The Foresters bid farewell to their home fans in style, picking up a 3-1 victory over the Santa Maria Packers while also pulling an impressive stunt and setting a team record on Saturday in front of about 600 fans in their home finale at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.
Utility man Walker Moore played all nine positions in the game — and actually got the win pitching his first inning since high school — while Cody Martin set the team saves record with his twelfth of the season.
[nggallery id=1]Moore, who plays for Cal State Fullerton, started at third base and went around the horn in the infield before going around the outfield. The game was tied 1-1 heading into the eighth, but manager Bill Pintard allowed him to take the mound anyway.
“I think I’m a player’s coach, and I told him I would let him play all the positions so I put him out there,” said Pintard.
Moore raised eyebrows, throwing 94 mph fastballs and striking out a pair in the inning.
“We were messing around in the bullpen in San Luis Obispo earlier in the season and Jeremy (Rathjen) bet me I couldn’t throw 91, so I did and he still owes me lunch, actually,” said Moore. “I was actually more scared about catching.”
He caught Martin’s record-setting ninth inning to close it out.
“It was actually kind of nice throwing to him, because he’s a big target,” said Martin. “It feels pretty cool because the Foresters have a big time legacy. For the rest of my life I can say that I did something that nobody’s done so far for this team.”
The tie was broken in the eighth, when Chase Yost led off with a bunt single and was driven in on a two-out single by Rathjen, who was then driven in by Jeff McVaney. Rathjen kept the game tied with a phenomenal outfield assistin the seventh, throwing out Santa Maria’s Chris Mallory at home from center field. The recipient of the throw was catcher Chris Hannick — formerly of the Conejo Oaks — who has joined the Foresters for their trip to the NBC World Series in Wichita. He had a double off the wall in center field in his debut.
Santa Barbara (39-9, 28-7) wraps up the regular season with a 2 p.m. start at Elks Field in Santa Maria on Sunday. The team leaves on the bus that evening for Wichita and the World Series. The Packers are now 23-22, 16-19.
