Friday, Jul. 10, 2009
Summer Collegiate Baseball: Yoder helps San Luis Obispo Blues win opener
SLO rallies for 6-5 win over the San Diego Mavericks
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closeTo Central Coast baseball fans, Luke Yoder’s name has been more synonymous with power than finesse.
As a designated hitter entering his senior year at Cal Poly, Yoder has finished second on the Mustangs in home runs in each of the past two seasons, with 17 combined.
And his 4-for-4 performance Wednesday for the San Luis Obispo Blues summer collegiate baseball team included a homer (the Blues’ first this summer), a triple and a walk.
Friday night, though, Yoder’s most memorable at-bat made a softer impression at SLO Stadium, but it was equally as impressive.
With his team trailing the San Diego Mavericks 3-2 in the bottom of the fourth inning and runners at first and second base, Yoder put down a bunt that trickled to the left, away from San Diego catcher Brandon Parks. Not only were William Long and Jason Brooks able to advance to second and third, but the execution was so deft, Yoder made it to first with ease to load the bases and set the table for more.
A balk then brought Long home to tie the score before a Zach Luther RBI gave the Blues a 4-3 lead. After that, R.J. Etchebarren drove in Yoder with a sacrifice fly, providing the Blues a 5-3 lead on the way to their 6-5 win, opening a three-game series.
“Basically, all I was thinking was that there were runners on first and second and nobody was out,” Yoder said of the pivotal bunt. “The main thing was just to move them over for the next guy, but it was placed perfectly. You can’t get it much better than that.”
A passed ball allowed Brooks to come home for a 6-3 lead. The Mavericks (14-16) scored once in the top of the seventh and again in the top of the eighth to cut the margin to 6-5.
“It was a productive inning,” Blues manager Chal Fanning said of the fourth frame. “But we had a point there in the middle of the game where we could’ve put a spread on them and we didn’t do a good job of that. We were a little sloppy at times and allowed them to hang around and be right there at the end.”
In the top of the ninth, Cory Hall came on to pitch for Matt O’Neal, and the San Diego dugout tried to rattle him with jeers every pitch. It didn’t work, as Hall proceeded to strike out the first three batters he faced to end the game as the Blues improved to 27-7 overall and 20-3 at home.
“He had his adrenaline going,” Yoder said of Hall. “He was dialed in, hit his spots well and they just couldn’t hit him.” Hall, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound senior-to-be right-hander for Santa Clara, entered the game without having allowed an earned run in 132⁄3 innings.
“We’ve kind of promoted him into that role,” Fanning said. “I was a bit nervous, but it was nice to see a mature pitcher come in and close the deal for us.”
CJ Cron had a team-best three hits for the Blues.
The series’ second game is at 6:35 tonight.
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