Ports Leave Grizzlies Seeing Doubles in 12-7 Win

FRESNO, Calif. — The Ports battled back from an early five-run deficit to earn a split in the six game series with the Grizzlies, out slugging Fresno for a 12-7 victory in the finale. Stockton racked up eight doubles and two home runs for 13 total hits in the comeback win.

Norge Vera allowed five runs on five hits and one walk in the first inning. But Derek Corro came in and kept the Ports afloat with 3.1 shutout innings, and the offense would put him in line for his second win of the series and fourth of the year.

Myles Naylor and Darlyn Montero hit back-to-back doubles to start the top of the third to put the Ports on the board at 5-1. After Joshua Kuroda-Grauer reach on an infield single, he stayed in a run down between first and second after trying to steal second, long enough to allow Montero to score from third and make it a 5-2 game. Stockton would tied it up in the fourth on a two-RBI double from Nick Schwartz and another double from Naylor to make it 5-5.

The Ports would go ahead for good in the fifth on the first professional home run by Cameron Leary. The 2024, 10th round pick out of Boston College blasted a line drive 414 feet off the manual scoreboard in right center to plate Rodney Green Jr. and go up 7-5. They’d extend their lead to 8-5 in the seventh when Leary doubled home Davis Diaz, but Aidan Longwell would hit his fourth dinger of the season in the bottom of the inning to put it back to two runs at 8-6.

Stockton’s biggest inning would come in the eighth with a four-run outburst. Montero doubled for a second time to score Nelson Beltran for a 9-6 advantage to start the rally. The big blow came from Tommy White, as the 40th overall pick out of LSU in this year’s draft belted a three-run homer 389 feet out out to deep left for his first professional home run to go up 12-6. The Grizzlies managed to get one run in the ninth off Mark Adamiak, but Montero made a running grab out to deep right, reaching up on a dead sprint to take an extra-base hit away and end the game.

Tom Reisinger allowed just one run in his four innings on the mound to keep the Grizzlies at bay, striking out six batters in the process. Naylor, Montero, and Leary each had two doubles in the game, with Schwartz and Green Jr. hitting the other two. The home run for White could be the first of many for the Ports third baseman, as he ranks eighth all time in NCAA Division-I history in career home runs with 75.

UP NEXT
The Ports return home for their final home stand of the season, hosting the Inland Empire 66ers from Tuesday, August 27 to Sunday, Sept. 1. Single game tickets, mini plans, and group outings are all on sale for the 2024 season. For more information, call the Ports front office at 209-644-1900 or email at [email protected].