Baseball Preview: Valley Patriots vs. Kress Kangaroos
Valley has enjoyed the comforts of home their last three games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will challenge the Kress Kangaroos at 4:30 p.m. on Monday.
Last Monday, Valley suffered a tough 14-3 loss at the hands of Nazareth.
Valley saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Leo Cruz, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-3. Cruz has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances.
Meanwhile, Kress scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Friday. They blew past Memphis 21-2. The win was just what Kress needed coming off of a 12-0 defeat in their prior contest.
Drew Morphis made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits (and only one walk). Morphis was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs while going 2-for-4.
In other batting news, Kress got a massive performance out of Malachi Guzman, who went 3-for-4 with a home run, five RBI, and two runs. Dillon Morphis was another key contributor, getting on base in all five of his plate appearances with five RBI, three runs, and a double.
Valley dropped their record down to 0-4 with that loss, which was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Kress, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matches, which provided a massive bump to their 8-9 record this season.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both teams have some strikeout artists on the roster. Valley has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Kress struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.2. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Valley might still be hurting after the 9-3 defeat they got from Kress when the teams last played back in March. Can Valley avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
