Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008

Rancho Cucamonga takes broom to Modesto

The 140-game marathon that is the California League season has been reduced to a 19-game sprint for the Modesto Nuts.

The trouble for the Nuts is that they are entering that stretch run with a severe limp.

Wednesday's 4-3 loss to Rancho Cucamonga was so typical of Modesto's recent slide in that the Nuts played well but were undone by a single inning.

In this case it was the Quakes' three-run sixth inning that gave the visitors the lead after five nearly unhittable innings thrown by Aneury Rodriguez.

The game-winner for Rancho came in the eighth off Will Harris (2-4,) who allowed a two-out double followed by an intentional walk and off-field RBI single by Drew Toussaint.

That's the way the Quakes finished off the three-game sweep of Modesto, a whitewash that extended some other Nuts' woes.

On July 25, following a 5-2 victory over San Jose, Modesto had a four-game lead in the North Division second-half standings. If they didn't win the division outright, the Nuts appeared to be a lock for at least a wild-card berth.

Since then, Modesto has lost 11 of 16 games. More disturbing is that its home record during that slide is a miserable 2-8.

It all means that the Nuts have fallen 3½ games behind first-place San Jose, and have turned the run for a wild card spot into a true race. The Nuts' lead over Bakersfield for the final playoff berth has dwindled to 3½ games.

Modesto opens a three-game set at the Blaze tonight, but also finishes the regular season with three games in Bakersfield Aug. 30-Sept. 1.

And about that limp. Centerfielder and leadoff hitter Anthony Jackson may be out for the rest of the season with hamstring woes. Outfielder Jay Cox has missed a week with a quadriceps strain, but could return by Saturday. Outfielder Travis Becktel is out indefinitely with a muscle pull in his rib cage.

And on Wednesday night, shortstop Radames Nazario, who has looked good at the position in his 10 games with the team, had to be removed with a hamstring strain.

"We just have to get some guys back," said Nuts manager Jerry Weinstein. "We have to hope that Nazario's hamstring is not a serious situation and we have Cox coming back."

Modesto grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first when it loaded the bases on a single and two walks, scoring when Michael McKenry lofted a sacrifice fly to center.

The Nuts had a chance to add to the lead in the fifth, getting a leadoff single from Nelson Robledo and a hit-and-run single to left from Nazario. But

Robledo was out at third trying to take the extra base, and the problem was compounded when Nazario pulled his hamstring sliding safely into second base.

"We've had a chance to win every night with a play here and a play there," Weinstein said. "If we run the bases together tonight maybe we have a big inning in the fifth."

Instead, the Nuts had to settle for taking their 1-0 lead into the sixth, the only inning in which Rodriguez allowed more than one baserunner.

Sailing along with a one-hit shutout, Rodriguez allowed the Quakes to load the bases with nobody out on a double, a hit batsman and a short single. He got the first out via strikeout, but Hank Conger drove in two runs with a single and Drew Toussaint added a sacrifice fly for a 3-1 Rancho lead.

Modesto loaded the bases with one out on three singles, chasing Quakes' starter Jordon Towns. Reliever Brian Chambers was greeted by Lino

Garcia's RBI single to center, and Robledo tied the game 3-3 with a sacrifice fly.

Modestogot three hits from Mike Paulk to outhit the Quakes 10-6.

"We pitched well, caught well and hit the ball well," Weinstein said. "But we could have run the bases better."