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Metro pitching going foul
Ham gives up one run in win; rest of staff allows 35 in 3 losses
By Eric Lansing
lansing@mscd.edu

Photo by Emily Mehring • emehring@mscd.edu Metro pitcher Braden Ham looks to strike out a Cowboys hitter March 9 against New Mexico Highlands at Auraria Field. Ham won his first game of the year as he pitched a complete-game six-hitter in a 2-1 win.

The early season struggles continued for Metro’s baseball team as they lost three of four games to New Mexico Highlands March 9 to 11 in conference action at Auraria Field.

Although the Roadrunners took the first game, games two through four featured offensive fireworks for the Cowboys as they scored 14, 11 and 10 runs respectively, to sweep the rest of the series. Metro’s pitching has been dismal all season, giving up an earned run average of 7.18. But also a major concern for the 4-11 baseball team is their hitting, as the ’Runners are second to last in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference in batting with a .266 average.

“They know they’re struggling,” Metro head coach Bobby Pierce said. “I need to get them convinced that they’re going to do better. They go out and they know they are expected to do a lot because … they have a four and a five next to their name. But when they try to force it and don’t let the game come to them, they start digging themselves into a deeper hole. It’s one of those great sayings: ‘If you find yourself in a hole, quit digging.’”

In the first game, pitcher Braden Ham pitched the best game of the season for the Roadrunners as he threw a one-run, six-hit complete game to record his first win of the year. The offense struggled for Metro, only scrounging up two runs, but Ham kept the Cowboys off the scoreboard, giving up one RBI groundout single to James Mayorga in the fifth inning.

The second day brought the same offensive woes and the return of dreadful pitching as Metro lost big in the doubleheader, 14-1 and 11-5.

Pitcher Josh Eckert, who has a 0-2 record with an ERA of 7.13, continued to struggle as he allowed 12 runs in 3.2 innings pitched in the March 10 morning game. However, only two runs were earned as Eckert walked three batters, threw a wild pitch, and the Roadrunners’ defense committed three errors.

Cowboys pitcher Stephen Flores pitched a complete game allowing only one run on five hits against Metro. Flores didn’t walk a batter and struck out six Roadrunners, winning his second game of the season.

Metro’s five hits all came via the single, and only first baseman Josh Marner had more than one hit with an RBI single in the fourth and a single in the seventh.

The nightcap wasn’t much different, as the Roadrunners still came away with only five hits and allowed Highlands to score galore in the 11-5 loss.

Just like the previous game, the Cowboys jumped out to a big lead by scoring three runs in the first inning. Mayorga singled and shortstop Jordan Prado walked, allowing designated hitter Miguel Porchas, who is second in the RMAC with six home runs, to smash Metro pitcher Ted Jamison’s pitch to deep center field.

Jamison started his second game of the season and has one of the four Metro wins on the season. In that win he pitched six innings, giving up one earned run and striking out six Colorado Christian batters March 4 at Auraria Field. However, against the Cowboys Jamison only lasted three innings, allowing seven runs – five earned – on four hits and four walked Cowboy batters.

Metro managed to score five runs, thanks in part to third baseman Brent Bowers, who went 2-for-2 and drove in two RBIs. The ’Runners were walked seven times by Highlands’ pitching, but couldn’t convert them into runs.

Cowboys pitcher Brandon Alves won his first game of the year with steady pitching as he went 5.1 innings, giving up three earned runs on four hits and striking out seven Roadrunners. Pitchers Mathew Martinez and Ryan Klassen finished the final 1.2 innings for Highlands,
allowing only one hit to finish the game.

In the final game of the series, the Cowboys scored in six of the nine innings played to defeat Metro 10-5.

The story of the game wasn’t the starting pitching, as Metro pitcher Mike Bilek pitched five strong innings, striking out six and giving up four runs and matching Cowboys pitcher Gilbert Palacios, who pitched seven innings and struck out five. But the story was the Roadrunners’ bullpen, who allowed Highlands to score seven runs in the final four innings.

The Roadrunners came away with nine hits and scored five runs, all in the eighth inning. Center fielder Kyle Bowman led Metro with two RBIs, and catcher Reece Gorman went 3-for-3 with one run scored.

The three losses drop Metro’s record to 4-11 overall and 3-5 in the RMAC. They will take on Colorado School of Mines March 14 in Golden before heading west for a four-game series against the top team in the RMAC in Mesa State March 16 to 18 in Grand Junction.