Another dramatic chapter of the Santa Barbara Foresters and San Luis Obispo Blues rivalry was written on Sunday at Eddie Mathews Field.
After trailing 4-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth, the Foresters rallied and got a bases-clearing double from Terrence Kiel (Texas A&M) and a go-ahead single by Addison Klepsch (Auburn) to take a 5-4 lead.
Steele Eaves (Arkansas) then came in for the ninth and slammed the door with a pair of strikeouts to secure the victory for Santa Barbara (13-4), which now has a 3-2 advantage in the season series after five back-and-forth games against the Blues (9-11).
“We know that there’s some history between us and the Blues and coach (Bill) Pintard told us about it,” Kiel said. “Every game we play against them every year you see that, it gets chippy with the umpires, the coaches and the players.
“It just goes to show you how competitive this rivalry is, and while it’s really competitive, it’s also really fun to play in and be a part of.”
Santa Barbara starter Zack James (TCU) worked around a pair of baserunners in the top of the first, and the Foresters struck in the bottom half when back-to-back wild pitches allowed Cole Chamberlain (Texas) to score for a 1-0 lead.
After the second inning went scoreless, Santa Barbara threatened with three walks to load the bases with one out in the third. However, SLO starter Bryce Johnson buckled down and retired two straight to get out of the jam.
James continued to roll through the Blues’ lineup, delivering six shutout innings while striking out five to keep the Foresters in front, 1-0.
“That’s [James’] first start and he’s going to be in that starting rotation,” Santa Barbara head coach Bill Pintard said. “I don’t care about his velocity. I don’t care about any of that stuff. He is really good. He doesn’t throw hard, but he’s got a great four pitch mix.”
With Tyler Phenow (TCU) in the game for Santa Barbara, the Blues evened the game up in the seventh with an unearned run.
After an error allowed a runner to reach, SLO executed a double steal with runners on the corners to plate its first run of the day and bring the score to 1-1.
The Foresters had a chance to respond after two straight singles to begin the bottom of the seventh, but SLO reliever Riley Marcotte got out of it with a double play and a groundout.
The Blues carried that momentum over to the eighth as they scored a trio of runs on a single, a Forester error and a booming triple to take a 4-1 lead.
Santa Barbara’s offense finally woke back up in the bottom of the eighth, sparked by a Brenton Clark (Arkansas) single and a pair of walks to load the bases with no outs.
Following a strikeout, Pintard called upon Kiel to pinch-hit in the biggest moment of the game. Kiel came through, rocketing the first pitch he saw into the left field corner to clear the bases and tie the game at 4-4.
“Today was supposed to be my off day, so I’m standing next to coach the whole entire game and before the game started, he was saying ‘Just be prepared, you might come in late and pinch hit at some point during the game, and it may be a situation where we need you.’” Kiel said.
“I’ve been in situations like that at Texas A&M and I wasn’t able to come through, so having that opportunity presented to me again and coming through this time felt really good.”
Kiel then advanced to third on a wild pitch to set the table for Klepsch, who slapped a ball into the ground that hopped over the third baseman’s head to drive in the go-ahead run.
After a game headlined by missed opportunities in the first seven innings, Pintard was happy to see his team come through in the clutch.
“I think we’re 4-for-4 in the last two days in our pinch hits, so I’m going to the casino,” Pintard joked. “We could’ve broken through earlier and we didn’t get it done, but we did it when we needed it.”
Eaves then set down the side in the top of the ninth to secure the victory for the Foresters.
“That was fun, we’ve had a great series,” Pintard said. “It’s been intense. Their fans are all over us and we had a great crowd today. There were no seats left here.
“I love this team. The chemistry is really good. Our identity, hitting-wise, is pretty good, so I’m very pleased.”
Santa Barbara will have a quick turnaround to take on the Orange County Riptide at Great Park on Monday.