Coast Walkoff Ballers in Series Opener
When catcher Johnny Pappas split the night with a walkoff sacrifice fly, he secured an 8-7 victory for the Long Beach Coast (29-8) over the Oakland Ballers (20-17) and rounded out one of the more dramatic finishes of the inaugural season for the L.B.C.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
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1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 11 | 1 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 1 |
LONG BEACH, CA – When catcher Johnny Pappas split the night with a walkoff sacrifice fly, he secured an 8-7 victory for the Long Beach Coast (29-8) over the Oakland Ballers (17-21) and rounded out one of the more dramatic finishes of the inaugural season for the L.B.C. Beginning the contest in a 5-0 hole, the Coast rebounded to a 7-5 lead, which they then surrendered with two outs in the top of the ninth thanks to a home run from Oakland first baseman and Pioneer League home run leader Jeter Ybarra.
After three scoreless innings, the bats cut in with a three-run fourth, one-run fifth, and a three-run sixth.
The second of Pappas’s sac flies came after four Long Beach bats recorded multiple knocks. First baseman Cooper Vest began his day with both a double and a triple. Right fielder Matthew Bardowell slashed four RBIs including a two-run homer in the fourth inning. Designated hitter Cuba Bess recorded a couple base hits, and second baseman Jacob Jablonski nabbed a pair of doubles, as well.
On the hill, starter Nathan Hemmerling allowed five runs on eight hits with five strikeouts over six frames. Left-hander Matthew O’Brien made his professional debut allowing a home run with a strikeout in a third of a frame. Right-handers Mason Bryant and Steven Ordorica escaped the seventh after that. Closer Zach Voelker finished the ballgame, walking away with a win over two innings with a pair of strikeouts.
Long Beach and Oakland rematch at 6:35 p.m. PDT on Wednesday with gates opening at 5:05 p.m. The Coast can clinch their 10th series win on the season and ninth-in-a-row with a win. Coverage begins on the Home Team Network and the Long Beach Coast YouTube page at 6:15 p.m.
Jesse Cook