Ray Masterful In 4-0 Giants Shutout Victory
July 25, 2007 - California League (CalL1)
San Jose Giants News Release
Ronnie Ray struck out a season-high 11 batters over seven dominant innings to lead the San Jose Giants to their fourth win in a row, a 4-0 shutout of the Visalia Oaks on Wednesday night. In front of 2,403 fans at Municipal Stadium, Ray was superb on the mound yielding just three hits to run his record to 8-7. Brad Boyer delivered the big hit for the Giants smacking a two-out, two-run triple in the bottom of the seventh inning to break a scoreless tie. With the victory, the Giants improve their Second Half record to 18-15 and move within two games of the first-place Modesto Nuts (20-13).
Ray struck out five batters over the first two innings and allowed just four base runners during his entire stint on the mound - three singles and one walk. The right-hander struck out the side in the second inning while also fanning a pair in the fourth and fifth frames. Ray set down the final seven Visalia hitters he faced and threw a total of 104 pitches during his outing.
Matt Torra was equally impressive over the first six innings for the Oaks. Torra faced just one batter over the minimum allowing two hits with no walks.
The Giants finally broke through against Torra in the bottom of the seventh as Adam Witter and Pablo Sandoval singled consecutively with two outs. Boyer then stepped to the plate and lined a 1-1 pitch from Torra down the right field line to easily score both runners. The triple extended Boyer's hitting streak to 13 games.
San Jose added two insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth to take a 4-0 lead. With one out, David Maroul singled before stealing second. Then with two down, back-to-back walks to Brian Bocock and Ben Copeland loaded the bases ending Torra's night.
Cody Evans was summoned from the bullpen and he worked the count full to Witter before the Giants clean-up hitter lined a single into right field. The hit scored both Maroul and Bocock to push the Giants advantage to 4-0.
Witter (3-for-4, 2 RBI) led the seven-hit San Jose offensive attack. The Giants out-hit Visalia by a 7-6 margin.
Torra (6-9) suffered the loss for the Oaks allowing four runs (all earned) on six hits in 7 2/3 innings. The right-hander walked a pair and struck out seven.
Jason Waddell earned his first save of the year for the Giants firing two scoreless innings to end the game. Waddell allowed a pair of singles in the top of the eighth, but worked out of trouble by striking out Bryan Byrne, the top run producer in the Visalia line-up. The southpaw then pitched through a one-out bunt single off the bat of Frank Curreri to throw a scoreless top of the ninth.
Notes: Ray achieved a new season-high in both innings and strikeouts ... He lowered his ERA to 5.06 ... Waddell struck out three, without issuing a walk, during his two-inning stint on the mound ... Boyer's 13-game hitting streak matches the longest for a San Jose player this season (Witter) ... Sandoval (1-for-4) extended his hitting streak to nine games while Bocock's (0-for-3) eight-game run came to an end ... Witter was the lone Giants player to finish with more than one hit ... San Jose improves to 5-1 against Visalia this season at Municipal Stadium (3-6 on the road) ... The Giants' overall record now stands at 57-46 - tops in the North Division.
On Deck: The Giants look for a three-game sweep of the Oaks when the series concludes on Thursday afternoon. First pitch at Municipal Stadium is scheduled for 12:20 P.M. Gregorio Martinez (5-7, 4.69 ERA) is slated to start on the mound for San Jose while Visalia is expected to counter with Hector Ambriz (7-6, 3.98 ERA). Tickets can be purchased by calling (408)297-1435 or by visiting www.sjgiants.com.
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California League Stories from July 25, 2007
- JetHawks Win 13th of 15 Games Against Mavericks - Lancaster JetHawks
- Ray Masterful In 4-0 Giants Shutout Victory - San Jose Giants
- Russ Ortiz Tentatively Scheduled To Rehab with the San Jose Giants - San Jose Giants
- Breast Cancer Awareness Night and Zooperstars kick off four game homestand at the Epicenter - Rancho Cucamonga Quakes
- JetHawks Hit Four Home Runs in 15-8 Win - Lancaster JetHawks
- Martinez Dominates Visalia In 6-3 Giants Win - San Jose Giants
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