"We're gonna stretch and strap it on and see how we do," Lancaster JetHawks' manager Dave Brundage said before Saturday afternoon's series opener with the High Desert Mavericks.
How you did, sleep-deprived and all, was this: 13 hits, five solid innings by starter Brett Hinchliffe and a 10-2 drubbing of the Mavericks in front of a matinee crowd of 2,180.
Already ensured of a break-even road trip, the JetHawks (7-3) guaranteed they'd be north of .500 by the time they enter The Hangar for Tuesday night's home opener against Visalia.
Did someone mention road trip?
After shutting out San Jose Friday night, the JetHawks bused all night, arriving in Lancaster around 5 a.m. They didn't arrive at Maverick Stadium until 12:48 p.m. for the 2:05 game.
But maybe sleep isn't all it's cracked up to be. As JetHawks trainer Rob Nodine said afterward, "You sleep when you die."
Which is what the Mavs (2-7) did. Their third-straight loss came on the heels of a 23-7 bludgeoning inflicted by San Bernardino Friday night.
Meanwhile, the early or late (depending on your view) start turned batting practice into on-the-job-training, not a problem for a Lancaster team hitting .301. Not a problem for Shane Monahan, who went 3-for-4 with his first home run of the season.
And not a problem for Jose Cruz Jr., who went 2-for-5 and drove in the JetHawks' first four runs with a pair of two-run doubles.
"I was trying to bear down because in my opinion, I've had trouble with runners on second," he said. "I don't know why, maybe paralysis by analysis or what."
Lack of sleep may be the recipe for that, too. Cruz said he didn't sleep on the bus, settling for "about four hours" after the team returned.
His first double came in the third, when he poked a double down the left-field line, scoring Marcus Sturdivant and Monahan. Cruz would score on Carlos Villalobos' single one out later.
The second came one inning later, when he lined a two-out Joey Rhodes pitch into the gap in left-center. The sizzling Mike Lanza (2-for-5, two runs, .474 average) and Monahan cruised home.
"I thought the big hit for us was Cruz's two-out (double)," Brundage said. "Instead of 3-0, it's now 5-0 and then Hinchliffe goes out there and leaves another zero. That's a big difference, 3-0 to 5-0, especially in this ballpark."
Monahan welcomed himself to "this ballpark" by needing the triple for the cycle. His third-inning double was the front-end of a back-to-back double-your-pleasure string with Cruz.
And his sixth-inning homer capped the second of two three-run innings Lancaster put up. Monahan drove a 3-2 changeup from Ned Darley over the right-field wall.
"I kept my hands down and stayed back," he said. "At first, I didn't think it was out."
Welcome to Maverick Stadium, Shane. You'll learn soon enough that any well-struck ball has a chance to get out of what is regarded as one of the most hitter-friendly parks in the country.
And Hinchliffe's five innings was impressive. Making his first start of the season, the 6-foot-5 right-hander allowed two runs and five hits with his 67 pitches. He mixed speeds throughout, kept the Mavs off-balance with a blend of fastballs and an effective changeup.
"Hinch set the tone for the entire game," Brundage said. "Anytime you get four scoreless innings and five innings in this park, that's important. That's obviously the big key to the whole game."