After clinching the Pioneer League’s first playoff spot Tuesday in their inaugural season, the Long Beach Coast still had a series to win after dropping Wednesday’s game.
Kicking off the first of many culturally-themed promotions, the Long Beach Coast celebrated Cambodian Heritage Night on Thursday at Blair Field as they defeated the Yuba-Sutter Freebirds 13-4.
Pre-game performances included traditional choreographed dances by children from Long Beach’s United Cambodian Community, as well as Cambodian-American recording artist Soup Pha singing “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
Fans got a taste of Cambodia with a special menu as Battombong BBQ sold brisket sandwiches and brisket nachos at the ballpark.
While the food lit up taste buds, the Coast (34-11) lit up the scoreboard against the Freebirds (15-30) with 11 hits and 13 runs.
Batting sixth, second baseman Jacob Jablonski provided two doubles, one RBI and a walk. Jablonski was unable to start the past three games due to a tweaked hamstring, but he said staying composed and simplifying his approach at the plate helped lead to his 2-for-4 performance.
“Getting a hit on the right side is always a bonus and refreshing,” said the switch-hitting Jablonski. “So my head’s clear, and I was just swinging the bat and it made contact so it’s a good feeling.”
Another key to victory for the Coast was the five hit-by-pitches handed out by the Freebirds’ pitching staff. Third baseman Patrick Roche got plunked three times and slammed his bat on the grass in frustration on his way to first in the sixth inning.
The multitude of baserunners throughout the game helped the Coast steal four bases.
“We got some fast guys and we took advantage of the slower leg lift on the pitcher,” Jablonski said. “So hopefully we can take that into the next series and keep stealing bases because that’s a big key part of our offense.”
Tensions rose in the top of the 8th inning after Freebird first baseman Christian Castaneda was hit by a pitch himself and the two teams jawed at each other from their respective dugouts.
The Coast turned to 24-year-old Garrett Van Deventer to start in the rubber match against the Freebirds. Van Deventer came into Thursday’s game with a 3.07 earned run average (ERA) and 1.33 walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP), which ranked third and eighth among Pioneer League starters, respectively.
The top of the Freebirds lineup went to work quickly against Van Deventer’s arm. Van Deventer allowed the first three batters of the game to single, falling behind 1-0 after just nine pitches.
The Freebirds continued to pester Van Deventer with savvy baserunning and solid contact, as Yuba-Sutter scored once in the second and third innings. However, the damage was minimal as Van Deventer hung on long enough for his offense to catch up. The four Coast runs in the fourth inning built a 6-3 lead that the Freebirds couldn’t recover from.
Van Deventer pitched 6.2 innings, allowed eight hits, walked three batters, struck out six and surrendered four earned runs in his sixth straight game-winning start. His teammates applauded his efforts as he walked to the dugout in the seventh inning, as reliever Ryan Faulks entered the game.
“[Van Deventer] has just been a great key component for our pitching staff, and he goes deep so it really helps our bullpen and it really helps our team,” Jablonski said. “He’s just been kind of a cornerstone for us and I hope that he can continue doing that.”
Long Beach dispelled any notions of a comeback after the sixth inning. The Coast offense exploded for four hits, stole two bases and benefited from two errors for a total of six runs. The inning stretched the lead to nine, solidifying the 13-4 scoreline.
Tuesday’s series-opener victory against the Freebirds clinched a playoff berth for the Coast, becoming the first Pioneer League team to guarantee a 2026 postseason appearance. With three games remaining in the first half of the regular season schedule, the Coast are still hungry for more victories.
“This team is really resilient and we love winning so I think it’s really contagious and we don’t want to stop,” Jablonski said. “So it’s our goal to just keep doing our same thing and preparing the same way we have all season and then try to get a ‘W.’”
The Coast will finish the first half of the regular season on the road with a three-game series against the Modesto Roadsters beginning Friday.
