Schierholtz, Vanden Hurk lead BeachBoys past Sharks
By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer
Four pitchers combined on a three-hitter and Nate Schierholtz drove in all of the runs in Waikiki's 2-0 win against Honolulu yesterday in Hawaii Winter Baseball at Les Murakami Stadium.
Rick Vanden Hurk (2-2) gave up a single and a walk while striking out eight in five innings for the East champion BeachBoys (19-15), who will play the yet-to-be determined West champion in Wednesday's league championship, 7 p.m. at Murakami Stadium.
"I was throwing everything out there," said Vanden Hurk, who is from Holland and called the Dutch Destroyer by teammates. "It was pretty good. I was throwing strikes."
One of the larger crowds of the season, 914, watched Dexter Fowler score the game's only runs, each driven in by Schierholtz against Honolulu starter, left-hander Kanehisa Arime (4-3).
"I was just trying to focus on putting the ball in play hard," said the left-handed hitting Schierholtz, who played for the San Francisco Giants' Double-A club at Connecticut over the summer. "We've faced a lot of lefties and had another one start against us today. I was just trying to stay on my feet and drive the ball."
In the first, Fowler reached on a bunt single between first and second, stole second and took third on a single when Christopher Nelson hit a squibbler about 20 feet down the third base line. Schierholtz followed with a soft line single to right to give the BeachBoys a 1-0 lead.
In the third, Eric Young Jr. led off by getting hit by a pitch and took second when Fowler reached on a fielding error by first baseman Hisashi Kawata. Young got thrown out trying for third on a double-steal attempt that allowed Fowler to take second, where he stayed when Nelson reached on another infield single to third. Fowler then scored on Schierholtz's ground single to center to make it 2-0.
The Sharks never threatened. Only once did they have more than one runner on the bases. Honolulu also hit into three double plays, including on a lineout to left.
But the BeachBoys had other opportunities to pad their lead. In the second, Reed Eastley doubled with one out, but one out later, right fielder Ryan Patterson gunned him down at home trying to score on Tomoaki Egawa's single.
Also, twice the Beachboys had a runner at third with less than two outs and failed to score.
W. OAHU 11, N. SHORE 5
West Oahu kept its playoff hopes alive when Johnny Whittleman hit two home runs, including a grand slam in the first inning before 1,011 at Hans L'Orange Park in Waipahu.
The CaneFires (17-17) pulled to within a half-game of the West Division-leading Honu (17-16) with two games left in the regular season.
West Oahu's Yasushi Iihara hit his league-leading fifth home run, while Whittleman's two homers give him four and pulled him into a tie for second with North Shore's Rodney Choy Foo and Waikiki's Cole Garner and Mark Minicozzi. Also homering for West Oahu was Mike Stodolka, who hit his second of the season.
Toyoji Matsumura (3-1) gave up two runs, one unearned, in 3 1/3 innings for the CaneFires. He came in for starter Ian Kennedy, who gave up three runs, one unearned, in 4 2/3 innings, while striking out eight.
Keisuke Hayashi (1-2) was tagged for nine runs in 2 1/3 innings for the Honu.
Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at skaneshiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.