The Shafter Generals will challenge the Garces Memorial Rams at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Shafter made up a huge gap compared to their last game against Rosamond, but they still couldn't quite topple them. Shafter blew past Rosamond 20-11 on Thursday. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Generals.
Andy Gomez
| 02/27/25 vs Rosamond | 4 |
| 05/30/24 vs Chavez | 1 |
| 05/16/24 vs Wasco | 2 |
| 05/09/24 @ Wasco | 1 |
| 05/02/24 @ Delano | 5 |
Andy Gomez made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. What's more, he posted four strikeouts, the most he's had since back in May of 2024. He was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 4-for-4 with four runs, four RBI, and one triple.
In other batting news, Shafter got a massive performance out of Lukas Pena, who scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances. The dominant performance also gave Pena a new career-high in RBI (three). Another player making a difference was Noah Bill, who scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
Shafter always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .667. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Rosamond only posted an OBP of .472.
Meanwhile, Garces Memorial got themselves on the board against East Bakersfield on Friday, but East Bakersfield never followed suit. Everything went their way against the Blades as they made off with a 13-0 win.
Like Shafter, Garces Memorial also got a great game from a two-way player: Sam Gonzalez. He kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out nine over five innings pitched. Gonzalez was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, AP Antingiovanni was a standout: he went 2-for-4 with four RBI, one stolen base, and one run. D'Angelo Flynn was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-3.
Shafter's record is now 2-0. As for Garces Memorial, their record now sits at an identical 2-0.
Shafter suffered a grim 10-0 defeat to Garces Memorial when the teams last played back in February of 2024. Can Shafter avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
