Modesto Nuts snap four-game skid with win over Visalia Rawhide

The Modesto Nuts scored four runs in the first inning and defeated the Visalia Rawhide 7-3 on Sunday to snap a four-game losing streakand gain a game in the race for the California League’s North Division title.

Modesto (24-26) wasted little time jumping on Visalia (34-16) starter Blake Perry, who regrouped to pitch six decent innings.

Raimel Tapia led off the game with a double to left and scored on a single by Jordan Patterson, who came around on Ryan McMahon’s fifth home run of the season. Correlle Prime followed with his sixth homer.

Just like that, three minutes into the game, the Nuts had a four-run lead against the North Division leader.

Visalia chipped away with a run in the second and another in the fifth, but Modesto put up three in the seventh to lead 7-2.

Matt Stites relieved Perry to start the seventh, and the Nuts were as rude to Stites as they were to the Rawhide’s starter.

Modesto got things going with a double by Wilson Soriano, who moved to third on a wild pitch. A walk to Cesar Galvez put runners on the corners with nobody out for Tapia, who singled in Soriano. Galvez, who advanced to third on Tapia’s single, trotted home when catcher Michael Perez blew the throw trying to cut down Tapia stealing second. Prime drove in Tapia with a single to center.

Visalia pushed across a final run in the eighth.

Harrison Musgrave (6-1) earned the victory, scattering six hits and a walk over six innings. He struck out six.

The teams have split the first two games of the four-game set – Visalia won 8-1 on Saturday – with 6 p.m. starts set for Monday and Tuesday. The Rawhide holds a seemingly insurmountable 10-game lead over the Nuts with 20 games remaining before the California-Carolina League All-Star Game on June 23 in Rancho Cucamonga.

However, Modesto has 14 of its final 18 gamesat John Thurman Field. Visalia is on the road for 11 of its final 18.

The Nuts must take care of business over the next two nights for those final 18 to be meaningful.

This story was originally published May 31, 2015 at 6:49 PM with the headline "Modesto Nuts snap four-game skid with win over Visalia Rawhide."