The J.P. Stevens Hawks will square off against the Linden Tigers at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. J.P. Stevens' pitching crew has only allowed four runs per game this season, so Linden's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
J.P. Stevens is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 11 runs on Wednesday, they were much more limited against South River on Saturday. They fell 5-2 to the Rams. The Hawks haven't had much luck with the Rams recently, as the team has come up short the last four times they've met.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Linden). Their pitcher stepped up to hand Perth Amboy Vo-Tech a 14-0 shutout on Monday. The team's explosion at the plate also rewarded the Tigers with their most commanding win of the season.
Alan Parra made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out eight over five innings pitched. Parra was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jimmy Santa Maria, who went 1-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and one stolen base. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Oscar Martinez was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one triple, two RBI, and one double.
Linden always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .611. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Linden's win ended a six-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 5-11. As for J.P. Stevens, their loss dropped their record down to 13-7-1.
Everything went J.P. Stevens' way against Linden in their previous meeting back in April of 2025, as J.P. Stevens made off with a 6-0 victory. Will the Hawks repeat their success, or do the Tigers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
