(Un)Lucky seven: Toros snap losing streak

When the Tucson Toros returned home after Saturday’s game in Yuma, in which they extended their losing streak to seven games after dropping the finale 5-3, Toros manager Tim Johnson told his players to not think about baseball.

He wanted the team to take a couple days, take it easy, and come back Tuesday and start fresh. 

Start fresh they did as the Toros got a solid pitching performance by Vince Davis who flirted with the first-ever perfect game in Golden Baseball League history. The offense that provided an eight-run fourth inning to snap the losing skid with a 12-4 win over the Victoria (B.C.) Seals.

“We needed that little breather and refresh ourselves and we woke up tonight,” said Victor Ferrante, who extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a single in the seventh inning.

With seven days off from his last start, Davis started the game and retired the first 13 he faced. Shane Cronin broke up the perfect game bid with a single to right-center field with one out in the top of the fifth inning.

“I really didn’t pay attention, I was trying to get outs and keep my team in position to win it,” said Davis about pitching four and a third innings of perfect baseball.

While there hasn’t been a perfect game since the league was formed in 2005, there have been two no-hitters, the latest coming May 23 when Chico’s Kris Honel tossed one in the Outlaws' 22-0 win over the Tijuana Cimarrones.

Davis ended the night pitching seven innings while improving his record to 1-1. He gave up two runs on five hits and had five strikeouts.

“He needed it too, he wasn’t quite himself,” Ferrante said of Davis’ pitching in his last start.

After opening the season 3-0, the Toros dropped their next seven games, including sweeps by Calgary to end the previous home stand and over the weekend by Yuma, who lead the GBL Southern Division. 

“I think the two days off, they felt the pressure,” Johnson said. “Everybody does. You get in a rut like you do in baseball and you have to get out of it and you hope you get on a little streak and start winning some ballgames.”

Tuesday, the offense was just as strong as the pitching, pounding out 16 hits. The Toros sent 12 men to the plate in the fourth, scoring eight runs and added three more runs in the sixth thanks to triples by Ryan Priddy and Josh Womack.

Ferrante’s streak matches his last season best in which he hit safely in 10 games.

“It’s good to be getting hits, but we haven’t been winning so it kind of takes away from it,” Ferrante said.'

The Toros (4-7) will look to make it two-in-a-row when they resume their quick three-game home stand today at 7 p.m. at Hi Corbett Field.

Tucson will then head back on the road to St. George and Chico, before returning home June 11 against the St. George Roadrunners.

“That’s what we needed and hopefully that was the turning point,” said Davis about the win. “It’s still early in the season. Tonight was a great night and hopefully we can stay in this mood and keeping progressing. Hopefully we can win seven straight and make up for what we’ve been doing for the last week and a half.”