Gomez, 3 other Blaze pitchers shut out Stockton
| Wednesday, Sep 02 2009 11:24 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Sep 02 2009 11:26 PM
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STOCKTON -- For the second consecutive night, the Bakersfield Blaze and Stockton Ports put a lot of zeroes on the scoreboard but this time the Ports had nine zeroes courtesy of four Blaze pitchers who combined to shut out Stockton 2-0.
The Blaze took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth inning with Blaze first baseman Ian Gac's 20th home run of the season, a two-out blast over the left field wall. For Gac, it was his second homer in as many nights.
The Blaze scored again in the sixth as Joey Butler's sacrifice fly scored Matt Lawson, who began the inning with a double and advanced to third on Davis Stoneburner's bunt single.
The win for the Blaze -- its fourth straight and 71st of the season -- ensures its first winning record as an affiliate of the Texas Rangers, dating back to 2005. The win was needed (Modesto defeated Lake Elsinore 6-5) to maintain a two-game edge for the top seed in the California League wild-card series.
Kennil Gomez (8-10) picked up his third win in a row with five shutout innings. Michael Main, in his return to the pitching staff after being sidelined in June, contributed two innings allowing just one walk. Justin Miller pitched a perfect eigthh and closer Evan Reed completed the shut out with his 24th save.
NOTES
Although firmly focused on the current series versus Stockton, Blaze manager Steve Buechele did offer his assessment on the upcoming playoff series against the Modesto Nuts, a team known for their manager's use of every baseball play known to man: "That's just their style. They throw a few things at you that you normally don't see in pro ball." Buechele then added, "Modesto is gonna be tough. Their top three starters are legit and we're gonna have our work cut out, but I feel we can match up with our starters just as well."
