If you saw the game, it certainly had to rank up there with one of the best Burbank vs. Burroughs baseball games in recent memory.
If you didn’t see it, the best thing is you can see it again in less than 72 hours when the teams hook up at Burroughs.
In an outstanding pitching duel that saw both starting pitchers leave only because they had exceeded the pitch count limit, Burbank defeated visiting Burroughs 2-1 in nine innings Tuesday night.
With the bases loaded, Jimmy Cafferty hit the first pitch he saw from Burroughs reliever Sebastian Zamora to right field to end the game for the Bulldogs.
“I knew he’d go fastball to get ahead in the count and I had to make him pay,” Cafferty said. “I had to do it for my teammates. We needed this win.”
Burbank (15-7, 10-3 in league) is now tied with Burroughs (16-10, 10-3) for second place in the league. Arcadia holds a one-game lead for the league title, after its 4-1 win over Crescenta Valley, which has secured the fourth-place position in the league.
Burroughs pitcher Gunnar Nichols was superb in allowing just three hits over eight innings, none of which came past the second inning.
“I thought it was a battle. The pitching was really great. It took me an inning or two to settle in. Once I did, I kept it going,” said Nichols, who had 12 strikeouts.
Burbank scored in the first inning as Wyatt Lamarsna singled and scored on a ground ball double by Jared Cantu just inside the right-field baseline.
Burroughs tied things in the sixth inning when pinch-runner Dylan Conahan scored from second base following an infield error by Burbank.
Burbank pitcher Josh DiPietro went seven innings, surrendered just four hits, and struck out eight Burroughs hitters. He was relieved in extra innings by Jose Avellaneda, who threw two scoreless innings.
“It is definitely one for the books in the Burbank-Burroughs series. I tip my cap to them. They played well. We didn’t execute. That’s baseball,” Burroughs coach Matt Magallon said. “We get another crack at them and we’ll see how it goes. If we played the way we did today, it is probably going to turn out the same exact way. If we play to our capability, then it is probably going to go the other way.”
Burbank coach Bob Hart applauded the effort.
“It was just a great all-around baseball game. Both teams played really well. The pitching was outstanding. It’s a play here or a play there. That’s baseball,” he said.
