Grizzlies Drop Opener to Inland Empire

BOX SCORE

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – The Fresno Grizzlies couldn't find any traction Tuesday night, falling 8-0 in the series opener to the Inland Empire 66ers at San Manuel Stadium.

A three run third inning followed by three home runs spread throughout the final five Inland Empire offensive innings opened the series in favor of the home team, who has their backs against the wall in the South.

Fresno, meanwhile, is trying to keep pace with Stockton in the North, as the Grizzlies own the head-to-head tiebreaker.

But what started as a pitcher’s duel turned into a one-sided affair and the Grizzlies had their best looks early.

Ronny Ugarte singled and Ryan Niedzwiedz doubled him to third in the second inning, putting the first two runs of the night in scoring position, but back-to-back strikeouts and a flyout stranded the pair and kept the game scoreless.

Landyn Vidourek provided a bright spot in the bottom of the first, gunning down Hayden Yost trying to stretch a single into a double with a strong throw from right field to shortstop Ashly Andujar.

Inland Empire broke through in the third, stringing together four straight singles and a sacrifice fly to push three runs across, and Sandy Ozuna was pulled after the outburst.

The 66ers tacked on a solo homer from Yost in the fourth to make it 4-0, and Fresno had another chance slip away in the fifth when Cort MacDonald and Vidourek executed a double steal to put runners at second and third, only for the next two batters to strike out.

Yost went deep again in the sixth, his second homer of the night, extending the lead to 5-0, and Inland Empire blew the game open in the seventh with three more runs capped by a three-run homer from Estevan Moreno.

Manuel Olivares had a difficult night out of the bullpen, but Redinson Gomez closed things out with a scoreless ninth to at least end the game on a positive note for the Fresno staff.

The Grizzlies finished with five hits but went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position, with MacDonald's two singles leading the way at the plate.

Fresno falls a game behind Stockton, who held onto a 5-4 win over Ontario Tuesday night, in the California League North.

The Grizzlies will look to bounce back in the second game of the six-game series on Wednesday night at 6:35pm.

Lefty Luichi Casilla will take the ball for the Grizzlies and the broadcast will be available on 1430 ESPN Fresno beginning with the Chukchansi Gold Pregame Show at 6:20pm.

ABOUT THE FRESNO GRIZZLIES

The Fresno Grizzlies are a proud affiliate of the Colorado Rockies organization. The club advanced to the California League playoffs in 2025 and continues to post some of Minor League Baseball's highest attended games. The 2026 season marks the Grizzlies' 25th year in Downtown Fresno.