Sox end series with bang
Monday, July 4, 2005 - It was all about Tyler Pearson Monday night as the Yuba-Sutter Gold Sox beat the Maxim Yankees 4-1 to improve to 16-5 in the Horizon Air Summer Series Summer Series standings and 19-8 overall.
Pearson, the Gold Sox No. 1 starter, improved his record to 4-1, becoming the first Yuba-Sutter pitcher to reach four wins on the season.
For the Gold Sox, it was a return to their winning ways after having their seven game win streak snapped on Sunday in a 3-0 shutout at the hands of the Yankees.
“The important thing is that tonight's win keeps us atop the (Don) McCullough Division,” said Yuba-Sutter manager Brad Peek. The Gold Sox now hold a 1 1/2 game lead on the Aloha Knights (13-5).
Pearson had his curve working early, striking out three in the first two innings. He struck out four and walked only one in his eight innings of work.
He pitched out of no-out bases-loaded jam in the third, allowing one run before inducing an 1-2-3 double play and then striking out Brandon Sapenter, the Yankee's clean-up man, to end the inning.
He allowed two more base runners in the fourth before retiring the final 13 batters he faced.
“He's our number one for a reason,” Peek said of Pearson.
It was Pearson's first win since June 16. He leads the team with 41 strikeouts and 49 innings pitched.
Jason Peters gave up a walk and then hit a batter to put two on with one out in the ninth. But he got both Ray Stokes and Matt Kalafatis to ground out to Jesse Rodgers at second base to end the inning and preserve the win for Pearson. It was Peters fifth save.
“Pearson probably could have finished the game for us,” said Peek. “But Peters has been our closer, so we went with him and he got us the save.”
A.J. Valentine broke out of a two game hitless streak with a double in the fourth before scoring the Gold Sox' first run on a Matt Suleski single to tie the game at 1-1. Valentine scored again in the sixth and the eighth to lead the Gold Sox offensive charge.
“He's been so hot all season,” said Peek. “Every hitter is going to have a couple of games where they're not swinging the bat.”
Billy Sinacori went 2-for-4 and had an RBI, batting eighth in the Gold Sox lineup. Suleski, Junior Contreras, and Jonny Norfolk got the other Gold Sox RBIs, all four coming with two outs.
Dave Ericson scored in the third inning to give the Yankees their lone run. At the time it gave Maxim a 1-0 lead.
Notes: This is the third straight year the teams have met over the Fourth of July weekend. Maxim took two out of three games last year after the Gold Sox swept three straight in 2003. Yuba-Sutter now holds a 7-3 all-time series lead ... Gold Sox infielder Jordan Prado will be leaving the team for the remainder of the summer. According to Peek, Prado broke a team rule and was dismissed. Peek declined to specify Prado's exact infraction.
Nathan Collier can be reached at 741-2400. You may e-mail him at ncollier@appeal-democrat.com
