Pitching Propels Ports To 3-1 Victory

MODESTO, Calif. - The Stockton Ports held the Modesto Nuts to just four hits on Friday night at John Thurman Field. In doing so, Stockton earned its fourth straight victory and its 13^th win in the last 15 games by a final of 3-1, their sixth win in seven games this season in Modesto.
Stockton's offense got off to a fast start in the top of the first inning as Nick Allen doubled to open the game and scored two batters later on an RBI single by Austin Beck, who returned to the lineup for the first time since June 1. Lazaro Armenteros came up next and delivered a triple to right-center field to make it a 2-0 contest.
The two first inning runs were the lone runs allowed by Nuts starter Austin Hutchison (2-8), who suffered the loss after going six innings and allowing five hits while striking out four.
Ports starter Mitchell Jordan (5-4) worked six brilliant innings and at no point had two runners aboard simultaneously. With two outs and the bases empty in the fifth, Jordan surrendered a solo home run to Ariel Sandoval that put Modesto on the board and cut the Stockton lead to 2-1. Jordan would go on to retire the final four batters he faced on his way to earning the win, allowing just two hits while walking one and striking out five.
The Ports pushed the lead back to two runs in the seventh as they collected back-to-back two-out doubles from Allen and Jameson Hannah to make it a 3-1 score. It was the lone run allowed by Modesto reliever Matthew Willrodt in his lone inning of work.
Pat Krall took over for Jordan out of the Stockton bullpen in the seventh and set down the first four batters he faced before allowing a one-out single to Sandoval in the eighth. Krall got Nick Thurman to fly out to center and then was lifted for Peter Bayer (SV, 2), who walked Johnny Adams but then got Joe Rizzo to strike out to escape the jam.
Bayer stayed on for the ninth and allowed a two-out single to Matt Sanders that got the possible-tying run to the plate, but Bayer struck out Jack Larsen to close out the contest and notch his second save of the season.
For the Ports, Allen went 3-for-4 with two runs scored while Beck went 1-for-4 with an RBI in his return to action.
The Ports and Nuts play the fourth game of their five-game set on Saturday night at John Thurman Field. Gus Varland (0-0, 1.69) makes his second start of the season for Stockton, opposed by Modesto right-hander Logan Gilbert (2-2, 2.57 ERA). First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. PDT.