Rangers, Sakisat tame Tigers

Veteran Mel Sakisat pitched a complete game to help the Ford Rangers tame the Tigers, 9-4, in the 3rd Annual Budweiser-Saipan Major League Wednesday night at the Francisco M. Palacios Baseball Field.

Sakisat did not give up a hit for five consecutive innings as he held the Tigers, which dropped to 0-4 with the loss to join Komoro at the cellar, to a combined 6-for-30 in batting.

Dennis Cruz ended Sakisat’s hit-less streak when he singled in the bottom of the sixth but was tagged out while trying to run toward third base.

All of the Tigers’ runs were earned as Sakisat allowed six hits with two strikeouts and one walk to help the Rangers secure their second win in three games to join the San Roque D9ers at fourth to fifth places.

Sakisat also pitched six scoreless innings, getting a lot of help from the Rangers defense in preventing the Tigers to reach home plate. The Tigers scored in the bottom of the seventh when they strung together four runs highlighted by Cruz’s three-run inside-the-park home run.

Robert Bansil, who was a member of the CNMI National Baseball Team that won the gold in the 6th Micronesian Games in 2006, went 2-for-2 with one run, two RBIs, and a stolen base, while Clifton Silil went 2-for-4 with two runs and three stolen bases.

Cruz was the lone bright spot for the Tigers, going 2-for-3 with one run and a seventh inning three-RBI inside-the-park home run.

Tigers pitcher Ben Duenas also went the distance and was tagged with eight earned runs on 13 hits with four strikeouts and two walks.

On Monday night, defending champion Tanapag Falcons ended the new-look Korean Dreams’ three-game winning streak in a 21-7 crushing.

The win was the third straight for the Falcons to remain within striking distance of the 4-0 mark of league-leading Rock Steady.

Pete Teigita pitched for three innings, surrendering three earned runs on five hits with two strikeouts and two walks. McGregory Camacho earned the win after pitching four innings in relief giving up one earned run on four hits with six strikeouts and one walk.

Oscar Sablan closed out, allowing an earned run on one hit with fanning three and walking another two batters.

The Dreams were very much in the game as they trailed only 7-13 after 7 1/2 innings but the Falcons scored eight straight runs in the bottom of the eighth to pull away and let their pitchers ground the batters of their opponents.

Mike Pangelinan and Henry Iguel led the Falcons’ hitting combining for 6-for-12 in batting with three runs scored and five RBIs. Pangelinan also had a double.

John Dikito went 2-for-4 with three runs, a double, a triple, and two RBIs.

Rock Steady guns for its fifth straight win today when they face the dangerous D9ers of San Roque at 6:30pm at the Francisco M. Palacios Baseball Field.