Tijuana Toros Recap: Toros Snap Four-Game Losing Streak, Blowout Durango, Receive Championship Rings
Tijuana, Mexico
The Tijuana Toros played the second game of a three-game series against Generales de Durango this Saturday.
The Border City Bulls suffered a heart-breaking 9-7 loss in extra innings in the first game of the series and were desperate to get a W. Tijuana was inclusively on a four-game losing streak heading into this encounter but was the polar opposite of what it had been recently in this clash.
The pitching matchup was a good indicator that the Toros could break their losing streak as Kyle Lobstein was facing Luis Mendez. Lobstein had been excellent in his first start with Tijuana, throwing five and a third scoreless innings against Acereros del Norte. Mendez had struggled massively with six earned runs in just three and two-thirds innings of work in his first start of the season.
The runs started flowing in since the first inning with Cyle Hankerd opening the score with an RBI single that drove in Isaac Rodriguez. Former Padres’ infielder Jorge Cantu then made it a 4-0 game with a three-run blast and the border city side seemed to have the W in the bag.
The score remained the same up until the fourth inning where four more runs came in for Pedro Mere’s men. Isaac Rodriguez drove in Maxwell Leon with an RBI single and Cyle Hankered continued his impressive night with a three-run dinger that made it an 8-0 scoreline. The onslaught continued and came to a halt in the sixth inning as Jorge Cantu drove in Isaac Rodriguez for the Toros’ final run of the night. Durango struggled to produce any offense in the game but finally scrapped a run in the seventh inning via an RBI single by Jon Del Campo.
Kyle Lobstein pitched a very solid game as he tossed four scoreless innings and the bullpen finally came together and provided a solid outing. Sergio Alvarado, Fabian Williamson and Pedro Villarreal all did not allow a run while Fernando Gallegos allowed a run in one and two-thirds innings out of the pen. The lone run conceded by the bullpen was much better than the 18 that were allowed by the relievers in the four games before this one. The standouts at the plate for Pedro Mere were Cyle Hankered and Jorge Cantu, who produced four runs each.
Chula Vista native and former Castle Park high school student Alex Sanabia showing off his 2017 #LMB championship ring. pic.twitter.com/jUiNcJCIK0
— Francisco Velasco (@FranciscoEfV) April 1, 2018
The pitching was the main talking point of the night as it had allowed at least six runs in the Toros’ four-game losing streak prior to this encounter. The win was fitting for the night as the Border City Bulls were presented with their 2017 LMB championship rings after the clash.
The Toros now improve to 3-5 on the 2018 season and need to ride on this win to take this series against Durango and get back on track after a disappointing run. The series against Generales will conclude this Sunday at the Estadio Gasmart before the border city side gets back on the road.
Francisco, 26, Chula Vista/Tijuana. I have been a Padres fan all my life, did most of the series previews and recaps in the Padres’ 2016 season for EVT. Now I focus more on the local soccer scene. Tijuana Xolos, San Diego Loyal, San Diego Wave.