Baseball Game Preview: San Gabriel Matadors vs. Montebello Oilers

San Gabriel hasn't had much luck against Montebello recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The San Gabriel Matadors will challenge the Montebello Oilers at 3:30 p.m. San Gabriel has given up an average of 11.2 runs per game this season, so hopefully the team got some pitching drills in this week.

San Gabriel is headed into Friday's matchup looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their fifth straight game on Wednesday. They came up short against Elizabeth, falling 14-7.

Meanwhile, Montebello had already won four in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 10.8 runs) and they went ahead and made it five on Tuesday. They never let the Matadors get on the board and left with a 13-0 win. Considering the Oilers have won three contests by more than ten runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.

Fernando Cruz made a splash while hitting and pitching. He pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. That's the first time he hasn't allowed a single hit since back in March of 2024. He was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing Two bases. while going 3-for-3. He has become a key player for Montebello: the team is undefeated when he posts at least three hits, but 1-3 otherwise.

In other batting news, Montebello got a massive performance out of Michael Rios, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4. That's the most runs Rios has posted since back in March of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Elijah Rodriguez, who scored two runs and stole Two bases. while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.

Montebello kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 15 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits in five consecutive games.

Montebello's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 6-3. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.0 runs over those games. As for San Gabriel, their loss dropped their record down to 3-6.

San Gabriel might still be hurting after the 13-0 defeat they got from Montebello in their previous meeting on Tuesday. Can San Gabriel avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.