The Natalia Mustang Baseball team (10-7-1, 4-2) continued to take care of business in 26-3A. Natalia picked up a solid road victory in Karnes City last Thursday, April 20th on a rain-out make-up game. Natalia busted off a close game in the 4th inning en route to a solid victory.
“We got off to a slow start against Karnes,” Coach Philip Martinez said. “Their pitcher kept us off balance for a few innings. Once we got into their bullpen, we started to see the ball better.”
The Mustangs used a three-pitcher rotation on the road. Gabe Figueroa got the start on the mound, as he pitched 4.1 innings. During that time, he allowed four hits, walked two and struck out six.
Jeramiah Castro pitched 1.2 for the Mustangs, as he allowed one hit, walked three and struck out two.
The final Stang to take the mound was Rey Garza, who threw 1.0, as he allowed 0 hits and struck out two.
“Gabriel Figueroa pitched a great game” Martinez said. “He did a great job of not allowing too many base runners. Jeramiah Castro and Rey Garza were able to come in and finish the game off.”
The Natalia Mustangs were paced offensively in Karnes City by Dustin Richardson, who lifted the Stangs with five RBIs fueling the boys in blue past the Badgers in a big 13-3 victory. Richardson drove in runs on a single in the fourth, a single in the fifth and a triple in the sixth.
Natalia started their scoring in their opening at bat, as they used a Manuel Saldana base on balls, a Gabe Figueroa single and a ground out by Nathan Vasquez to take the 1-0 lead.
KC tied the game in the bottom of the 2nd, as they used a triple by Reyes and a single by Vajdos. This is how the game would stand until the top of the 4th inning.
Natalia’s Alex Valdez began the inning getting on thanks to an error. Natalia then used an Isaiah Gomez base on balls, an error put into play by Javier Hernandez, a single by Richardson and a SAC Bunt by Saldana to take a 5-1 lead on the Badgers.
The Stangs added one additional run in the top of the 5th thanks to a Jeramiah Castro single, a SAC Bunt by Valdez and a single by Hernandez to increase their lead to 6-1.
KC did their final offensive damage in the bottom of the 5th, as they used a pair of walks and a double to get within 6-3 of the Mustangs.
Natalia took control in the top of the 6th for good. Natalia scored five big runs off several KC miscues as well as a double by Castro and a triple by Richardson to extend their lead to 11-3.
The icing on the cake came in the 7th, as Natalia used more KC miscues to their advantage as they scored two final runs en route to a 13-3 victory.
“They made some errors that we were able to take advantage of,” Martinez said. “Dustin Richardson led the team with 5 RBIs. It was good to see him get back on track.”
At bat: Rey Garza 1-4-1RBI-2runs scored, Gabe Figueroa 1-3-1run scored, Manuel Saldana 0-3-1run scored, Jeramiah Castro 1-4-2RBIs-2runs scored, Isaiah Gomez 0-2-1RBI-2runs scored, Javier Hernandez 1-3-1RBI, Antonio Trevino 0-1-2runs scored, Nathan Vasquez 0-3-1RBI-1run scored, Alex Valdez 0-3-1run scored and Dustin Richardson 1-3-5RBIs-1run scored. Defensive Put-Outs: Hernandez 11, Garza 5, Gomez 2, Figueroa 2, Vasquez 1.
Upcoming Games
Natalia hosted the Poth Pirates on press night at home. Poth had already secured the 26-3A title. The Mustangs needed a victory to outright win 2nd place in 26-3A. If they lost, they would most likely finish tied with Jourdanton for 2nd place.
The final scheduled 26-3A battle is this Friday at 4:00 p.m. at Ft. Sam Houston Cole. If Natalia wins this game and lost to Poth, they would face Jourdanton Monday, May 1 for 2nd place at 7 p.m. at Devine Warhorse Field.
By Eric Smith
Staff Writer