The Palo Alto Oaks are perfect no more. Traveling to the Central Coast last weekend with a 12-0 record, the semipro baseball team returned home 12-2.
Both losses to the San Luis Obispo Blues were by one run, the second of which went extra innings.
“It’s a team made up of strictly Division I college players,” Oaks manager Steve Espinoza said of San Luis Obispo. “We knew they’d be very good competition for us.”
So good that Oaks’ ace Matt Campbell suffered his first loss in four years with the club. The starter gave up only three hits Saturday, but his teammates gave him little run support in a 2-1 defeat. The Oaks left nine runners on base and failed to capitalize on the Blues’ five errors.
Campbell, who went the distance, sunk to 5-1 for the season and 32-1 in his Oaks’ career.
“Matt pitched extremely well – a couple of their hits were cheap ones,” said Espinoza, a graduate of Los Altos High. “But we couldn’t deliver (offensively).”
The Oaks’ bats perked up in Sunday’s game, at least in the later innings. Down 4-0, Palo Alto scored one run in the eighth on a single by Mountain View High graduate Tommy Bommarito.
After the Blues answered with a run in the bottom of the inning, the Oaks erupted for four runs in the ninth to force extra innings. Los Altos High grad Thomas Roux singled to right to open the ninth and Max Kautz soon reached base on an error. With two outs, Shane Parsons belted a towering three-run homer to tie the game.
But the Blues battled back in the 10th. Their run off Gunn High grad Greg Matson, who relieved starter Jason Kleinhoffer, secured a 6-5 victory.
Although Espinoza would have liked to at least split the weekend series, he’s not ready to panic. After all, the Oaks were playing without three starters and these were non-league games.
“I think we did ourselves proud,” he said. “Hopefully it will get us ready for this weekend.”
Palo Alto concludes its league schedule Sunday by hosting rival Fontanetti’s (San Jose), the team it shares first place with. The doubleheader is scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. at Baylands Park.
Win or lose, Espinoza said the Oaks will qualify for the state playoffs. First-round games are scheduled July 27 in Fairfield. The champion moves on to the western regionals the following weekend in Southern California.
