South is 1-9 against East Bakersfield since April of 2021 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The South Spartans will head out on the road to challenge the East Bakersfield Blades at 4:00 p.m. South is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 7.8 runs per game this season.
Things were looking good for South after they put the first points on the board on Wednesday, but unfortunately for them things went downhill from there. They fell just short of East Bakersfield by a score of 5-3. South has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Josh Encinas was huge no matter where he played even without the win. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over 6.2 innings while giving up four earned (and one unearned) runs off eight hits. Encinas has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in four consecutive pitching appearances. Encinas was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing two bases while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.
Encinas wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Salvador Chavez, who went 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
Even though they lost, South didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with nine strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as East Bakersfield only tossed five.
South now has a losing record at 10-11. As for East Bakersfield, their win bumped their record up to 10-13.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. South has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like East Bakersfield struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.2. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
