Modesto, CA - Former Quake Joey Curletta homered with a man on in the bottom of the ninth, as the Modesto Nuts completed a three-game sweep over Rancho Cucamonga, taking the finale by a final of 4-2 at John Thurman Field on Thursday night.Curletta, who won a Championship with the
Modesto, CA - Former Quake Joey Curletta homered with a man on in the bottom of the ninth, as the Modesto Nuts completed a three-game sweep over Rancho Cucamonga, taking the finale by a final of 4-2 at John Thurman Field on Thursday night.
Curletta, who won a Championship with the Quakes in 2015 and also played for Rancho in 2016, burned his former club with his fifth homer of the year, as his one-out blast off of Lenix Osuna (1-1) sent the Quakes to their fourth straight loss overall and their second series-sweep of the season.
Rancho struck first in the series-finale, as Brandon Montgomery's first of three hits, a two-out infield-single, scored Omar Estevez from third, giving the Quakes a 1-0 advantage over Modesto starter Reggie McClain.
Ryan Moseley, in a spot-start situation for the Quakes, turned in five solid innings, even taking a no-hitter into the fifth, despite four walks over his first four innings. In the last of the fifth though, the Nuts had back-to-back hits with one away, with Joe DeCarlo doubling, then scoring on an RBI hit from Donnie Walton, evening the score at 1-1.
Will Smith untied it in the seventh, with a long home run to left field off Lukas Schiraldi (0-1), making it a 2-1 lead for Rancho.
Parker Curry worked a scoreless sixth in relief of Moseley, but gave up a lead-off triple to Eric Filia and a sac fly to Arturo Nieto, as the Nuts tied it at 2-2 in the seventh.
Modesto reliever Bryan Bonnell (1-0) pitched a scoreless ninth to earn the win for the Nuts.
Despite the loss, Rancho (26-22) continues to lead Lancaster by a full game in the South Division standings. The Quakes open a four-game series against the Stockton Ports on Friday, with lefty Caleb Ferguson (1-2) taking on Ports' right-hander Boomer Biegalski (2-1) in the opener at 7:05pm.
Friday night will be Corey Seager Bobblehead Giveaway, as 1,500 fans through the gates will take home a Corey Seager Bobblehead thanks to Smile Generation. Tickets are available by calling (909) 481-5000 or online at rcquakes.com. Go Quakes!
