IRVINE, Calif. – The OC Riptide pitching staff silenced the MLB Academy Barons’ bats to help propel the team to a 5-2 home win.
Coming off of an uncharacteristically poor performance in his last start, the Riptide’s starting pitcher, right-hander Andrew Parker, was prepared to bounce back in a big way against the Barons.
Parker and the Riptide got off to a rocky start, as the Barons struck first in the opening inning with an RBI single from outfielder Zach Freeman.
However, Parker was lights out in the next three innings, proceeding to shut out the Academy in the next three frames, while striking out six hitters in the process.
Riptide manager Connor Spencer was pleased with the way his star pitcher was able to return to his norm in the win against the Academy.
“I think it was a quality start,” Spencer said. “He took a punch right away in that first inning, but was able to settle into the ball game.”
Meanwhile, the Riptide bats were quiet throughout the night but made their hay in the third inning by bringing across four out of their five runs on the night in the third frame.
Infielder Luke Johnson (Cornell University) got the Riptide going with a leadoff drag bunt and then stole second base to start the OC threat in the third.
Then, with runners at the corners designated hitter Jake Brown (Cal Baptist University) brought in Johnson with an RBI single to even the score. This RBI single contributed to a 2-4 night at the plate for Brown, who helped manufacture three runs for the Riptide by maintaining a simple approach.
“I just kept it simple, tried to push the ball around and good things happened,” Brown said.
The Riptide tacked on an additional run with an RBI single from infielder Nathan Cadena and extended their lead even further with a two-run RBI double from outfielder Carson McEntire (Oregon State University).
With a 4-1 lead after the first three innings the Riptide bullpen went to work and continued their success from the past few games.
Riptide reliever Sammy Cova (University of Oregon) was the first out of the bullpen for OC and went the next three innings, while only allowing one Barons run on three hits.
In the final two frames, a combination of Tanner Waraday (Loyola Marymount University) and Riley Kelly (University of California Irvine) shut the door on the Academy and closed out a 5-2 win for the Riptide.
Coming off a few days of rest, the Riptide now look to carry this moment heading into a critical stretch in their season, where the team will play an array of games within a short time frame.
“I told the guys the next three weeks are important, but they also are where you learn about yourself and start to become a professional,” Spencer said. “This is the real deal the next few weeks with a lot of games and very few off days. The guys have to take care of their bodies and come out and put out a quality of performance each day.”
The Riptide will be tested early in this stretch, as they head up to Thousand Oaks to take on the Conejo Oaks tomorrow at 1 p.m., and will come back home on Tuesday, July 12th for a beach-themed night at the ballpark against the Academy Barons.
