Baseball Game Preview: Mather Rangers vs. Farragut Admirals

For the second straight game, Mather will face off against Farragut. The Rangers will venture away from home to square off against the Admirals at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Mather has struggled recently with three defeats in a row, while Farragut will arrive with three straight victories.

On Wednesday, Mather came up short against Farragut and fell 6-3.

For Farragut's part, Ben DeMateo made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out 11 batters over six innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off four hits. That's the most strikeouts DeMateo has posted since back in March. He was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI. He has been hot, having posted at least one stolen base the last five times he's played.

In other batting news, Robert DeMateo and Freddy Garcia did most of the damage at the plate: Robert went 2-for-4 with three stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI, while Garcia got on base in all three of his plate appearances with three stolen bases and one run. DeMateo is becoming a predictor of Farragut's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 5-6 when he doesn't). Robert Trejo also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.

Farragut always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .548. That was just more of the same: they've now posted an OBP of .515 or higher in three consecutive games.

Farragut's record is now 12-6. As for Mather, their loss dropped their record down to 6-8.

The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Thursday as neither team is afraid to steal. Mather has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 6.5 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Farragut struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.