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Stars Win, Win, Win!!!
Stars defend NBC West crown
(c) East County Sports.com
BARONA INDIAN RESERVATION (7-6-10) ---- The San Diego Stars semipro baseball club defended its National Baseball Congress Western Regional title after downing arch-rival San Diego Waves, 6-1, in Sunday's (July 5) playback final at Stars Field.
Sal Raminrez, making only his second appearance of the season, tossed five solid innings in a starting role to collect the victory, After allowing an early run in the 1st inning, he settled in and yielded just three hits during his stint. Brandon Bell and Jemery Laub followed to blank the Waves over the final four frames, as the trio combined on a 5-hitter.
The Stars (22-6 overall) answered the Waves early marker with four runs in the bottom of the 1st.
With the bases loaded, designated hitter Michael Lange punched a 2-run single to right field, scoring both Robby Scott (lead walk) and Clifton Thomas (single) for a 2-1 advantage.
Taylor Eichhorst followed with an RBI single to bring home Kevin Lovelace (walk), But when the Waves left fielder booted the ball, Lange also scored for a 4-1 cushion.
Jake Savicki added a pinch-hit triple in the 5th, bringing home Scott, who batted 2-for-3 with a walk. It was Savicki's club-leading 6th triple of the summer campaign.
Catcher Dallas Martin added an insurance run in the 8th with a base hit, scoring Chris Allen.
The Waves forced the playback final after winning twice earlier in the day.
In the challenger bracket final, the Waves eliminated the San Diego Shockers, 4-1, then they nipped the Stars, 4-3, in the first game of the championship round despite a 150-pitch, complete-game effort by Stars starter Pete Malloy. Lange also registered a pair of RBI singles.
The loss was the first setback in the regional for the Stars, who captured the winners bracket on Sunday over the Waves, 2-1.
With the tournament victory, the Stars earned a berth to the NBC World Series, slated for August 2-15 in Wichita, Kan.
The Stars will play a series of non-league games to open a 4-game home stand this week. They will host Top Prospects USA, an Escondido based baseball academy, on Wednesday, then the Poway Thunder on Friday. Both are set for 5 p.m. On Saturday, the Stars also host the Huntington Beach Grizzlies (aka Around the Horn Baseball Academy) in a noon doubleheader.
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East County Sports.com
BARONA INDIAN RESERVATION (7-5-10)
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The San Diego Stars will get two chances to defend its National Baseball Congress West Regional title behind the arm of GABE WARD.
After allowing a game-opening single, Ward, a product of Cal Lutheran, then lasted 7 1/3 innings without allowing a base hit, leading the Stars to a 2-1 triumph over the San Diego Waves in Sunday's (July 4) winners bracket final at Stars Field.
Ward faced just two batters above the minimum through seven frames in a scoreless pitchers' duel with Waves left-hander Chris Brookey until Stars veteran BRIAN SOS broke through in the 6th inning.
Following a leadoff walk to KEVIN LOVELACE, a pair of Stars batters were unable to advance Lovelace, who was making his first start at second base. However, Sos delivered with a drive which short-hopped the wall in dead-center field, with Lovelace circumnavigating the diamond on the double.
Sos later scored when SHAIN STONER, who gained a rare start at third base, saw his fly ball dropped for a 2-0 advantage.
Ward then survived a series of three singles in the 8th, capped by an RBI basehit by Tim Zier, then a Stars error in the 9th to collect the victory. The left-hander struck out three and walked two.
Ward was backed by a pair of double plays, both started by Stars shortstop ROBBY SCOTT. For the Waves, Zier registered a pair of diving catches at second base to maintain the scoreless tie in the early going. Zier also collected half of the Waves' four hits.
For the Stars, right fielder JAKE SAVICKI batted 2-for-3, while Lovelace went 1-for-2 and walked twice.
The Stars (21-5 overall) will play in the 1 p.m. championship round. Since it was just the first loss for the Waves, they play in the 9:30 a.m. challenger bracket final against the San Diego Shockers. A playback final, if needed, is slated for 4:30 p.m.
© East County Sports.com
BARONA INDIAN RESERVATION (7-4-10)
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The ways of semipro baseball sometimes show restrictions on the availability of your players, due to a job or other commitments.
So when San Diego Stars manager MICKEY DEUTSCHMAN realized that his top two choices for Saturday's (July 3) starting pitching assignment would be late scratches, the skipper needed to go with a pair of young arms.
And for the better.
Behind five solid innings by last-minute starter JEREMY LAUB, then four frames of relief by seldom-used RICKY NORTON, the Stars staved a late rally by the West Coast Storm to claim an 8-6 decision in the winners bracket semifinal of the National Baseball Congress Western Regional.
The Stars will host NBC Southern California Regional champion San Diego Waves in Sunday's winner's bracket final, slated for 4:30 p.m. at Stars Field. The Waves advance after whipping Western Baseball Association rival San Diego Force, 13-5.
Deutschman was pleased with his young guns. Laub sat down 15 of the first 18 batters he faced, while Norton closed with three innings of 1-hit ball (an infield single) to move his ballclub within a game of a money round berth.
"Both guys haven't thrown many innings this summer," said Deutschman. "But both went as hard as they could for as long as they could, proving to be good enough."
As a spot starter, Laub has proven effective for about 60 pitches before hitting a bit of a wall. And against the Storm, Laub yielded just a run on two hits in five solid innings of work.
However, in the 6th, immediately after hitting the magic 60 number, Deutschman quickly pulled Laub following a pair of walks to load the bases with no one out.
Enter Norton, who sat on the bench with another program for more than three weeks before asking for his release before hooking on with the Stars. Entering from the bullpen, Norton owned a single inning of work all summer in a mop-up roll the previous day in a pasting of Heroes of the Diamond.
"It wasn't my best effort – I'll get better," said Norton, who was all smiles after switching from a last-place program to one which now sports a 20-5 overall record in the Stars.
Deutschman was doing anything but complaining, too.
"The first time we saw him throw a bullpen, we couldn't believe his previous team never used him," said Deutschman. "He's got a lot of talent."
Although the Storm scored in the 6th-inning rally, Norton quelled the opponent to maintain the Stars' lead, eventually collecting his first career save.
The Stars mounted an early 5-0 advantage.
In the 1st inning, then scored without the aid of a basehit. ANTHONY LONG accepted a leadoff walk, stole second base, took third on a deep fly ball, then scored on a ground out by ROBBY SCOTT.
In the 3rd, the Stars scored four times, as Long singled home the first run to plate ANTHONY WILLIAMS (single, stolen base),
CLIFTON THOMAS, better known for his speed on the basepaths, then bombed his second homer of the summer to deep right field. The shot ended a mild 1-for-9 slump and lifted the ball club to a 4-0 lead.
Scott, who would later add an RBI double in the 5th, followed with a walk, scoring on an ensuing double by designated hitter MICHAEL LANGE.
Long, Thomas, Lange and Williams all collected two hits each, but the team leader was left fielder SHAIN STONER, who batted 3-for-5 and scored an important insurance run in the 8th on a William’s base hit.
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East County Sports.com
BARONA INDIAN RESERVATION (7-3-10)
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The San Diego Stars feature depth at almost every position, yet the reserves to catcher DEREK BAUM are younger players in need of additional seasoning.
However, the Stars' search for another backstop may have ended when a member of the ballclub called upon one of his old high school teammates.
"I immediately thought about DALLAS MARTIN," said Stars outfielder RYAN BROSNAN. "He told me he hadn't played in two years, but was willing to give it a try."
And with the Stars set to meet a depleted opponent in the military-based Heroes of the Diamond -- most members of the international travel club were still in the East, Stars manager MICKEY DEUTSCHMAN thought he'd throw the Santana High product into the fire.
Did somebody say two years or two days?
With former Sultans coach JERRY HENSON in attendance, Hubbard deposited the third pitch he saw over the left-field fence for a 2-run, 1st-inning homer, then he added a 2-run single in the 3rd inning during a 4-for-4 performance, pacing the Stars to an easy 18-3 decision.
The triumph, coupled with a 13-3 victory over the Lake Elsinore Caps earlier in the day, lifted the Stars (19-5 overall) into the winners bracket semifinals of the National Baseball Congress West Regional tournament.
The Stars will meet the West Coast Storm (Costa Mesa) in Saturday's (July 3) 4:30 p.m. Final Four ballgame.
ADRIAN BRINGAS went 3-for-3 plus a sacrifice fly, while NICK SPEARS came off the bench to also go 3-for-3. Bringas also batted 2-for-4 with four RBI in the opener, backing the pitching of starter LUCAS WHITMORE, who yielded just a pair of basehits over 8 dominate innings.
Baum, before getting rested in the second game, batted 2-for-4 and drove in a pair against the Caps. ANTHONY LONG went 3-for-4 with three runs and a pair of RBI, while MICHAEL LANGE smacked a 3-run homer in the 9th to cap the blowout.
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