, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 1-for-3.
Shafter is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last 12 games, which provided a nice bump to their 12-5 record this season. As for Taft, their record is now 12-9.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Shafter has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Taft struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.9. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Shafter came up short against Taft in their previous meeting back in April of 2023, falling 8-4. Can Shafter avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
