The Santa Fe Indian Braves are taking a road trip to square off against the East Mountain Timberwolves at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday. Santa Fe Indian is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.1 runs per game this season.
Santa Fe Indian is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Saturday. They had just enough and edged out Hatch Valley 8-7. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Braves have posted since April 10th.
Dontrell Aguilar was excellent, going 3-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Kellin Tsosie, who went 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI.
Santa Fe Indian was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .500. They are 8-2 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, East Mountain entered their tilt with Bosque last Saturday with two consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with three. They blew past the Bobcats 17-3. The result was nothing new for the Timberwolves, who have now won 13 games by six runs or more so far this season.
Dalton Springall made a splash while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four). He was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with three RBI, two runs, and one triple.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Charles Birdwell, who went 3-for-4 with three doubles, four RBI, and two runs. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in March. Ty Rector was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two stolen bases and three runs.
East Mountain's win was their 17th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 19-7. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.9 runs over those games. As for Santa Fe Indian, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 14-10.
Thursday's matchup will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Santa Fe Indian hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .314. However, it's not like East Mountain struggles in that department as they've averaged .334. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Santa Fe Indian might still be hurting after the 12-4 loss they got from East Mountain in their previous matchup back in March. Can the Braves avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
