JetHawks: Ramsay plays hero twice against Lake Elsinore
LANCASTER — A hero hidden in the No. 9 batter’s spot, JetHawks right fielder James Ramsay struggled against Lake Elsinore for the majority of Friday night.
A game-tying two-run homer and a walk-off RBI double later, Ramsay couldn’t hide if he tried.
“Once (Brian Holberton) scored, I was like, ‘Here come the floodgates,’” said Ramsay, who tied the game in the ninth and walked off in the 10th against Lake Elsinore in a 7-6 win. “So I see (all my teammates) coming and I was like, ‘Oh man, this is going to be a madhouse.’
“I’m just glad nobody got hurt.”
Nobody except for the Storm (15-14), who saw their five-game win streak snapped just as the JetHawks (14-15) extended theirs to three.
Following five consecutive innings in which the JetHawks totaled one hit (a Brett Phillips’ two-out single in the seventh), they finally got in business in the ninth.
Jack Mayfield led it off with a walk and after Holberton was robbed of a hit by a diving Donovan Tate at right-center field, Ramsay came through with his first shot of the year, also to right-center.
After A.J. Reed, who went 2-for-4 with two doubles, was intentionally walked, the JetHawks had the bases loaded, but Jose Fernandez was unable to come up with the clutch hit.
It only set the stage for Ramsay, who was 0-for-3 going into the ninth, and Holberton.
Gonzalo Sanudo pitched a scoreless 10th to get the win for the JetHawks, who saw their first two batters in extras get retired. But then Holberton drew a walk, Ramsay smacked a ground ball to right field, and the catcher was off to the races.
“From being kind of mad to running and scoring that run, just knowing we won the game, it was just a good feeling,” said Holberton, who went 0-for-4.
Holberton was tackled by Jack Mayfield, who hit a homer in the second inning, just as Ramsay tried to get away from the rest of the JetHawks near second base. He wouldn’t succeed.
“It was actually a big overwhelming,” said Ramsay, who came into the game batting .200. “I haven’t been producing as much as I should. When I did that, it was just a big confidence booster. I hope to keep doing it.”
The JetHawks got on the board quickly, with Reed continuing his hot streak and hitting a line drive to right field for an RBI double in the first. Fernandez followed with a double to right also to drive in Reed and make it 2-0 Lancaster.
With Reed at second off his second double of the day in the third, Fernandez (who extended his hitting streak to 17 games) hit a weak grounder to third base. River Stevens fielded it, looked off Reed and sent the ball toward first, but the toss was well off and went out of the field of play, allowing Reed to score and Fernandez to reach second.
The JetHawks led 4-2 then and wouldn’t score again until Ramsay’s late-game heroics.
The Storm drew within 4-3 on a Stevens RBI single off JetHawks starter Zach Morton in the top of the fourth. Morton then issued consecutive walks, the last one coming with the bases loaded to tie the game 4-4 with two outs.
That was it for Morton, who went 3.2 innings and gave up four runs on five hits and six walks.
Tyler Brunnemann came in and got Marcus Davis to fly out to center to repel the threat. The Storm would get to him in the next inning, however.
Following Tate’s third hit of the night, a one-out single down the third base line, Jeremy Baltz took Brunnemann deep with a towering shot beyond the center field wall to give Lake Elsinore a 6-4 edge in the fifth.
It was a rare unfavorable outing for Brunnemann, who after a no-runs, three-inning outing on April 30 vs. Rancho Cucamonga, his eighth appearance of the year, owned a 0.57 ERA.
A May 4 showing against Stockton, where Brunnemann gave up three runs on four hits in two innings, increased his ERA to 2.04. After Friday, it went up to 2.84.
But on this night, it was someone else’s turn to bail him out. That was Ramsay.
“It’s a really good confidence booster,” Ramsay said.
The JetHawks, who also had Michael Feliz toss four scoreless innings on Friday, play Lake Elsinore today at 6 p.m.
A game-tying two-run homer and a walk-off RBI double later, Ramsay couldn’t hide if he tried.
“Once (Brian Holberton) scored, I was like, ‘Here come the floodgates,’” said Ramsay, who tied the game in the ninth and walked off in the 10th against Lake Elsinore in a 7-6 win. “So I see (all my teammates) coming and I was like, ‘Oh man, this is going to be a madhouse.’
“I’m just glad nobody got hurt.”
Nobody except for the Storm (15-14), who saw their five-game win streak snapped just as the JetHawks (14-15) extended theirs to three.
Following five consecutive innings in which the JetHawks totaled one hit (a Brett Phillips’ two-out single in the seventh), they finally got in business in the ninth.
Jack Mayfield led it off with a walk and after Holberton was robbed of a hit by a diving Donovan Tate at right-center field, Ramsay came through with his first shot of the year, also to right-center.
After A.J. Reed, who went 2-for-4 with two doubles, was intentionally walked, the JetHawks had the bases loaded, but Jose Fernandez was unable to come up with the clutch hit.
It only set the stage for Ramsay, who was 0-for-3 going into the ninth, and Holberton.
Gonzalo Sanudo pitched a scoreless 10th to get the win for the JetHawks, who saw their first two batters in extras get retired. But then Holberton drew a walk, Ramsay smacked a ground ball to right field, and the catcher was off to the races.
“From being kind of mad to running and scoring that run, just knowing we won the game, it was just a good feeling,” said Holberton, who went 0-for-4.
Holberton was tackled by Jack Mayfield, who hit a homer in the second inning, just as Ramsay tried to get away from the rest of the JetHawks near second base. He wouldn’t succeed.
“It was actually a big overwhelming,” said Ramsay, who came into the game batting .200. “I haven’t been producing as much as I should. When I did that, it was just a big confidence booster. I hope to keep doing it.”
The JetHawks got on the board quickly, with Reed continuing his hot streak and hitting a line drive to right field for an RBI double in the first. Fernandez followed with a double to right also to drive in Reed and make it 2-0 Lancaster.
With Reed at second off his second double of the day in the third, Fernandez (who extended his hitting streak to 17 games) hit a weak grounder to third base. River Stevens fielded it, looked off Reed and sent the ball toward first, but the toss was well off and went out of the field of play, allowing Reed to score and Fernandez to reach second.
The JetHawks led 4-2 then and wouldn’t score again until Ramsay’s late-game heroics.
The Storm drew within 4-3 on a Stevens RBI single off JetHawks starter Zach Morton in the top of the fourth. Morton then issued consecutive walks, the last one coming with the bases loaded to tie the game 4-4 with two outs.
That was it for Morton, who went 3.2 innings and gave up four runs on five hits and six walks.
Tyler Brunnemann came in and got Marcus Davis to fly out to center to repel the threat. The Storm would get to him in the next inning, however.
Following Tate’s third hit of the night, a one-out single down the third base line, Jeremy Baltz took Brunnemann deep with a towering shot beyond the center field wall to give Lake Elsinore a 6-4 edge in the fifth.
It was a rare unfavorable outing for Brunnemann, who after a no-runs, three-inning outing on April 30 vs. Rancho Cucamonga, his eighth appearance of the year, owned a 0.57 ERA.
A May 4 showing against Stockton, where Brunnemann gave up three runs on four hits in two innings, increased his ERA to 2.04. After Friday, it went up to 2.84.
But on this night, it was someone else’s turn to bail him out. That was Ramsay.
“It’s a really good confidence booster,” Ramsay said.
The JetHawks, who also had Michael Feliz toss four scoreless innings on Friday, play Lake Elsinore today at 6 p.m.