Stockton Stays Alive With Victory Over Visalia

September 4, 2026

VISALIA, Calif. – The Ports (32-31, 59-70) kept their postseason aspirations alive on Thursday night, hanging on for a 5-4 victory over the Rawhide (26-37, 54-75). That victory coupled with an 8-5 loss for Fresno keeps Stockton just one game behind the Grizzlies in the standings. Fresno does own the

VISALIA, Calif. – The Ports (32-31, 59-70) kept their postseason aspirations alive on Thursday night, hanging on for a 5-4 victory over the Rawhide (26-37, 54-75). That victory coupled with an 8-5 loss for Fresno keeps Stockton just one game behind the Grizzlies in the standings. Fresno does own the tie breaker, so the Ports need to leapfrog the Grizzlies with three games left to play to make the playoffs.

Drew Burress came up just a home run short of the cycle and got the offense going for the Ports again when he doubled (6) into left center and scored on an RBI groundout from Gavin Turley to go up 1-0. Visalia answered with a run in the bottom of the second, but starter Colin Fitzgerald got out of a bases loaded jam by striking out the next three batters to keep the game tied at 1-1.

Burress scored on a single by Turley to reclaim the lead at 2-1 in the third inning. The Rawhide immediately tied it in the bottom of the frame on an RBI ground out of their own to make it a 2-2 contest through three innings.

While Cole Miller delivered three scoreless innings on his way to eventually earning the win, the Ports took the lead in the fifth. Burress led off the inning with a triple (3) and Bobby Blandford drove him in with a base hit to left for a 3-2 Stockton advantage.

A base hit by Bryan Andrade scored Blandford to push the Ports lead to 4-2. A sac fly from Michael Brooks in the sixth scored Jose Ramos to give Stockton a 5-2 lead and would prove to be the game-winning run.

The Rawhide made things interesting in the eighth inning, stringing together two singles and a double against Wilfred Alvarado to plate a pair and make it a 5-4 game. Jackson Holmes entered the game and struck out leadoff man Brayden Down to end that eighth-inning rally. Holmes then punched out a pair in the ninth and preserved the win for his sixth save of the season.

UP NEXT: Game four is scheduled for a 6:35 PM first pitch with RHP Chung-Hsian Huang (2-9, 6.39) starting for Visalia versus RHP Donny Troconis (2-6, 6.06) going for Stockton.