Carson Blue Jays get hits, but not enough runs

The opportunities to score runs were ther, but the Carson Blue Jays failed to execute.

The Blue Jays left 15 runners on base en route to an 11-5 loss to the Reno Knights Thursday at Ron McNutt Field. The loss dropped Carson to 4-7 heading into tonight’s home game against McQueen at 7:30.

“We left way too many runners on base,” Carson coach Bryan Manoukian said. “We have to do a better job of executing.”

Carson left the bases jammed in the third, fifth and sixth innings. Despite the bad luck with runners in scoring position, it took a four-run seventh inning off Brandon Allen for the Knights to put the game away.

Reno took a quick 3-0 lead against starter Dustin Dutcher.

Brock Tsukamoto singled to lead off the game, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a single by R.J. Bush. Dutcher kept the damage minimal by making a nice catch of a pop fly that catcher Joe Birri was unable to locate, and then he caught Joey Clark looking at a third strike. The two second-inning runs were both unearned thanks to an error to start the inning. Tsukamoto and Connor Thompson both had run-scoring hits.

Reno made it 4-0 the third when Graham Macmillan singled and scored on Joe Bath’s two-out double to right. Carson finally got on the board in the third when Tucker slammed a double to left, moved to third on a single by Jace Zampirro and scored when Chase Blueberg’s groundball was misplayed. Jeremy Peterson, who had relieved Tsukamoto with no outs and two on in the second, retired John Holton on a foul pop to third and then fanned Chazz Nystrom and Danny Guthrie to end the inning.

The Blue Jays cut the lead to 4-2 when Dutcher doubled off the fence in right and scored on Birri’s one-out groundball to shortstop.

Reno struck for three more in the fifth to make it 7-2. Peterson and Macmillan had run-scoring hits, and the other run scored on an error.

Carson’s offense wasn’t through, scoring two in the fifth and one in the sixth to make it 7-5.

Zampirro struck out to start the fifth, but reached first when the catcher wasn’t able to dig out the third strike. Blueberg followed with a single, sending Zampirro to second. After Holton moved both runners up with a bunt, Nystrom hit an infield single to drive in Zampirro. Guthrie followed with an infield single to score Blueberg. Dutcher’s infield roller moved the runners to second and third, and Connor Leahy walked to load the bases. Macmillan came on in relief and retired Birri on a comebacker to end the rally.

In the sixth, T.J. Thomsen, Zampirro and Blueberg all singled, the latter driving in a run to make it 7-5. Demi Small came on and walked Holton to load the bases. However, he struck out Nystrom and got Guthrie on a pop-up to end the inning.

That set the stage for the seventh, when Reno locked up the game with four runs, two on a single by Bush.

Blueberg and Zampirro led the Carson offense with two hits apiece, while Tucker, Thomsen, Nystrom, Guthrie, Dutcher and Leahy added one each.