A Full Day of Baseball Action at CWL Gameday 16
Palm Springs, Calif. – Palm Springs Stadium was electric today, hosting a thrilling California Winter League tripleheader! From the first pitch to the final out, fans were treated to a full day of exciting baseball. The game on the Auxiliary field saw a hard-fought battle between Team China and the hometown Palm Springs Chill. The morning game continued with a clash between the British Columbia Bombers and the Alberta Grizzly. And the excitement didn’t stop there – the tripleheader concluded with The Palm Springs Power taking on The Canada A’s in a matchup that kept fans on the edge of their seats.
CHILL 6 – 5 CHINA
It took sudden death for the Palm Springs Chill to hand Team China their third loss of the season on the Auxiliary field. Zhou Jie was the starter for China while newcomer Reid Santos toed the turf rubber for the Chill.
After a scoreless first inning from both sides, China would get two on after a single and walk. An error by Santos scored Yi Zhou and put runners on second and third with nobody out.
The next four batters would walk, allowing three more runs to score and giving China an early 4-0 lead. The Chill would respond with two of their own in the bottom of the second after an error by shortstop Qirui Wu would score Jarrett Burney and an RBI single by Nick Chuisano scored Tristen Ciarlo.
One and a half scoreless innings later, the Chill would respond once again. Another error, this time by Chen Jiaji, alongside a walk put two on. Jhamante Woods would hit a two-RBI triple to score both and John McGuire would bring Woods in with a double to give the Chill a 5-4 lead.
Reliever Johansel Gomez would throw three scoreless for the Chill, while Lun Zhao and Alan Carter had three of their own, nine strikeouts thrown between the three pitchers.
China led off the top of the seventh with a double and walk before a sacrifice bunt advanced them. An intentional walk had the bases loaded with one out as pinch-hitter Pei Liang hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game up at five.
The Chill were silenced in the bottom half and the game moved to a sudden death eighth inning, where the Chill elected to hit. Caleb Ware would be the runner on first but was picked off before a pitch was thrown.
With the bases now empty, Jarrett Burney hit a line-drive single. Dominic Bucko would then hit a double to score Burney from first and give the Chill the victory. China falls to 10-2 as the Chill move up to 7-5.
The Chill look to get another win against the Blue Sox tomorrow at 10 a.m. Team China will try to bounce back as they take on the Power at 12:30 p.m.
BOMBERS 2 – 1 GRIZZLY
The British Columbia Bombers narrowly skimmed past the Alberta Grizzly 2-1 in their fourth win of the season on Friday morning.
The Bombers struck first in the second inning on a Mandala Bertino RBI single to shallow right field, scoring the leadoff single from Bubba Thompson. After a shutdown inning from Bombers starter Takushi Minagawa, another leadoff single by Howie Hatton gets cashed in on a sacrifice fly from Bubba Thompson.
Minagawa gave up only three baserunners in four innings of work, and only one hit from Grizzly center fielder Andrew Gravdahl in the third.
The Grizzly starter-slash-designated hitter Matthew Maldonado worked long innings, but still only gave up two runs on five hits with six strikeouts in his start. In his four innings of work, his pitch count reached 98, giving manager Jared Lemeiux no choice put to put in Jason Leon, another pitcher that could fill Maldonado’s spot on the lineup as well.
Leon held it down in his three clean innings of work, but once Bombers starter Minagawa was pulled after four, the Grizzly started to wake up.
A Michael Sims error at second allowed AJ Karosas to lead off the fifth with a chance to come back on new Bombers reliever Ryuya Kato. Grizzly right fielder Josh Roberts hit an RBI double through the right side to break the shutout, and after a subsequent first pitch hit-by-pitch, Bombers manager Aaron Miles had to quickly turn to Chaz Graham, who left the tying run at third and got two straight outs on four pitches to get out of the fifth.
Graham stayed the course in the sixth, despite giving up a leadoff single in the bottom of the sixth, holding the line at a one-run advantage for the Bombers.
Sebastian Encarnacion came in to close in the bottom of the seventh, allowing the leadoff man, Justin Ayala, on for free on a hit-by-pitch. Ayala got on third, representing the tying run. Encarnacion stayed calm and got the next three batters out in a row to secure his first save of the 2025 CWL season.
The Bombers propel themselves out of last place, advancing to 4-8. The Grizzly fall to 3-9, now officially the lone team at the bottom of the standings. The Grizzly will be back in action tomorrow morning, facing off against the first-place Canada A’s (10-2) on the auxiliary field. The Bombers will have two days off and see action again against Team China on Monday.
A’s 15 – 6 POWER
The Canada A’s offense exploded on Friday afternoon to the tune of a 15-6 win over the Palm Springs Power.
After seeing five of their last six games be decided by just one run, the A’s made sure they had more of a cushion against the Power. The Power struck first in the top of the opening inning with an RBI single by Alex Andres to score Assaf Lowengart who was hit by a pitch to lead off the game. That was all of the damage that the Power could manage against A’s starter Alejandro Izquierdo who tossed six innings of one run, three hit ball.
The A’s offense went to work immediately in the bottom of the first inning with a bunt single by Dane Simon, who then stole second one pitch later and scored on an RBI single by Juan Frances. The A’s went on to score four runs in the first inning and then put up another four runs in the second, including a bases clearing, three-run double by Sam Ruta. With a seven run lead after two innings, the A’s continued to tack on runs with a fourth inning RBI single by Diante Jackson and a fifth inning RBI single by Dane Simon. The A’s then sent ten men to the plate in the sixth inning as they scored another five runs to take a 15-1 lead. The Power finally showed signs of life in the seventh against a new pitcher in Donny Goodes, as they scored five runs of their own.
Izquierdo picked up the win for the A’s in his first start of the season, while Huang Poshien suffered the loss for the Power.
Both teams are back in action tomorrow with the A’s playing the Alberta Grizzly at 9:30 am and the Power taking on Team China at 12:30 pm.
Saturday at Palm Springs Stadium is $3 Beer Day! Enjoy California Winter League baseball alongside ice-cold Bud Light and Budweiser drafts for only $3 each. It’s the perfect way to kick back, relax, and cheer on your favorite teams without breaking the bank. Come thirsty and ready for a great day at the ballpark!
Fans can also tune in on the California Winter League YouTube to watch every 2025 stadium game live.
The California Winter League is the longest running professional showcase league of its kind. Since its inaugural season in 2010, the CWL has seen over 850 of its players sign professional contracts. Each year, it is the premier destination for free agent baseball players who are looking to be scouted and signed.
Stay up-to-date with the California Winter League at californiawinterleague.com or by following the CWL on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Palm Springs Stadium is located at 1901 E Baristo Road in Palm Springs.
For more information, visit californiawinterleague.com or call (760) 778-4487.
