Situational hitting was not friendly to the Barrie Baycats in Guelph.
The team stranded six runners in scoring position and was shut down late by the Royals bullpen in a 3-2 loss on Saturday at David E. Hastings Stadium.
Edgar Garcia, the Royals starter, came up clutch in getting the Royals out of multiple jams through his six innings of work. The former major leaguer allowed eight hits and three walks in that span while striking out six for his second win of the year.
After Garcia, Gleyvin Pineda in his first CBL appearance, and Andrew Case settled the Baycats Then, Kevin Escorcia locked down the save, his second this season with both coming against Barrie.
Baycats' starter Juan Benítez went five innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits and a walk while striking out two in a losing effort.
Guelph really got to the Dominican right-hander in the fourth, sending nine men to the plate in what was a three-run inning. In the frame, the Royals tripled their hit total to that point, with Deivis Nadal driving in the team's first run to equalize.
Benítez then walked former teammate Carson Burns with the bases loaded to fall behind by a run, before another came in after an error charged to Adam Odd, despite him diving to knock down a hard groundball off the bat of Ashton Patterson.
Saturday marked the fifth loss of the Baycats' six in which unearned runs represented the difference in the game, and the second to Guelph.
The closest the Baycats got in the late innings to tying was a deep flyout by Noah Hull, which was caught by Nadal in the right field power alley. The roughly 390-foot flyball would have been a home run in any other CBL ballpark.
After back-to-back losses this week, Barrie has fallen to second in the CBL, while Guelph's three-game win streak has pushed it to third, over the defending champion Welland Jackfish.
Edgar Figueroa scored both of Barrie's runs, one off an first-inning RBI double in the first inning and the other after stealing home plate in the fifth. Machibroda forced a two-out pickoff attempt, allowing Figueroa to score.
Wandy Ciprian led the offence, going 3-for-4, while Figueroa also had a multi-hit effort.
Overall, Barrie left nine on base, including five when it was leading.
Meanwhile, Antony Gilbert and Victor Mascai each had two hits and a run for Guelph.
INJURY UPDATES
Baycats outfielder Clayton Keyes was a late scratch from the starting lineup. He was hit by a pitch on the elbow on Thursday, and was visibly struggling to take batting practice through the lingering pain.
Meanwhile, Noel McGarry Doyle is expected to return to the team's lineup on Wednesday after taking the last three games off to rest a hamstring injury.
UP NEXT
Frank Garcés (4-1, 3.33 ERA) is expected to return from a three-game suspension and start Wednesday's game in London.
The Royals are in Brantford on Sunday afternoon.
