Bieniasz collects 7th loss as Blaze burn JetHawks

Bakersfield snapped Lancaster's twogame winning streak as Derek Bieniaz absorbed his league-leading seventh loss of the season

By DAVE RASBACH
Valley Press Staff Writer

One of these days his performance won't be evaluated based on velocity and number of pitches, but rather whether he helped his team win or not.

One of these days. . .

But for now, those plans will have to wait.

Despite a relatively strong performance by Bieniasz and a furious ninth-inning comeback, the JetHawks dropped a 6-5 decision to the Bakersfield Blaze Saturday before a sellout crowd of 4,653 on a breezy night at Lancaster Municipal Stadium.

"I made too many mistake pitches tonight," Bieniasz said of his performance. "I can't keep doing that, especially in this park."

The loss ended a modest twogame winning streak by the JetHawks (16-27), which was their first in nearly a month.

Lancaster had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, when Greg Connors hit a leadoff solo homer to draw within two runs, 6-4.

A crucial wild pitch and throwing error by catcher Sammy Serrano allowed Cirilo Cruz Jr. to score from second base later in the inning and placed Harvey Hargrove at third representing the tying run with two outs.

Joel Ramirez's ground ball, which would have scored Hargrove, was bobbled by Bakersfield third baseman Xavier Burns, but he managed to recover and make a throw that beat a sliding Ramirez at first for the final out of the game.

"If he runs through the bag, he might have had an argument," JetHawks manager Darrin Garner said. "That's what I told them, is we don't do the head-first slide. We run through the bag."

If Ramirez had reached base, Bieniasz would have been off the hook for his seventh loss in as many starts. He now leads the league in losses.

Even though that didn't happen, Bieniasz certainly shouldn't be discouraged by his performance as he attempts to come back from wrist and elbow injuries that forced him to miss all or parts of the last three seasons.

"Every time out, we try to find something positive to pump him up," JetHawks pitching coach Greg Harris said. "I think he pitched pretty well tonight, even though his velocity was a little down from three starts ago. But he did a good job at hitting his spots and keeping us in the game."

The right-hander pitched into the seventh inning for the second time this season.

Although he allowed the Blaze 10 hits, he didn't walk a batter and struck out four. He also held Bakersfield to five runs, one of which came on a solo homer by Cody Ransom to lead off the seventh inning.

That came on Bieniasz's seasonhigh 92nd pitch of the evening and 61st strike. It ended up being his last pitch in an otherwise strong outing.

"He was moving the ball in and out," Garner said. "He showed me something. That's why I let him go out there for the seventh, when I usually wouldn't have."

With the exception of a May 6 game against San Jose, it was his best outing of the season. By comparison, Bieniasz entered the game with an 8.64 ERA in his previous six starts.

Bieniasz's biggest problem Saturday was the lack of offensive support he received from his teammates. The JetHawks generated only six hits and one walk off Bakersfield starter Tony Coscia (3-5) and two Blaze relievers.

"Personally, I think we should have tore up that first pitcher," Garner said. "He got lucky against us. . . We didn't hit him as well as I thought we could have."

After Bakersfield jumped ahead with two runs in the first inning and one in the second, Lancaster came back to tie the game, 3-3, on Shawn McCorkle's two-run homer to center field in the fourth inning.

But Bakersfield regained the lead in the top of the fifth, when Chad Faircloth tripled down the right-field line off Bieniasz to open the inning. Steve Hill's ground out to second base brought Faircloth home one batter later.

Cody Ransom's homer made it 5-3 Bakersfield.