Dan Cromar / Roundup
Two pitchers went head to head this past weekend.
One of them was on a tear, putting up ridiculous numbers and garnering some pretty strong attention.
The other was just a solid starter, going out there to try and keep up.
They each threw the game of their lives, making it a close one until the very end, but ultimately, one of them had to lose.
Ubaldo Jimenez and Clayton Kershaw?
Nope.
Try Kyle Petter and Ryan Santhon.
Unfortunately for the baseball Brahmas, however, this one didn’t end with the underdog on top.
They knew going in what they were up against. Petter posted an 11-0 record with a 1.74 ERA in the regular season.
He had scouts for colleges and major league teams alike lined up along the backstop to see his stuff.
He had the Brahmas already against the ropes in a “win or go home” situation.
Finally, he had the advantage of facing Ryan Santhon instead of Carlos Gonzalez, who had started the day before and taken the loss.
The previous day’s winner, Andrew Pulido, who, while a solid pitcher with some solid numbers, is no Petter, had kept the Brahmas bats quiet.
Santhon’s regular season ERA was almost a point higher than Gonzalez’s, and Gonzalez had given up seven runs the day before.
He was a freshman in his first playoff start. Petter was the one who was used to the limelight.
Looking at that, this one should have been a blowout, and the Warriors would go home happy.
Unfortunately, the second half came true.
The Brahmas did fall to Petter.
He even scored the winning run in the top of the ninth off of Santhon himself.
He scored, in fact, the only run of the entire game.
That is the silver lining the Brahmas can take in to next season, should Santhon return.
Not only did he go toe to toe with one of the best pitchers around, he made him pitch a complete game shutout to get the win.
He kept Pierce in the game the whole way, working out of jams, getting key strikeouts, and never getting rattled, not even after giving up what would ultimately be the Brahmas undoing.
He had help, of course. Zachary Wagner played a gold glove-worthy centerfield, showing excellent range and taking away more than a couple extra base hits.
The Brahma offense had several opportunities to get to Petter, but each would end in vain, usually due to a flash of brilliance by Petter himself.
Even in the bottom of the ninth, there was a chance, but a bad slide by David Whetstone drew an obstruction call, and that was the end of that.
None of it would have been possible had it not been for Santhon, however.
And as he walked off the field after the fateful ninth, his frustration from his one mistake worn on his sleeve, one could not help but think that, no matter the result, he did his job, and did it wonderfully.
Here’s hoping he comes back next year.
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