Baseball Game Preview: Homer Mariners vs. Houston Hawks

Homer has gone 8-2 against Houston recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Saturday. The Mariners will host the Hawks at 1:00 p.m. Homer will be strutting in after a win while Houston will be coming in after a defeat.

Homer is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Alaska's top teams: Redington, who was ranked 23rd at the time (Homer was ranked 15th). The Mariners had just enough and edged out the Huskies 5-3. The victory continues a trend for the Mariners in their matchups with the Huskies: they've now won seven in a row.

CJ Burns

Stolen Base

05/23/25 vs Redington	2
05/16/25 vs Grace Christian	2
04/11/25 vs Petersburg	2
05/22/25 vs Palmer	1
05/09/25 @ Kenai Central	1
+ 3 more games

CJ Burns was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. What's more, he posted three strikeouts, the most he's had since back in May of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and one run. He has become a key player for Homer: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two stolen bases, but 6-7 otherwise.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Clyde Clemens, who went 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one double. He has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played. Ben Engebretson was another key player, getting on base in two of his three plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs.

Meanwhile, Friday just wasn't the day for Houston's offense. They lost 10-0 to Soldotna on Friday. The Hawks have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Homer's win bumped their record up to 9-7. As for Houston, their loss dropped their record down to 5-8.

Homer couldn't quite get it done against Houston in their previous matchup back in May of 2024 as they fell 8-5. Can the Mariners avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.