Gators thrash Pirates

BAKER -- Three hits proved to be more than enough for the Baker baseball team as the Gators took on Ponce de Leon in a District 1-2A game Monday.

Of course it didn’t hurt that the Pirates made five errors and that PDL pitchers walked six batters and hit another three.

When all was said and done the Gators had notched an 11-1 victory in the game that was called after five innings because of the 10-run rule.

Christian Mainor went the distance on the mound for Baker.

Mainor, who was working on three days rest, picked up where he left off Thursday night when he struck out 12 Paxton batters.

Monday, Mainor fanned eight Pirate batters while throwing a two-hitter and not allowing any earned runs.

The win was the second in a row for the Gators (4-4, 2-0) after suffering the disappointing loss to the Bobcats.

“Our kids just decided they wanted it,” Baker coach Gary Taylor said. “They played a great game against Jay the other night (Friday) and went up on Jay 5-1, Jay battled back and we ended up winning it 6-5.

“But they saw then that they can actually play baseball and do the small things, the little things right. That’s what we preach to them, and they seem to be doing the little things right.”

Baker struck for the game’s first run in the home half of the first.

Dylan Kersey delivered the first of his two hits with one out in the inning taking a pitch up the middle for a single.

Kersey moved to second on a wild pitch and took third as Colton Henry reached on a Pirate error. Kersey scored as Mainor reached first on a fielder’s choice.

Baker sent 10 men to the plate in the second inning and scored six runs on one hit as the PDL defense sprung a leak committing three errors

Dakota Josey had the only hit of the inning, a double that scored courtesy runner Adam Royal, who was running for Mainor.

The Gators, Jacob Lawson, Garth Bailey and Anthony Heath, scored on wild pitches in the second.

Kersey continued his strong showing in the third inning when he beat out an infield hit that scored Austin Youngblood from third.

Youngblood reached base on a fielder’s choice, stole second and went to third as Lawson grounded out to the infield.

The Pirates scored their lone run in the top of the fourth.

The Gators again showed their patience at the plate in the bottom of the inning drawing two walks and having two batters hit by pitches as they plated three runs to close out the scoring.

Perhaps as impressive as the 11 runs on three hits was the fact that only three Gator batters struck out and they should discipline at bat despite the wild pitching from the Pirates.

“They stay back (waiting on the pitch) and are very selective at the plate,” Taylor said. “They’ve been very good at that all year.”