Two-out hitting proved key in Mingus Union High School baseball team’s 11-1, five-inning mercy rule win over visiting Bradshaw Mountain High School on Tuesday, March 27.
The Marauders [8-2, 4-0 Grand Canyon Region] scored eight of their runs without an out to spare, and forced the Bears [2-6, 1-6 Grand Canyon Region] into using five pitchers to get through four innings.
“It’s just the fact that I tell them you’re going to battle as much as you can — I hate strikeouts with a passion, and it’s pretty much just giving the other team an out. So I just said, ‘Let the defense beat you and put the ball in play and see what happens,’” Mingus head coach Erick Quesada said. “Luckily we strung a lot of hits together with two outs, and it’s kind of been our MO really this season, doing that, and it’s a testament to those guys buying into it.”
Fourteen days after its last region outing, Mingus improved to 3-0 and sat in second place, while Bradshaw Mountain’s losing streak stretched to five games, all in the region. After again beating the Bears 9-7 on Thursday, March 29, Mingus rose to first in the region.
Marauders junior Justin Tanner went the distance on the mound, scattering three hits while striking out three and walking one. Tanner got stronger throughout the game.
“I feel like I did a lot better than the last time I pitched,” Tanner said. “I was throwing more strikes — more first-pitch strikes, actually — and I was more calm. After the first inning, it was kind of a rough inning, but after that I felt really good, getting more confidence.”
Defensively, Mingus, which has allowed just one run in each of its last two games and two or less in four of its last five, committed two errors while letting the Bears rarely get into scoring position.
“Today we had, I think, the best day we’ve had as far as our game playing defense. We made all the plays we needed to do to win the game,” Mingus junior third baseman Joe Machado said.
One of the errors, a throwing error by senior first baseman Angel Betancourt on a simple play, allowed what would become the Bears’ lone run to get on base in the second inning. Bradshaw Mountain senior sidearm pitcher Bailey Ramirez ultimately drove in the run on a bloop single that dropped in just next to the right field line.
Offensively, the Marauders, ranked No. 13 in the Conference 4A poll, have scored 68 runs in their last six games, recording double digits in four of its last five.
“I’m not surprised whatsoever. These guys they feed off each other, they work with each other every single day, and they push each other,” Quesada said. “They come to batting practice every single day with the intent to get better, and it just transitions to games, and I couldn’t be more proud of my team.”
Mingus junior second baseman Chris Mathe doubled in the first inning but could not find home. The hosts tied the game in the second when senior center fielder Jordan Huey hit a double to left center field, scoring Machado from first.
It was Huey’s run-saving play from center field on defense in the third inning that spurred the Marauders’ momentum.
He grabbed a single by Bears senior left fielder Travis Robinson and hit senior catcher Tyree Kim on a frozen-rope throw, and Kim eventually tagged out the runner, senior first baseman Timmy Young, in a rundown.
“It completely changes the momentum of the game really,” Quesada said. “That energizes the team, that just completely changed the outcome, it could’ve been 2-0 at that point … and then we’re still down two instead of one, and that just completely changed the outcome of those first three innings.”
In the home half of the inning, Mingus grabbed its sizeable lead. Mathe extended a double into a triple before Tanner doubled him home in the following at bat to make it 2-1. After Machado walked, Tanner was caught stealing third on a misunderstood sign, but Betancourt was able to single in Machado.
Huey singled, and then senior right fielder Martin Soria hit a base-clearing triple to increase the advantage to 5-1. Three Marauders hit three base hits to score the final three runs of the inning, but could have had more had they not stranded three runners.
The momentum continued as the defense recorded its only three up, three down frame in the top of the fourth.
With two outs in the bottom of the fourth, Mingus senior left fielder Justin Link pulled an RBI single down the left field line to score the ninth run.
Marauders senior shortstop Skylar Waynick scored Link on a hard ground ball for the 10th.
Mingus put the game away in the bottom of the fifth. Tanner drew a leadoff walk, and two batters later Betancourt’s single plated the game-clinching run.
Mingus next plays at 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 4, at Coconino High School.
