GILROY – Scoring 30 runs in two games will give any coach and
his players some positive vibes moving forward.
GILROY – Scoring 30 runs in two games will give any coach and his players some positive vibes moving forward.
However, after the Gilroy High baseball team torched the Everett Alvarez Eagles during the teams’ two-game home-and-home set Friday (18-1) and Saturday (12-3), manager Johnny Ramirez and the Mustangs know what they are about to face this week is all that matters – though 30 runs and 25 hits definitely helps the confidence level.
“They are stepping up (to the plate) now believing and knowing they have a job to do,” Ramirez said. “If that guy is throwing 45 (miles per hour) 80 or 85, they don’t care. They are all beaming now.”
San Benito and Gilroy has been the rivalry of rivalries for years. There always seems to be something aside from the expected bragging rights on the line.
With the second-place Mustangs (12-6-1, 8-2 TCAL) and the first-place Balers (13-4, 9-0 TCAL) scheduled for a two-game series this week – today in Hollister and Friday in Gilroy – leverage in the Tri-County Athletic League is at stake.
A split for the Mustangs would leave the door open for a league championship, taking both would be huge. If the Balers swing victories in each contest, they would all but have a strangle hold on the league crown.
“It’s going to be a good game just like it always is with them,” said senior center fielder Jordan Holler, who is all too familiar with the rivalry, experiencing the Prune Bowl as a member of the GHS football team.
“We have to take both of these from them just to even up. Everyone is always pumped up for these game.”
The Balers have owned the Mustangs over the past two seasons en route to four straight league titles and five of the last six.
The Mustangs have dropped the previous six meetings between the two clubs over the last two seasons, providing more than enough incentive for this week’s showdowns.
“I haven’t beat them yet so it’s big,” Holler said.
The Mustangs’ recent offensive surge is a welcomed sight for Ramirez, who has known all along that his one through six hitters can be potent at any given time.
With the emergence of second baseman Reed Kienle breaking out of his funk at the plate, production at the bottom of the Mustangs’ lineup has increased as well.
“I’ve been seeing the ball really well,” Kienle said after Friday’s game.
The senior has six hits and six RBI in his last three games.
“Reed is going up there now and he doesn’t care who is throwing,” Ramirez said. “He probably has the most confidence up there.”
No matter which team comes into the game with more momentum, it all falls by the wayside once the first pitch is thrown.
“They want it,” Ramirez said. “I’m sure (San Benito) is ready. They are always game ready. I’m excited for this team. I told them not to panic. They are ready.”
