SBL Bucs win 6-5 Nailbiter on the road against SoCal Quakes

Mason Kim throws a pitch against the East LA Dodgers. Photo by Will Wolfswinkle

The SBL Bucs (8-4) (8-2 Sunset Baseball League), won a back-and-forth game vs the Socal Quakes Wednesday evening on the road at Fullerton College to remain in first base in the SBLeague.

After three scoreless innings between the Bucs and the Quakes to start the game first baseman Jack Bickerton gave the Bucs a 1-0 lead with a sac fly to score Thomas Keller from third. The Quakes responded in the bottom of the fourth by putting three runs on the scoreboard and causing center fielder Kai Moran to replace starting pitcher Mason Kim on the mound.

After a scoreless fifth inning for both teams, the Bucs tied the game at 3 in the 6th inning with a Sam Grunberg sac fly that scoured Aaron Ruvalcabra from third after Ruvalcabra had hit an RBI triple to score Kai Moran from second base.

The Bucs then took the lead in the top of the 7th after a Trent Turquand RBI triple scored Anthony Chavez from second and a Dominik Cervantes sac fly scored Turquand from third.

The Quakes added two runs in the bottom of the 7th inning to tie the game at 5, but the Bucs reclaimed the lead in the top of the 8th with a Noah Nichols RBI single. Colin Bell was on the mound for the Bucs in the last three innings and Kai Moran recorded the final three putouts in the 9th inning after going back to center field.

“I was just trying to help the team out, you know, it was a lot going on,” Moran said. “I kind of heard that I was going to have to pitch early on so I just mentally prepared for that.”

The Bucs won by using one pitcher and two position players on the mound, having to compensate for most of the pitching staff being unavailable.

“We Just kind of cobbled it together with position players who haven’t pitched much in recent years and just found a way to keep the hitters on the other team off balance and that;s how you do it,” Head Coach Evan O’Meara said.

The Bucs will look to stay hot when they take on the Arroyo Seco Royals Friday night in Whittier.