Goal-oriented Bass delivers

Jayson Bass' two-run homer, combined with Modesto's 10-7 loss to San Jose, moved Lancaster a game ahead of the A's in the Valley Division wild-card race.

Jayson Bass found a way to reach his personal goal, and at the same time give his team a boost toward the playoffs.

Bass' two-run home run in the top of the seventh inning sparked the JetHawks to a 9-6 victory over High Desert before 3,414 disappointed fans at Maverick Stadium.

The blast, which drove in Brendan Kingman, was Bass' 20th of the season, giving him 20 home runs and 20 steals for the first time in his professional career. The 6-foot-3, 212-pound slugger from Seattle had 31 steals entering the game.

"That was certainly a goal I set for myself before this season," Bass said. "It feels good to hit 20 home runs. This is by far my best season in minor league baseball."

As big as that home run was for Bass, it was even bigger for the JetHawks. Lancaster's win, coupled with a 10-7 victory by San Jose over Modesto at John Thurman Field gave the JetHawks a one-game lead in the Valley Division wild-card race with two games left to play. The JetHawks now only need a combination of two wins or two Modesto losses to clinch the final postseason berth in the Cal League playoffs.

"I like the position we're in better now, being up a game with two to play," JetHawks manager Rick Burleson said. "We now have a chance to win it outright and avoid the tie, which is something we want to do. But we have to keep taking it one game at a time."

High Desert wasn't as happy to see the score from Modesto. The Mavericks fell one game behind San Jose in their quest to clinch the best overall record in the league and a first-round bye in the playoffs.

It looked like both races might stay tied, as the Mavericks entered the seventh with a 6-5 lead after rallying for five runs in the bottom of the fourth. That inning was capped when John Adams hit a grand slam off Lancaster starter Joel Pineiro.

"I think the big thing there was after they scored five runs in that inning, they were only up by one run," Burleson said. "We weren't down three or four runs, and we had a chance to come back."

They did that in the top of the seventh. High Desert reliever Joe Verplancke walked Kingman to open the inning. Bass then crushed Verplancke's next pitch over the right-center field wall to give the JetHawks a one-run lead.

"I was looking fastball, and that's what he gave me," Bass said. "I was just looking for a good pitch to hit."

Jason Regan's one-out double down the left-field line in the top of the ninth scored pinch runner Chris Dean and Kingman with two insurance runs.

"We got a couple of real key hits there late," Burleson said. "It was nip and tuck all the way. When Regan got that hit, it took a lot of pressure off us."

The JetHawks certainly felt the pressure a half inning earlier, when Lancaster reliever Geronimo Newton walked the first two batters he faced in the bottom of the eighth. But he struck out Adams and Jhensey Sandoval and got Juan Bautista to ground out to end the threat.

Newton was just one of three Lancaster relievers that played a big part in Friday's win.

Brian Fitzgerald worked 3 2/3 scoreless innings in relief of Pineiro to pick up his first victory of the season against two losses. Fitzgerald allowed only two hits and a walk during the stretch.

Kevin Gryboski worked a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his seventh save of the season.

"All three of them were very good tonight," JetHawks pitching coach Jim Slaton said. "Actually I think we made only one bad pitch all night (Adam's grand slam). Other than that, it was a well pitched game."