Newport Rams rule the west after completing a series win over the Sunshine Eagles in the Baseball Victoria summer league division 1 on Saturday.
The Rams have taken the first two of three encounters between the top flight’s only western suburbs clubs and done it in style.
They held the Eagles scoreless on both occasions with the latest coming in the form of a 10-0 mercy rule drubbing.
Rams assistant coach Gavin Young says it was a strong across-the-board effort.
“Defensively we were good, with no errors.
“We did our jobs in the batting box. We hit the ball, moved guys over and had good pitch selection.
Starting pitcher Travis Bass was undoubtedly the star of the show for the Rams.
“Travis [Bass] did the job on the hill,” Young said. “It was another one of those games when everything sort of clicked.”
The American import delivered a seven-inning complete game, throwing six strikeouts and giving up just two hits.
It was his second complete game in six days.
Batting in the three-hole, Bass had three hits, two RBIs and a walk.
What has struck Young about Bass during the past week is his enthusiasm since returning from under-age state coaching duties.
“He’s come back after coaching at the nationals and you can see how much he loves the game,” Young said.
“He’s a special type of individual and just loves the game of baseball and loves Australia and wants to support the game here.”
On their day, the Rams are an unstoppable force, but they are prone to inconsistency.
The past six days have underlined that point: win, loss, win, and up and down performances.
Still, this is the Rams’ first season in the top tier and they are playing above the external expectations.
Young says it is just “the start of a great future”.
“We’ve got a nice, young, closeknit group and they’ve bonded really well. If we can keep them like that for the next 10 years, we’ll be a force to be reckoned with in this comp.
“If we can keep building on what we’ve started now, the sky is these guys’ limit.
“We’re second in the most runs earned in first division and we’ve scored over 100 runs this year.
“The Newport side, in its history, has never done that.”
The Rams will host Preston at KC White Reserve on Sunday.
