Bryce Warrecker pitched a no-hitter through five innings, and Christian Encarnacion and Jace Jung each blasted three-run homers for the Santa Barbara Foresters in a 13-2 win over the Southern California Halos at Pershing Park on Tuesday.
Warrecker has been one of the many bright spots for the Foresters during their shortened summer baseball season. The 2020 Santa Barbara High graduate retired the first 13 batters he faced and allowed only a walk in recording his third win of the season.
“That walk, that’s why we had to yank him,” cracked Foresters manager Bill Pintard. “No, it was great to see him come through again. I’ve said it before, he’s growing up right in front of our eyes. He’s a strike-thrower and our guys love playing behind him.”
Noah Cardenas got the Santa Barbara offense going in the first inning with a RBI double. The catcher from UCLA had productive day at the plate, going 4 for 5 with a RBI and two runs.
“He’s the face of our defense, and he’s tremendous back there behind the plate,” Pintard said. “Then tonight, he has a great four-hit game. He even had a pair of stolen bases, as a catcher.”
The Foresters scored four runs in the fourth inning, getting a two-run single from Peyton Graham and RBI singles by Matthew Jung and Casey Dykstra.
It was 7-2 when Jung crushed a three-run homer in the seventh and Encarnacion belted his in the eighth. Jung’s homer was his seventh of the summer and Encarnacion hit his team-leading eighth.
The Foresters face Santa Maria Pea Soup on Wednesday and Thursday before concluding their Pershing Park season on Friday with their Hugs for Cubs game against the So Cal Giants.
All the games will be broadcast on KCSB.org/sports.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, fans are not allowed to attend games at Pershing Park.
— Noozhawk sports editor Barry Punzal can be reached at bpunzal@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk Sports on Twitter: @NoozhawkSports. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.