Oakland Picks Up First Home Win 4-1

By Davis Ellington

OAKLAND, CA

The Ballers looked to atone for dropping their home opener last night to the High Wheelers by evening the series here in game two. Oakland saw another electric crowd on hand as the community continues to rally around their new team. The Ballers would not disappoint, as they took game two by a 4-1 final, thanks to a strong pitching performance by Aaron Eden and company.

Ballers manager Micah Franklin gave the ball to his right-hander Aaron Eden to begin tonight's contest. Eden delivered a near carbon copy of the start the fans saw from Derrick Cherry on Tuesday. Eden went 5.1 innings for Oakland, allowing just one run before turning the game over to the bullpen.

It was a better night out of the pen for reliever Abraham De Leon, who made his second appearance in as many nights, blanking the Yolo offense for 1.2 innings. Elijah Pleasants would put up a zero in the eighth, and Carson Lambert came on to shut the door in the ninth and earned his second save of the season.

It was a pitchers' duel this evening, as the first run for either team did not cross the plate until the bottom of the 4^th inning on an RBI ground out for the Ballers'  Trevor Halsema. Oakland would add a run in the bottom of the 5^th to extend their lead to a 2-0 advantage. After Yolo drew within a single run, the Ballers looked for insurance in the later innings. The insurance would come in the form of a 2-run home run from Trevor Halsema, giving him 3 RBIs on the night, and Oakland a 4-1 advantage.

With the win tonight, Oakland improves to 8-6 on the season, and draws even with the High Wheelers at a game a piece with four more remaining in the series. First pitch for game 3 tomorrow night is set for 6:35pm PT, you can get your ticket for all Ballers home games at oaklandballers.com, and listen live to all Ballers games on 860 AM The Answer.