After two games on the road, Caliche is heading back home. They will take on the Merino Rams at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Caliche is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 6.2 runs per game this season.
Last Saturday, Caliche fell victim to a rough 11-1 defeat at the hands of Yuma.
Caliche saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Chance Mitchell, who went 1-for-1 with a stolen base. Mitchell has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played.
Meanwhile, Merino came tearing into Saturday's game with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 1 runs) and they left with even more momentum. They were the clear victor by a 12-2 margin over the Eagles. Merino might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team's won three matches by nine runs or more this season.
Coen Schmidt made a big impact no matter where he played. He didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over five innings pitched. Schmidt was also big at the plate, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, Isaac Poe was excellent, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-4. Jaxson Samber was another key contributor, scoring two runs while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.
Caliche's loss was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 3-5. As for Merino, they have been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 6-2 record this season.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. Caliche has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 4.4 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Merino struggles in that department as they've been averaging 5. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Caliche might still be hurting after the 10-0 defeat they got from Merino when the teams last played back in April of 2023. Thankfully for Caliche, Deacon Trenkle (who kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
