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Baker splits with LG

Written by CASEY KELLAS The (La Grande) Observer May 10, 2010 06:36 am

LA GRANDE — It wasn’t exactly what they wanted, but they’ll have to take it. The La Grande baseball team picked up a split this weekend with rival Baker, winning Game 1 4-1 and falling late in Game 2, 7-6.

“I’m not real happy with a split,” LHS head coach Mark Lanman said. “I thought we played good enough to win both games. I think we deserved to win.”

Baker got on the board with one run in the second inning after failing to score in the first inning with the bases loaded.

The Tigers tied the game in the fourth inning, then took the lead in the fifth on a 2-run single by Evan Humphrey.

After starting the game a little wild, Zach Nice settled down after the second inning, cruising to a complete-game, three-hit victory.

“My fastball had some pretty good pop to it today, and my slider was pretty good,” Nice said. “I just wanted to come out and keep our playoff chances alive, and that’s what we did.”

Nice struck out 11 hitters while walking four. Humphrey finished the game 2-for-4 with two RBIs.

Logan Langford and Buck Arnoldus both hit double for La Grande.

The Tigers looked like they were going to take Game 2 as well, until Baker stormed back in the latter innings.

La Grande led 6-3 after four innings, while Carson Miller was keeping the Bulldog hitters off-balance.

But Baker got two runs in the fifth inning, forcing Lanman to bring in Cody Madsen in relief.

Then the Bulldogs tied the game in the sixth inning, before getting the go-ahead RBI single in the top of the seventh.

The Tigers went down in order in the bottom of the seventh to give Baker the win.

“That’s baseball for you,” Lanman said. “They’re (Baker) a good team. They hung in there and got us late.”

Langford finished 2-for-4 with a double and a RBI, and a number of guys recording just one hit.

With the split, Baker and La Grande remain tied in the Greater Oregon League at 6-4, while Ontario sits on top with a 7-3 record after taking two games from Mac-Hi this weekend.

The Tigers will wrap up the regular season against the Pioneers Saturday, while Ontario and Baker will square off.

“There’s a couple of different scenario’s that could play out, we just have to win two ball games,” Lanman said. “We’re focused on Mac-Hi.”