Pappas Shines in Musical Chairs Knockout Round Comeback Win to Keep First Place

LONG BEACH, CA – The Long Beach Coast (67-28) bested the Modesto Roadsters (57-28) in the Knockout Round after trailing by seven runs by the middle of the fifth inning. The victory maintains control of first place in the overall standings for Long Beach, holding a half-game lead over the Billings Mustangs heading into the final contest of the regular season.

Before slugger Cuba Bess fired three blasts to win the tie-breaking home run derby, catcher Johnny Pappas took the mound to generate momentum for a despondently down crew. Pitching in a six-run deficit, the position player retired his first seven batters, striking out a Roadster, and only exiting after serving a single to his eighth.

Center fielder Emilio Corona impacted the complexion of the contest in the bottom of the seventh, launching a grand slam to cut the gap from 8-2 Modesto to 8-6. The league-leader in stolen bases with 49, Corona blended in his power, tying up Bess for the team lead in homers with his 27th.

Bess reappeared in conversation, pinch hitting in the eighth inning to bring around a run on an RBI double and tie the game on a wild pitch. His trio of homers in the Knockout Round win wrapped up the L.B.C.’s biggest comeback victory since the eight-run turnaround against the Mobiles on Wednesday, Jun. 3, the second-ever home game for the Coast.

Starter Matthew O’Brien struggled through 2.0+ innings, allowing four runs on nine hits. Right-hander Jack Martin replaced him with zero outs in the third frame, and he retired the next three batters. The script flipped to left-hander Jaxon Byrd for the fourth and fifth, snapping his first four batters but exiting after three-consecutive walks. Reliever Ryan Faulks followed up, finishing the frame. Byrd surrendered three runs in the fifth, while Faulks allowed one.

Sidearm rookie Marco DiGirolamo settled the eighth inning in Pappas’ place. Southpaw Jake Dixon entered the contest for the ninth, striking out a batter and allowing two hits.

Tensions flared when closer Zach Voelker kept the affair tied by striking out two Roadsters and stranding the bases loaded. That inning wrapped up with Voelker directing the umpires’ attention to an issue in the Modesto dugout, Roadsters shortstop Jacob Lojewski calling a timeout in the middle of Voelker’s delivery, and the benches clearing after an emphatic full count swinging K.

First pitch for the final regular season game in the Coast’s inaugural campaign stands set for 1:05 p.m. PDT on Sunday at Blair Field. Gates open at noon. Fans can find their coverage on the Home Team Network and Coast YouTube page at 12:45 p.m. with the Beach Ball Pre-Game Report.