Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer
Yuba-Sutter Freebirds
Composite Schedule

McPherson, Bullpen Shine as Yolo Top Boise

High Wheelers hurlers only allow total of four runs in two games

McPherson, Bullpen Shine as Yolo Top Boise
Video Box Score

Pitching has been the story for the first three games of this series as the Yolo High Wheelers (47-38; 24-15) defeated the Boise Hawks (48-39; 23-16) 4-1 on Thursday night at Memorial Stadium in Boise.  Yolo hurlers in the games here have allowed a total of four runs.

 
Yolo is now in sole possession by one game of the second playoff spot in the Pioneer League over Boise with nine games left for each.  The High Wheelers are 13-3 in their last 16 games.  The High Wheelers trail the Oakland Ballers by two games in the race for first.
 
Brandon McPherson (6-1) was the star for the High Wheelers.  After allowing a first inning run (uneared) he never allowed a runner past second the rest of the way.  The right-hander worked seven innings, issued five hits, one walk and struck out four.  McPherson has won his last two starts--both against Boise.  In that span he's worked 13 innings given up two earned runs, with 1.38 ERA and seven strikeouts.
 
McPherson deflected a lot of attention to his catcher Angel Mendoza, "Angel and I got together beforehand and devised a game plan about how we wanted to attack them.  We remembered what we did last week against them and what worked and didn't and built off of that for this outing."
 
The bullpen was masterful again with Kris Anglin and Ty Buckner (11) pitching a perfect eighth and ninth respectively.  That extends Yolo's bullpen streak to 25 2/3 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run.
 
The High Wheelers were down 1-0 heading to the fourth.  First baseman Jose Gonzalez (18--team-high) led off with a long homer to right.  That tied the game and extended his streak of reaching base safely to 33 consecutive games.  Two batters later, Yolo right fielder Tanner Smith singled to center and stole second.  With Smith at second, and,  two out, it was third baseman Travis Holt who had what turned out to be the game deciding hit with an RBI single to center making it 2-1.  After Holt, Mendoza was hit with a pitch and that allowed center fielder Brayland Skinner to deliver an RBI single giving the visitors a 3-1 lead.  
 
Yolo added another run in the seventh on a wild pitch which made it 4-1.
 
The teams meet on Friday in game four of this series in Boise at 6:05 p.m. PST.  Left-hander Brandon Mitchell is the scheduled starter for Yolo against Boise righty Brayden Spears.
 
HIGH NOTES
Braedon Blackford, the designated hitter on Thursday had his streak of 14 straight games reaching base safely come to an end, he was 0-3 but did have a sacrifice bunt which led to the seventh inning run
 
Anglin has pitched four times against Boise totalling six hitless innings, one base runner (on an error), with 11 strikeouts
 
Buckner has four straight outings with a scoreless ninth.  His 11 saves are tied for first in the Pioneer League with Northern Colorado's Dutch Landis.  In his last five outings he has a win and three saves
 
In addition to leading the in homers, Gonzalez leads the club in RBI's with 75
 
The last earned run allowed by the High Wheelers bullpen was game two of the doubleheader at Grand Junction on August 17