Cardinals take two tough losses

The Carson Cardinals baseball team sustained two hard luck losses on Friday at the Walla Walla (Wash.) Senior Legion Tournament.

Carson lost to Sumner, Wash. 8-4 after leading 4-2 going into the seventh inning and fell 6-5 in eight innings to the Walla Walla Bears.

Ryan Henry had allowed two unearned runs going into the seventh inning against Sumner, which had two hits out of the infield the whole game. With one out, an infield hit and two walks loaded the bases.

Then a potential double play ball went for a 2-run single when a Cardinal infielder thought a pickoff play was on. Henry was then pulled after throwing 133 pitches in 103-degree heat.

But Sumner went on to score four more runs on a squeeze play, error, balk and two singles.

The Cardinals scored two runs in the third after Aaron Henry singled and Cameron Leck hit a two-run single. In the fifth, Andrew James singled, Royal Good hit an RBI triple and Good scored on a wild pitch.

Against Walla Walla and down to his last strike with two outs, James hit a game-tying three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh to tie the score 5-5. James also allowed one run on one hit through three innings.

James, who got the final out against Sumner as well, was pitching for the first time since Little League. The Cardinals are missing several of their regular pitchers to other commitments, so Good also had to pitch for the first time this season and Tony Teixeira had to pitch for the first time since Babe Ruth against Walla Walla. Teixeira allowed two earned runs on three hits and struck out four in three innings.

Aaron Henry singled during the seventh inning rally. After James' homer, Leck and Ryan Henry singled. Jason Alcasas followed by hitting a shot that the left fielder made an over-the-shoulder catch at the fence to end the inning.

Walla Walla took a 6-5 lead in the eighth on an error and a double. Teixeira's RBI double cut the deficit to 5-2.

James was aided by Aaron Henry's diving catch in right centerfield and outstanding defense by Jason Alcasas at shortstop.