PAGE A22, KEIZERTIMES, AUGUST 6, 2021
Campesinos win thriller over Volcanoes
BY MATT RAWLINGS
Of the Keizertimes
Throughout
the
season,
the
Campesinos have shown that they can
win in a multitude of different ways, and
on Friday, July 30, they proved it once
again.
Trailing 4-0 in the bottom of the
fourth, the Campesinos rallied for five
runs in the frame, all with two outs, pro-
pelling them to a 7-5 victory over the
Volcanoes on Friday, July 30.
Eric Whitfield went 2-for-4 with
two homers and three RBIs in the
Campesinos victory.
“That is what a championship team
does. You have to find different ways to
win throughout the season, so that way
when playoff baseball comes, you are
dealt every scenario. Hopefully through
the season you take the lessons you learn
on how to get it done and you find a way
to get it done again,” Campesinos man-
ager Daniel Robertson said.
With a 3.64 ERA, Campesinos starting
pitcher Eli Fultz has been usually reliable
for his team this season. However, the
left-hander fell victim to the long ball in
his 4.1 innings of work.
In the top of the second, Bryan Ruby
put the Volcanoes on the board with a
solo homer to left field. In the following
frame, Kevin Jordan Jr. blasted a two-run
shot to extend Salem-Keizer's lead to 3-0.
Caleb Johnson got in on the home run
action in the top of the fourth with a solo
shot to left field to make the score 4-0.
Although Fultz gave up four runs
in his 4.1 innings of work, his bullpen
picked up the slack for him as Jacob Esa
and Luke Laurita gave up just one run on
three hits in the final 4.2 innings.
“That is what this team is about. They
are so close and they care so much about
each other, and they do an unbelievable
job of picking each other up,” Robertson
said. “Fultz has been one of our best guys
Trevor Morrison daps up Campesinos manager Daniel Robertson after hitting a two-run homer.
all year, and he is going to continue to
be one of our best guys. But Asa did an
amazing job for us. He is fresh out of col-
lege and he is taking full advantage of
his opportunity.”
After surrendering three homers
in four innings to the Volcanoes, the
Campesinos jumped ahead thanks
to a pair of long balls of their own off
Volcanoes starter Phillip Rowland.
With two gone in the bottom of the
fourth, Campesinos shortstop Trevor
Morrison continued his torrid hitting
pace by crushing a two-run homer to
right field. Then, after a questionable
no-call on a check swing that went in
Whitfield's favor with two strikes, the
Campesinos first baseman took advan-
tage of the second chance and crushed
a solo shot to left field, cutting the lead
to one.
After a walk by Sergio Rey and a base
hit by Drew Bayard, Joseph Nunn Jr. hit
a soft ground ball that hit off the third
base bag and caromed into the outfield,
allowing Rey to score from second to tie
the game. Rowland was then taken out of
the game and replaced by Brendan Nipp.
“Hats off to Rowland, he was throw-
ing great in the first few innings. He was
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WINNER
Photo by MATT RAWLINGS of Keizertimes
hitting his spots and kept us off-balance.
But we just kept pounding. These guys
work so hard throughout the week to stay
prepared,” Robertson said.
Even with Nipp on the mound, the
Campesinos continued the rally as Nick
Ybarra came through with an RBI-single
to give the Campesinos their first lead at
5-4.
The score would stay that way until
the bottom of the eighth.
With one-on and one out, Whitfield
stepped to the plate looking to give the
Campesinos some insurance going into
the ninth inning. However, Whitfield
By STEVE BREEN
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