The Katayama Baseball Academy (KBA) Stars and the Thunder All-Stars continued their surge in the 2019 Philippine Baseball League Open Conference, Sunday at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.
Carlos Muñoz put up another masterful outing to lead KBA to a dominant 7-1 victory over the Ateneo Blue Eagles to go up 3-0 in Group A of this tournament, organized by the Philippine Amateur Baseball Association and supported by the Philippine Sports Commission.
“I just told the boys to continue enjoying the game since for some of them like Carlos, they are still just getting back to the game after not playing for so long,” said KBA head coach Keiji Katayama.
Muñoz, a former DLSU Green Batter who is now a full-time banker, put on a show on the mound. In four innings pitched, he struck out five batters while allowing just one run to register his first win of the season.
On offense, the second-generation batter had two hits and an RBI as well.
Ex-Adamsonian Gerald Riparip also had two RBIs. He and Muñoz provided the spark in a huge fifth inning to deal Ateneo their second straight loss in three games.
Later in the day, National Team pitcher Vladi Eguia and the rest of the Thunder stifled the Rizal Technological University-Alums, 8-1, to continue to sit atop Group B.
Eguia stomped RTU to the tune of a conference-high eight strikeouts in four innings pitched.
Missing Aids Bernardo for the game, since he is coaching the Philippine team in the Asia Pacific U16 in Vietnam, the young guns stepped up for the veteran-laden Thunder.
Incoming DLSZ Grade 11 batter Sean Salvatierra blasted a solo home run in the second inning.
In the first game, the Adamson Soaring Falcons used a six-run fourth inning to escape the RTU Thunder, 8-5.
Adamson kept second place in Group A while dropping RTU to 0-3.
Linescores:
First Game:
RTU – 013 100 0 – 5 5 3
ADU – 100 602 X – 7 6 4
Second Game:
KBA – 000 140 2 – 6 8 1
ADMU – 100 000 0 – 1 6 5
Third Game:
RTU-A – 000 001 0 – 1 4 4
THU – 311 210 X – 7 8 3
