Wave take early 2-1 lead on older Gilroy team, but fall for
third time, 8-4
GILROY – Errors were the deciding factor in the Gilroy Heat’s 8-4 victory over the Gilroy Wave Thursday.
This was the third of four meetings between the two garlic-town teams, all three going to the Heat. The Wave will have one last crack at the Heat Tuesday.
Both teams were solid into the third inning with the Wave leading 2-1. Then with two men on and one out in the bottom of the inning, the Wave defense made two key mistakes that led to four Heat runs.
“Experience pays off,” said Clint Wheeler, the Heat head coach. “The team can read a ball in the dirt better, or a better read on a misplayed ball.”
Waves head coach Alan Andersen noted facing teams which have much older players than them is a tough assignment.
“The players have a tendency to be hesitant playing against older players,” Andersen said. “But they are still learning they can play with these guys.”
Leading the charge for the Heat was starting pitcher Armando Franco with four solid innings, giving up two runs.
The big bats for the Heat were Todd Gimenez and Joe Cano, who both got hits at key moments in the game to drive in runs.
Cano hit a two-run double in the third, busting the game open.
The game could have been worse for the Wave had the Heat not been using wooden bats. What has been called an equalizer, the wooden bats kept three balls in the park that were hit hard into the left-center field gap.
“Those balls would have gone out,” Cano said. “The guys who hit them, hit them hard.”
In games against the rest of the American Legion League, the Heat will return to using metal bats.
This weekend, the Heat will play two double-headers against Redwood City and Palo Alto. The Wave will play Redwood City Sunday, before facing the Heat again on Tuesday.
