Streaking Stars improve to 9-0

By ECS Staff
Updated: June 14, 2018

2018 SAN DIEGO STARS BASEBALL

Special to East County Sports

SANTEE (6-14-2018) — After scoring a mammoth 106 runs in their first eight ballgames – an impressive average of 13.3 runs per outing – it was time for the pitching staff of the San Diego Stars to grab center stage.

Joey Krug, Tristan Salinas and Michael Horton combined to carry a 1-hit shutout into the ninth inning Wednesday (June 13), leading the Stars to a 4-1 decision of the San Diego Crush of Poway in a Western Baseball Association contest at West Hills High.

Krug, normally the starting third baseman, struck out four without yielding a hit in his four innings of work. Salinas, who gained the pitching victory, struck out four in two innings, also without allowing a base hit.

Horton closed with three solid innings for the save. He did allow a 2-out single in the 8th, then clean-up hitter Domenic Antonacci (CSU San Marcos senior-to-be) opened the ninth with a solo homer to left field.

However, Horton rebounded to coax a shallow fly ball and register two of his five strikeouts, as Stars pitchers combined to punch out 13 Crush batters.

The Stars scored all of their runs in the sixth, with Salinas starting the rally by getting hit by a pitch with one out. Dallas Seidel walked, then all of the runs scored with two outs.

Salinas stole third base, but the theft proved moot when he and Seidel both scored on a triple over the head of Antonacci in left field by Stars clean-up hitter Alekzander DeLaCruz to finally open the scoring. DeLaCruz then came home on a wild pitch to make it 3-0.

The other run saw Shane Coleman walk, Carl Bunday singled to left, Ryan Culp walked, then Bradt Joslyn also took a base on balls to force in the fourth run.

Meanwhile, six Crush pitchers combined on a 3-hitter, with Salinas collecting the remaining Stars base hit.

The Stars are now 9-0 this season.

Stars knock out Bats again

After the San Diego Stars whipped the Dovetail Academy Bats, 13-1, last week, so some form of complicity could have been expected in Tuesday’s (June 11) rematch.

So when the Bats rallied to deadlock a see-saw contest featuring several lead changes, the Stars finally had enough. They put their foot down by scoring seven times in the bottom of the eighth inning to bury the Bats, 16-9, in Western Baseball Association action at West Hills High.

Juan “J.J.” Jacobo snapped the tie with a 3-run home run with a line drive to left field. Two batters later, Brady Joslyn went deep with a near-identical liner to left for two additional runs. The rally took so long, umpires needed to call the contest due to darkness.

Joey Krug, who earlier smacked his third homer of the summer, started the outburst with a 1-out single, followed by a base hit by Ryan Culp. Jacobo then delivered a 2-2 pitch deep over the fence.

Then the contest became chippy when the Bats pitcher nailed Ty Andrews with a fastball. Next pitch, Joslyn went boom for a 5-run cushion.

But when the Bats then hit another batter, Carl Bunday, with a pitch, the Stars tacked on two additional runs just for good measure.

Hunter Markle reached on a ground ball which was booted by the rattled defense. Dallas Seidel lined a base hit to center field. Then one out later, both scored on a booming double to center by Krug as the Stars batted ’round.

Jacobo, Krug and Seidel finished with three RBI each, while Joslyn Alekzander DeLaCruz both knocked in a pair of runs. Krug also went 4-for-5, including a 2-run homer in the second.