Rosemead's Rafael Garcia fought and battled and got a complete game victory
(Rosemead) – Rosemead scored two runs in the fifth and three in the sixth to erase a four run deficit and beat El Monte 5-4 Friday in Mission Valley League action.
Panthers’ starter Rafael Garcia allowed a run in the first and three more in the top of the fifth which seemingly put the game away for El Monte. But Rosemead rallied and Garcia fought his way through eventually throwing a complete game to get the victory.
Garcia had to bob and weave the entire contest. He walked four, hit three batters and allowed six hits. He struck out just two but had enough gas left in the tank to finish.
Down 4-2, Andrew Gibson’s sacrifice fly got one run home and after Garcia and Paul Cruz reached base on a hit a batter and a walk, Anthony Salinas singled to drive in tying and go ahead runs.
Garcia ran into a little trouble in the seventh hitting a batter and allowing an infield hit, but he got the next batter on a force play to end it.
The Panthers cut the lead in half in the fifth inning when Garcia beat out an infield hit and Cruz tripled him home on a slicing drive down the right field line. Cruz then scored on a ground ball by Salinas.
In the El Monte fifth, Danny Farfan plated Diego Palomino on a scoring fly ball, and Jay Tillet’s double chased home Juan Amaya and Antonio Ruiz for a four run cushion.
Ruiz started the game and was replaced by Casey Lopez with one out in the fourth inning with the bases loaded. Lopez worked his way out of that jam but suffered the loss when the Panthers came back in the next two innings.
El Monte came into the game in third place in the MVL. The Lions dropped to 6-5 in league and 8-8 overall. Rosemead started off league play by losing its first six games but the Panthers have won three of their last five and are now 3-8. They are 3-13 overall.
Both teams have four regular season games remaining.
EM 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 4
R 0 0 0 0 2 3 5
Other Friday MVL Scores
Arroyo 14 South El Monte 1
Gabrielino 1 Mt. View 0
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