They had their chances.
The Santa Barbara Foresters began a three-game series with their biggest rival by suffering a 5-4 loss to the visiting Santa Maria Packers on an overcast Tuesday at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium. Santa Barbara had the tying run at second base with one out in the bottom of the ninth, but Nick Melino and Brandon Young both went down looking at called third strikes. Both calls were considered questionable, as they looked inside.
“We didn’t compete tonight. We gave away a lot of at-bats and RBI opportunities. I don’t care what the umpire called. They were called strikes, and if they’re close enough for him to make that call we should have been swinging in that situation,” said Bill Pintard. “We didn’t compete, and I’m not happy about it.”
The Foresters stranded the bases loaded while trailing 4-2 in the sixth, and stranded total of seven runners in the game. The Packers, who put the leadoff batter on base seven times (the Foresters did it six times), scored their crucial final run with two strikes and two outs in the top of the ninth as a terrible hop at second base allowed Eric Cain to score from third.
Melino, the Foresters’ leadoff batter, did his job on the day by singling in his first four at-bats. He finished with a run scored and an RBI, and is thriving in the leadoff spot despite batting in the heart of the order as the leading hitter for the University of Nevada this year. He is hitting .409 with an on-base percentage over .500.
“I’m just shortening up and trying to see the ball the best I can. It’s been real fun to be a leadoff guy. I enjoy it, because there’s definitely a thrill about being the first guy to go up there and face the pitcher,” said the left-handed outfielder.
Regarding the called third strike to him that resulted in the second out of the bottom of the ninth, he said he was frustrated but tried to forget about it and encourage Young, the next batter.
“I’m not gonna lie, it stunk to have that happen, but the first thing I tried to do was shake it off and pick up Brandon. It happens, and you just have to hope that he picks you up,” he said.
Santa Barbara went up 2-0 in the first after an RBI triple by Jeremy Rathjen and a sacrifice fly ball by James Wharton the brought him in. John Hay scored the Packers’ first run when he collided hard with Foresters catcher Patric Tolentino to score from second in the third inning.
After Hay reached third on a wild pitch in the fifth, he was brought in on a squeeze play to even the score. Two more runs in the sixth made it 4-2 Packers, and the Foresters got one back when Melino singled home Walker Moore in the seventh. Rathjen scored from third on a passed ball in the eighth to make it 4-4, but the Packers picked up the winning run on the bad hop in the top of the ninth.
The Foresters (15-6, 9-4) play the Packers (12-7, 7-7) again up at Elks Field in Santa Maria on Wednesday at 6 p.m. before returning home for the series finale at 5 p.m. Thursday.
