Carson Baseball Team Flashes Plate Power and Surprises San Pedro, 9-7

Greeting home-run hitters as they trot by his third-base coaching box is a new experience for Carson High Coach Marty Blankenship.

He enjoyed the pleasure twice in the Colts’ 9-7 victory over visiting San Pedro High on Thursday.

“I’m surprised when we hit a home run,” said Blankenship. “We turned the tables around today. Usually it is San Pedro who is hitting them out.”

The victory was Carson’s second straight over its Pacific League rival.

They have 3-3 league marks, trailing only Banning. Clearing the fence twice to cap Carson’s sweep was third baseman Steve Rubio.

The first time was a two-run blast to left-center in the third that gave Carson a 3-2 lead. Rubio’s second four-bagger came during a Colt uprising in the fifth.

Sheldon James opened the inning off San Pedro pitcher Gerardo Castaneda with a triple.

Pitcher Alfredo Rodriguez followed with a ground single to left through the drawn-in infield.

Next came Rubio’s towering drive near the same 416-foot sign he had cleared earlier.

Carson tallied three more runs in the fifth off an obviously shaken Castaneda to take a 9-2 lead.

The Pirates came back in the sixth to score five runs, all unearned, following a Rubio error. Two-out singles by Joe Boncich and Matt Rasband cut the Colt led to two before Rodriguez got Dale Johnson to ground out.

Johnson, a .432 hitter, was hitless in four tries.

San Pedro put the tying runs on in the seventh with one out, but Rodriguez closed out the game with a flair by striking out Brian Schiazzano.