Shaky bullpen leads to another though loss

Lancaster's shaky bullpen ruined a strong performance by starting pitcher Patrick Dunham

ADELANTO - The call to the bullpen is getting more and more difficult for Lancaster manager Rick Burleson to make.

The JetHawks twice blew leads late in Monday's game and ended up losing 6-5 to High Desert in extra innings at Maverick Stadium.

Jarrod Patterson belted a solo home run off Brian Fitzgerald to erase Lancaster's one-run lead entering the bottom of the 10th.

High Desert then loaded the bases with no outs in the 10th against Kevin Gryboski (1-4) before Ron Calloway singled in Kevin Clark with the game-winning run.

"We battled tonight," Burleson said. "It will turn around. This is one of those things you go through in baseball."

High Desert completed the series sweep against Lancaster and sent the JetHawks (8-10) two games below .500 for the first time during the second half. The loss was the JetHawks' sixth in their last seven games.

"We're in a little rut right now," Burleson said. "It will turn around. We've got to make sure that we turn it around."

It looked like the JetHawks might be on the road to doing that when Marcus Sturdivant scored the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th. He led off the frame with a triple to right-center field and scored on Martin Sanchez's (3-0) wild pitch.

And that wasn't the first time Lancaster thought it had the game won, only to see its advantage slip away.

Lancaster appeared to have the win locked up when it took a 4-2 lead into the bottom of the eighth. Starter Patrick Dunham allowed a leadoff single to Jackie Rexrode, but retired Julius Matos before giving way to Fitzgerald.

Fitzgerald fell behind the first batter he faced, Patterson, 3-0, but seemed to be almost out of trouble on his fourth pitch, a called strike. Both Patterson and Rexrode acted like the pitch was a ball, allowing Lancaster catcher Francisco Santiestaban a chance to throw to first to pick off Rexrode for the second out of the inning.

Fitzgerald ended up walking Patterson. Kevin Clark followed with a double into right-center field. Jayson Bass dove at the ball in an attempt to keep it from going to the wall, but missed and was charged with an error, allowing Patterson to score from first.

Three pitches later, Junior Spivey doubled into the left-center field gap, scoring Clark from second base and sending the game to the ninth inning tied, 4-4.

"Right now, we can't seem to make the big pitch when we need it," Burleson said. "It seems like we got the big hits a couple of times tonight."

During the three-game series in High Desert, the Lancaster bullpen, which has been short-handed, allowed 21 earned runs in 11 2/3 innings and lost the lead in two games.

The two runs in the bottom of the eighth ended an excellent chance for Dunham to win his 10th game of the season. Dunham, who had lost his two previous starts, was outstanding in his 7 1/3 innings of work. He allowed only two earned runs on seven hits and a walk. He also tied a Lancaster single-game season-high with 12 strikeouts.

"I was fired up to face High Desert," Dunham said. "They have some red-hot hitters on this team, and I knew I was going to have to pitch a great game."

Unfortunately for Dunham and the JetHawks, High Desert starter Brad Penny was equal to the task. Penny retired the first 13 batters he faced and held Lancaster to a Jayson Bass home run through the first six innings.

Bass also doubled in Jason Regan in the seventh and scored the go-ahead run on Matt Sachse's single. Lancaster added what it thought would be an insurance run in the eighth, when Anton French plated Ramon Vazquez with a sacrifice fly.