Modesto Nuts fall in 10th on throwing error

LANCASTER -- After combining for 21 runs in a wild affair Sunday night, the Modesto Nuts and Lancaster JetHawks got defensive Monday night. But it was a bad defensive play that cost the Nuts a 2-1 loss in 10 innings.

Shortstop's Cristhian Adames threw wild to first base, allowing Lancaster's George Springer to score from third base for the winning run. The JetHawks rallied with two outs and nobody on in the 10th against Modesto reliever Kurt Yacko.

Lancaster took a 1-0 lead in the fifth inning on Grant Hogue's RBI single. The Nuts tied it in the seventh on third baseman Joey Wong's leadoff home run. Wong, who was slated to be Modesto's everyday shortstop before being injured on opening night, finally has been returned to the Nuts' roster and played his first game back with the Nuts on Sunday.

Modesto starter Christian Bergman pitched well over six innings, allowing one run on four hits and a walk. He struck out seven Lancaster batters. Chad Rose took over from Bergman and shut the JetHawks down, allowing just one hit over three innings.

Yacko took the loss and fell to 6-4.

Also on Monday, Kyle Parker was named the California League hitter of the week after going 13-for-23 (.565) with a homer and six RBIs. That hot streak included a run Saturday and Sunday in which Parker went 8 for 9 in the first two games of the Lancaster series.

Parker, who missed 36 games with a broken hand, raised his average from .274 to .305 by going 17-for-35 over a nine-game run.

The Nuts have 45 games remaining, and 12 of them will be against the first-place Visalia Rawhide. Visalia comes to John Thurman Field tonight to open a three-game series.

The Arizona affiliate will have a local player in tow. Bradin Hagens of Pitman High and Merced College began the season as a reliever for Visalia, and has made 24 appearances out of the Rawhide bullpen.

That was a change for Hagins, who made 24 starts last season for Low-A South Bend of the Midwest League. But on June 25 Hagins got a start for Visalia against Bakersfield and has made three more starts since then, going 2-1 with a 1.80 ERA.

His last start for the Rawhide was on Sunday in San Jose, a game in which he threw five innings and allowed one earned run on five hits over five innings in a 2-1 loss to the Giants. Because he threw Sunday, Hagins is not scheduled to pitch in this series.

Following this series, the schedule begins to favor the Nuts, who through Monday had played only six home games since June 24.

After this weekend's trip for a three-game series at South Division leader Lake Elsinore, Modesto plays 12 of the following 15 games at home, and all of the Nuts' remaining road games are either commuter trips to Stockton and San Jose or short jaunts to Visalia.

Wong, a teammate of Modesto reliever Kraig Sitton at Oregon State University, played nine games in Tri-City and 14 in Asheville while getting back in shape to rejoin the Nuts.

Catcher Drew Beuerlein was removed from the roster to make room for Wong.

Key Series

The Modesto Nuts open a three-game series against first-place Visalia today. The schedule:• Today: Visalia at Nuts, 7:05 p.m.

• Wednesday: Visalia at Nuts, 7:05 p.m.

• Thursday: Visalia at Nuts, 7:05 p.m.