Tower Buzzers Shut Out by Stockton, 6-0, as Series Evens
STOCKTON, Calif. — The Ontario Tower Buzzers couldn’t get anything going Friday night. They dropped a 6-0 shutout to the Stockton Ports at Banner Island Ballpark, so now the six-game series is all tied up, two games each. Ontario scattered eight hits, but nothing came together. The Tower Buzzers just
STOCKTON, Calif. — The Ontario Tower Buzzers couldn’t get anything going Friday night. They dropped a 6-0 shutout to the Stockton Ports at Banner Island Ballpark, so now the six-game series is all tied up, two games each.
Ontario scattered eight hits, but nothing came together. The Tower Buzzers just couldn’t cash in when it counted, going 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. They left nine guys on base and hit into two double plays and it was just one of those nights where everything stalled out at the worst moments.
You have to give some credit to Stockton’s starter, Donny Troconis. He cruised through 6.1 scoreless innings, gave up five hits, walked two, and struck out six. Whenever Ontario had a threat, Troconis found a way out, and the Buzzers never mounted any real rally.
Ontario’s best look at the scoreboard actually came in the fourth when Oswaldo Osorio singled and Caleb Johnson worked a walk, but Francisco Espinoza grounded into a double play, ending the inning on the spot.
The ninth held a little hope. Johnson smacked a double, Conner O’Neal walked, and Espinoza singled to load the bases with nobody out. Stockton brought in Kade Brown, who fanned Bryan Gonzalez Garcia, then coaxed Abel Lorenzo into a game-ending double play that just slammed the door shut.
On the mound, Joel Cruz took the loss. He gave up three runs. only one earned across three innings. Cruz allowed three hits, walked three, and struck out one. The Tower Buzzers’ defense didn’t make things any easier, either. They kicked the ball around for three errors, with two in the first five innings that directly led to Stockton runs.
Stockton didn’t exactly light it up with the bats, either. The Ports went 1-for-17 with runners in scoring position and stranded 16. But Ontario kept Stockton stacked with opportunities. 10 walks, hitting two batters, and six stolen bases allowed. Too many free passes, too many chances.
Stockton posted two runs in the first after an Ontario error, then tacked on an unearned run in the second. By the fifth it was 4-0, and the sixth put things out of reach with two more runs, both on consecutive bases-loaded walks.
One bright spot for Ontario: the bullpen. Camden Wimbish tossed a scoreless inning, and Jose Vasquez punched out four over 1.1 hitless frames.
For the offense, Espinoza turned in two hits. Johnson doubled and walked. Javier Herrera, Ching-Hsien Ko, Osorio, Aidan West, and Lorenzo each collected a hit.
This loss snaps Ontario’s two-game winning streak, a streak where they’d piled up 21 runs in just two nights. With the series knotted up at two, the Tower Buzzers and Ports will go at it again Saturday night at Banner Island Ballpark.
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Media Contacts:
Adam Serrano
Regional Marketing Director
Diamond Baseball Holdings
Jeff Woolson
Play-by-Play Broadcaster