The Tocoi Creek Toros will take on the Clay Blue Devils at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average, (Tocoi Creek 2.5, Clay 2.2) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Last Friday, Tocoi Creek came up short against St. Augustine and fell 7-4.
Tocoi Creek got a good showing from Wyatt Faircloth, who tossed 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Faircloth has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up a single hit any time he's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, Nate Wade made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI. That home run marked the first that he launched this season. Chase Pate was another key player, scoring a run and stealing a base while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, after a string of six wins, Clay's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They fell just short of St. Johns Country Day by a score of 3-2. Having soared to a lofty 14 runs in the game before, the Blue Devils couldn't push the score so high this time.
Clay saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Easton McMahan, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.
Tocoi Creek's loss ended a five-game streak of away wins and brought them to 9-2. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average over those games. As for Clay, their defeat dropped their record down to 9-3.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Tocoi Creek has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 11.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Clay struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Tocoi Creek came out on top in a nail-biter against Clay in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, sneaking past 6-4. Will Tocoi Creek repeat their success, or does Clay have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
