Teams would be happy to have one state batting leader, but the Pasadena City College baseball team has two in the hot-hitting duo of leadoff batter Max Blessinger and No. 2 hitter Raider Tello. The pair just finished a bash brothers show in PCC's two non-conference wins over Victor Valley this week.
The state's No. 11-ranked Lancers matched their best start in now seven seasons under head coach Pat McGee, who collected his 125th career victory Thursday in a 15-9 slugfest over visiting Victor Valley College. PCC routed the Rams, 16-0, on the road on Tuesday and has upped its overall record to 18-7. The 2019 Lancers also began that season at 18-7 and finished 25-15 while tying for the South Coast Conference North Division title.
This year, PCC is 8-4 in the SCC, currently trailing Mt. San Antonio (8-3, .727) and East Los Angeles (10-4, .714) in a hotly-contested conference race. The Lancers won both of their series v. Mt. SAC and ELAC, each 2-games-to-one, and have 12 more conference games to go to see if they can win their first outright conference title since joining the SCC in 1988.
On Thursday at Brookside Park's Jackie Robinson Field, Blessinger reached base in all six of his plate appearances, batting 4-for-4 with a double, a triple, a walk, a hit-by-pitch, two stolen bases and four runs scored. The sophomore transfer leads the state in runs scored with 38, and is sixth in both RBI (33) and hits (44). He raised his batting average 23 points in one day to get to the .415 mark.
Meanwhile, Tello, at the designated hitter spot this week, went 2-for-5, lined one of the team's three sacrifice flies and had two RBI overall. The redshirt freshman is the first California Community College player to reach 50 hits this season (leads state with 51), his .464 batting average is third in the state, and his 34 RBI fifth.
Toshiki Kuriya, from Japan, has settled in as the team's new starting third baseman and he batted 3-for-6 and knocked in two runs. Kuriya is on a 5-game hitting streak (9-for-23, .391) since joining the starting lineup. .
Leftfielder Aryonis Harrison totaled 2-for-4, two RBI, a stolen base and both he and Kuriya executed bunt singles during rallies. Second baseman Andrew Scannell was 1-for-3, lining a second-inning double, and walked twice.
First baseman Collin Johnson hit 1-for-3 and drove in two RBI while catcher Matt Rice, the only player out of 18 starters on either team that didn't get a hit, still knocked in three RBI. Rice (0-for-3) grounded out to short that brought in a run in the first, hit a sacrifice fly in the sixth, and was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the seventh.
Benny Olguin pitched 2.2 innings of no-hit relief as he raised his record to 5-1 and dropped his ERA to a SCC-leading 1.71. Starter Ryan Graves pitched 4.1 innings, but was touched for 10 hits, allowing four runs (two earned), and no walks. Nicolas Day struck out the side in the ninth to close out the win.
The game had its share of controversy. In the fifth, Victor Valley trailed 7-3 when Rams third baseman Zackary Toohey-Ross hit a bomb to center that appeared to hit the yellow line at the fence for what would have been a 3-run homer. The umpires instead ruled the ball hit below the line and that the ball was live. In the ensuing confusion on the basepaths, the Rams ended up scoring just one run on the play (a throwing error to home plate) and Toohey-Ross settled for a double. Olguin entered the game at that point and shut down the rally, keeping PCC's lead solid at 7-4.
In the eighth, VVC rallied with three consecutive RBI singles and thought had the bases loaded with one out when Hunter Santos' skied a fly ball that was dropped for an error in short left field by shortstop Isaac Luevano. Instead, the base umpire ruled it an infield fly, an automatic out for Santos and then the Lancers tagged out a runner on the basepaths for a double play that ended the rally and inning at 15-7.
On Tuesday, the Lancers had a much easier time as six PCC pitchers combined for a 6-hit shutout, allowing no walks, but striking out 12. Starter Damien Ureta (two innings, credited with the "staff victory") was followed by Kyle Noell (two no-hit innings, three Ks), Hayden Zweig (one inning), Chase Pedersen (one no-hit inning, two Ks), Martin Hernandez (one inning), and Jakob Guardado (two innings, three Ks).
PCC's 16-hit attack was led by Tello's second 5-hit game of the season, including one of the team's four doubles. Blessinger batted 3-for-7, a double, with three RBI and Luevano matched Blessinger's performance from a game later by reaching base safely in all six of his plate appearances. Luevano batted 2-for-2, scored three runs, drew three walks and had one hit-by-pitch. Kuriya hit 2-for-6 and catcher Brennan Beckley was 2-for-5. Rightfielder Yuto Mimura came off the bench to go 1-for-2 with a double.
The Lancers pitching staff had a streak of 25 consecutive innings over four games without a walk end with a sixth-inning free pass allowed on Thursday. PCC's offense has reached double digits in hits 16 times this season and scored 10 or more runs 10 times.
PCC will be tested on Saturday, Mar. 26 (1 p.m.) when it travels to face state #8-ranked Palomar.
Nicolas Day closed out Thursday's win v. Victor Valley
