STOCKTON, Calif. - Sandber Pimentel enjoyed his fourth multi-home run game of the season Thursday night at Banner Island Ballpark. Pimentel had two of the four Stockton Ports hits on the night and drove in all five runs with two swings of the bat as the Ports came from behind
STOCKTON, Calif. - Sandber Pimentel enjoyed his fourth multi-home run game of the season Thursday night at Banner Island Ballpark. Pimentel had two of the four Stockton Ports hits on the night and drove in all five runs with two swings of the bat as the Ports came from behind and upended the Lancaster JetHawks by a final of 5-4 to even their three-game series at a game apiece.
Lancaster scored the first four runs of the game and opened the scoring in the first inning with a solo home run off the bat of Carlos Herrera. Ports starter Kyle Friedrichs gave up his second run in the third inning. With two outs and the bases empty, Herrera singled and scored on an ensuing double by Colton Welker to make it a 2-0 contest.
The JetHawks doubled their lead in the fourth with a pair of runs as the frame opened with back-to-back doubles by Allan Trejo and Wes Rogers to make it a 3-0 game. Manny Melendez provided a two-out RBI single to run the Lancaster lead to 4-0.
Friedrichs would not factor into the decision after going five innings and allowing four runs on eight hits while walking three and striking out four.
JetHawks starter Antonio Santos did not allow a hit through the first four innings and pitched around his first hit allowed in the fifth as Will Toffey singled to open the inning and was thrown out trying to stretch it to a double. With two outs and the bases empty in the sixth, Chase Calabuig and Luke Persico drew back-to-back walks to put two aboard and chase Santos from the game. Ben Bowden came on to face Pimentel and surrendered a three-run homer to right that brought the Ports to within a run at 4-3.
Two of the three runs in the sixth were charged to Santos, who was rendered a no-decision after going 5.2 innings and allowing one hit while walking a career-high six and striking out five.
Justin Lawrence (0-2) took over for Lancaster in the eighth and issued a leadoff walk to Calabuig, who walked three times in the contest. Two batters later Pimentel came up and blasted a two-run homer over the back porch in right that vaulted the Ports ahead 5-4. Lawrence would suffer the loss after giving up the two eighth-inning runs.
After Ty Damron worked two scoreless frames and Sam Sheehan (3-2) worked a scoreless eighth, Angel Duno (SV, 10) took over in the ninth and pitched around a two-out single to earn his tenth save of the season.
The win marked Stockton's fifth victory of the season when trailing going into the eighth inning.
The Ports and JetHawks play the rubber game of their three-game series on Friday night at Banner Island Ballpark. Xavier Altamirano (3-1, 5.10 ERA) makes the start for Stockton, opposed by Lancaster right-hander Matt Dennis (6-10, 5.70 ERA). First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. PDT.
