Baseball Game Preview: Chester Volcanoes vs. Loyalton Grizzlies

The Chester Volcanoes will head out on the road to face off against the Loyalton Grizzlies at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Loyalton took a loss in their last match and will be looking to turn the tables on Chester, who comes in off a win.

Last Wednesday, Chester made easy work of Portola and carried off a 15-7 win. Considering the Volcanoes have won four contests by more than seven runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.

Patrick Gerbatz was a standout: he scored two runs while going 2-for-4. Another player making a difference was Peyton Jensen, who scored two runs while going 4-for-5.

Gerbatz wasn't the only one working in the hit department: Chester kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That's the most hits they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, Loyalton came up short against Modoc last Saturday and fell 8-3.

Preston Hubbs made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole two bases while going 1-for-3.

Chester is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games. That's provided a nice bump to their 4-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 15.0 runs over those games. As for Loyalton, their loss dropped their record down to 4-4.

Loyalton's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Chester has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .446. It's a different story for Loyalton, though, as they've only averaged .346. Will they be able to contain Chester's hitters?

Everything went Chester's way against Loyalton when the teams last played back in March of 2023, as Chester made off with a 14-3 win. Will the Volcanoes repeat their success, or do the Grizzlies have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.