The Ponderosa Bruins will take on the Union Mine Diamondbacks at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Union Mine will be up against a hot Ponderosa team: the squad just extended their winning streak to six. Ponderosa put the hurt on Foresthill with a sharp 22-1 win on Tuesday. The match marked the Bruins' most dominant victory of the season so far.
Joe Stevens made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out eight batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and only one walk). Stevens was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, Ponderosa got a big performance out of Max Baumgartner, who scored three runs while going 2-for-3. Baumgartner also put up two hits, which were his first of the season. Josiah Fajardo was another key player, scoring a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Ponderosa always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .614. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Union Mine). They were the clear victor by a 13-3 margin over Calaveras on Wednesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest win the Diamondbacks have posted since April 2, 2024.
Like Ponderosa, Union Mine also got a great game from a two-way player: Andrew Schurmann. He struck out 11 batters over six innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off six hits (and not a single walk). Schurmann also tossed no walks, which is notable because Union Mine is 2-1 when he allows at most one walk, but 1-2 otherwise. Schurmann was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Matt Manfredi, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-5. Another player making a difference was Will Baumunk, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Ponderosa pushed their record up to 4-0 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road dating back to last season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs over those games. As for Union Mine, the win got them back to even at 3-3.
Union Mine's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Ponderosa has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .448. It's a different story for Union Mine, though, as they've only averaged .360. Will they be able to contain Ponderosa's hitters?
Everything went Ponderosa's way against Union Mine in their previous meeting back in May of 2019, as Ponderosa made off with an 8-2 victory. Will Ponderosa repeat their success, or does Union Mine have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
