After a defeat Sunday stretched the Oilers’ losing streak to eight, head coach Kyle Richardson stressed the need for clutch hitting.
His team answered the call Monday in a 7-4 victory over the Anchorage Bucs at Coral Seymour Memorial Park in Kenai.
Jordan Sanford had a pair of singles with two outs to score three runs, Josh Rose had a two-run home run with two outs, and Jake Sandlin added an RBI single with two outs to key the victory.
Sanford had three hits and Sandlin and Rose added two hits each to spearhead the eight-hit attack.
With the eight-game skid history, the Oilers move to 8-14 in the Alaska Baseball League. Peninsula is seven games behind the Alaska Goldpanners in the American League, while the Bucs, at 15-9, trail the Panners by a single game.
The Oilers and Bucs continue their five-game series with a 5 p.m. doubleheader today.
The Oilers jumped on top of the Bucs in the first inning. Sandlin started the Oilers’ half of the inning with a single, then was sacrificed to second by Sanford. Sandlin would then score on an error on a grounder by Ethan McGill.
Peninsula jumped to a 3-0 lead in the second inning. With two outs, Drake Zarate walked then Rose belted a home run to right field, even though the win was blowing in. It was the fifth home run of the year for Rose.
“I just try and go up and get a good pitch to hit,” Rose said in a postgame interview on 1140 AM. “He left it up in the zone.”
The Bucs cut the gap to 3-2 in the top of the fourth. Cade Reiten was hit by a pitch and Andy Crowley doubled to put runners on second and third with no outs.
Tyler Gibson struck out Dylan Butler, but his attempt to get out of the jam failed when Mark Krueger lined a shot back up the box. It struck Gibson, then his throw to first was errant, allowing two to score.
“I was just shocked that it hit me,” Gibson said in a radio interview. “I’d never been hit before.
“It was my fault. I should have made the throw.”
Even though Krueger got to third on the play, Gibson was able to hold him there.
He stayed in the game to record the win, allowing six hits and three runs — one earned — in six innings while striking out four and walking none.
The Oilers came right back to take a 6-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth.
With two outs, Zarate walked and Rose singled. Sandlin then singled to score Zarate and, due to an error, put runners on second and third. Sanford then singled to score Rose and Sandlin.
The Bucs then tried to chip away at the lead. In the sixth, Butler crushed a home run to left field for a 6-3 game.
In the top of the eighth, Evan Powell singled with two outs, then Grant Palmer followed with a single and Gage West walked to load the bases. Cade Lynch then walked for a 6-4 game.
The run was charged to Oilers reliever Scott Torrey, who pitched 1 2-3 innings.
But another two-out rally gave the Oilers a little breathing room in the bottom of the eighth. Rose started the rally with a single, then Sandlin walked. Sanford then singled to score Rose for a 7-4 game.
Nolan Sheridan shut the door in the ninth for the save, allowing two hits and the tying run to reach the plate, but escaping unscathed.
Monday
Oilers 7, Bucs 4
Bucs AB R H BI Oilers AB R H BI
Cpld ss 4 0 0 0 Sdln cf 4 2 2 1
Rtn 3b 4 1 3 0 Snfd 3b 4 0 3 3
Cwly cf 5 1 1 0 Rbwz ss 5 0 0 0
Btlr rf 5 1 3 1 McGl 1b 2 0 0 0
Krgr 1b 5 0 1 0 Trmn 1b 3 0 0 0
Pwll dh 5 1 1 0 Rski lf 0 0 0 0
Plmr 2b 4 0 1 0 Hrdz 2b 4 0 0 0
West c 3 0 1 0 Pske dh 2 0 0 0
Stne lf 3 0 0 0 Mnz dh 2 0 0 0
Lnch ph 0 0 0 1 Zrte c 3 2 1 0
Ygbd lf 0 0 0 0 Rose rf 3 3 2 2
Totals 38 4 11 2 Totals 32 7 8 6
Bucs 000 201 010 —4
Oilers 120 300 01X —7
2B — Reiten, Crowley. HR — Butler, Rose. SH — Butler, Sanford. CS — Hernandez. E — Bucs 4, Oilers 1. LOB — Bucs 11, Oilers 8. DP — Oilers 1.
IP H R ER BB SO
Bucs
Davis, L 4 6 6 4 2 3
Dunyon 3 0 0 0 3 6
Wilson 1 2 1 1 1 0
Oilers
Gibson, W 6 6 3 1 0 4
Torrey 1 2-3 3 1 1 2 2
Sheridan, S 1 1-3 2 0 0 1 2
WP — David. HBP — by Gibson (Reiten). T — 2:46.
