Confines not so friendly for hosts

Failing to take advantage of the home field against Stockton, Lancaster lost its seventh game this reason at The Hanger

The JetHawks dropped their seventh home game of the season Sunday afternoon, losing 6-4 to the Stockton Ports in front of an announced crowd of 3,281.

Once again it was the visiting team who took advantage of a park that's designed perfectly for the winds that always seem to blow out.

Starting pitcher Brian Fitzgerald (1-2) gave up back-to-back solo home runs in the sixth inning to Stockton's Nick Caiazzo and Jeff Schaub that proved to be the difference in the game. Both home runs appeared to be helped by the wind.

"(Fitzgerald) pitched a great game, he just got a couple of balls up," Lancaster coach Darrin Garner said. "When that happens here, the ball is going to leave the park most of the time.

"Other than that, he pitched great. He was able to pitch his way out of jams. If we can just play defense behind him, he'd be all right."

The loss was Fitzgerald's (1-2) second at The Hangar. In the home opener on April 14, he was the loser in a game in which his defense committed five errors in a 9-4 loss.

Sunday's loss wasn't much different. Other than the sixth inning, all of the runs scored by the Ports were a result of errors.

A throwing miscue in the fourth inning by first baseman Shawn McCorkle on a pick-off attempt allowed Jared Mathis to advance to second. Two batters later, Jon Macalutas doubled him in for the Ports' first run.

In the fifth inning, it was Gerald Eady's throwing error to third that allowed a run to score in the three-run inning. Eady, who had just one error before Sunday's game, added another when he misplayed a ball hit to center by Macalutas.

If Fitzgerald is frustrated by the defense in his two losses, he isn't saying it.

"That's just baseball," Fitzgerald said matter-of-factly. "As a pitcher, you just need to take it as it comes. If I got upset about what happened behind me, I wouldn't be able to concentrate on who was at the plate."

Fitzgerald, who was a middle reliever for Lancaster in 1998, had five strikeouts and didn't walk a batter in his six innings of work. The left-hander faced just 10 batters in the first three innings.

"We just seem to break down when he pitches," Garner said. "We can't give the other guys four or five outs an inning."

As tough as it is to explain the defensive play when Fitzgerald starts, it's even tougher for the JetHawks to explain their poor record at home.

The loss was the seventh in nine home games for Lancaster. On the road, Lancaster is 6-4 and has won two of the last three it has played away from The Hangar.

"We are not playing any different. . . We are playing just as hard," said catcher Greg Connors, who was 3-for-4 with two RBI. "Things just haven't been falling for us here. I don't know what it is."

The JetHawks pulled within two at 6-4 in the bottom of the seventh inning when Alexander Fernandez scored from second on an Eady single to center. Fernandez's double was just his second of the season.

Lancaster had runners at first and second with two outs in the ninth and its best hitter, Mike Marchiano, at the plate. However, Marchiano, who entered the game hitting .419, struck out for the final out.