Preview: Bagdad Sultans vs. St. David Tigers
Bagdad has enjoyed the comforts of home their last three games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will face off against the St. David Tigers at 12:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Bagdad scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Thursday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Mayer a 16-0 shutout. The team's explosion at the plate also rewarded Bagdad with their most commanding win of the season.
Aaron Landers made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (he also only allowed one walk). Landers has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up a single walk in three consecutive pitching appearances. Landers was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-4.
In other batting news, Nick Martinez was incredible, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Bubba Myers was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, St. David made easy work of Patagonia on Wednesday and carried off an 11-1 victory.
Like Bagdad, St. David also got a great game from a two-way player: Cooper Merrill. On the mound, he pitched 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits (he also didn't allow any walks). Merrill was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-5.
In other batting news, Luke Haymore was excellent, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while getting on base in two of his five plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Chase Pacheco, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-5.
Bagdad's record is now 8-0-1. As for St. David, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both teams have some strikeout artists on the roster. Bagdad has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like St. David struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.9 per game. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Bagdad beat St. David 6-1 in their previous meeting back in April of 2023. The rematch might be a little tougher for Bagdad since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
