SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA — Cold weather brought cold bats for both sides on Wednesday night, but particularly for the Arroyo Seco Saints (10-8) as they now record back-to-back losses to the San Luis Obispo Blues (18-12), losing by a score of 4-1 at Sinsheimer Field. 

Contrary to Tuesday night’s game, the Saints’ pitchers did not last very many innings, but not because of a lack of success. 

Head Coach Aaron Milam handed the ball to Joseph Estrada (Lewis and Clark State) to begin Wednesday night’s festivities. He cruised through his first inning of work but stumbled a bit in the second inning. Estrada hit Sebastian Lopez (Seattle) with a pitch, scoring Brendan Comerford (Gonzaga). 

Early on, the Saints’ offense appeared to be fine as multiple runners reached base with relative ease. In the second frame, Arroyo Seco bombarded Blues starter Hawk Hill (Uncommitted). Seven Saints batters entered the box in the second, but they were only able to score one run on a Keon Moseni (Central Arkansas) hit-by-pitch. After the first two frames, the score was knotted at one run apiece. 

However, after the second inning, the Arroyo Seco bats were almost absent. Coach Matt Stone shared his thoughts as to why his team’s offense appeared sluggish on Wednesday night. 

“It’s something about this field,” said Stone. “We have had three games here now, and every time, it has been slow-going for us. There is not really a hitter’s eye here, and the hitters have said that, depending on what side the pitcher is throwing on, [it can] be hard to pick up the ball.” 

Luckily, the Saints’ offensive woes did not trickle into the pitching staff’s performance. Estrada threw two innings of one-run ball, and so did Nathan Huy (UC San Diego), who only faced eight Blues hitters in his rapid two innings of work. 

After Huy, Liam Thatcher (East Tennessee State) and Ethan Moran (Transfer Portal) only allowed two runs cumulatively to wrap things up on Wednesday night. 

Thatcher was arguably the biggest bright spot for the Saints. He went the longest of any Arroyo Seco pitcher (three innings) in game two at Sinsheimer Field, tallying two strikeouts and only giving up one run. 

“I love the long-ish leash,” mentioned Thatcher. “The faith [the coaches] have in the [pitching] staff is amazing; you cannot ask for more than that as a pitcher. It almost makes you want to compete more. It is all about competing, and that is what I want to do.” 

The minimal offensive output from the Blues was enough for their side to win as the Saints’ output was even more minimal. San Luis Obispo scattered their final three runs across the last seven innings. 

The Saints’ defense did more harm than help on Wednesday night as fielding errors tarnished the pitching staff’s otherwise dominant outing. 

Both Thatcher and Stone commented on Arroyo Seco’s lackluster defensive effort. 

“You cannot let [the errors] impact your game plan,” Thatcher emphasized. “[We] just have to keep throwing strikes and control what you can control and forget about the uncontrollable [aspects].” 

“As far as pitchers go, it is tough because they feel like they have to do everything themself and be too fine and chase strikeouts,” said Stone. “Things can spiral downwards on you. “As far as the hitters go, the other teams play on the same field, we just hit a lot more balls in the air.” 

The redeeming defensive plays came via two catch-and-throw double plays from the outfield. Gannon Snyder (Transfer Portal) and Joey Milto (Transfer Portal) showed off their arm strength as they each gunned down a Blues runner trying to tag up from second to third. 

The Saints will aim to clean things up defensively and have their pitchers’ backs as they enter Sinsheimer Field for the final time on this three-game road trip. They face the Blues at 6:00 p.m. in hopes of avoiding a sweep in San Luis Obispo.  

Contributors:

• Saints reporter Tyler Bowne (San Diego State)
• Saints photographer Bella Calagna (Trinity College)