The Stompers and Merchants each tallied five hits and made three errors, but a seventh-inning home run powered Alameda to victory.
By Jordan Kimball, Beat Writer
It was the seventh inning, and Jackson Nystrom stood at the plate with a 2-1 count. He’d taken two balls from Chris Albee before fouling off the next pitch.
In the third inning, Nystrom had singled to load the bases, extending Alameda’s rally that eventually tied the game at 3-3. In his other appearance against the Stompers this season — a 7-5 loss on June 12 — he went 0-for-3. This time, Nystrom punished Sonoma.
The following pitch from Albee was annihilated for a solo home run — Nystrom’s first of the season — to give the Merchants their only lead of the day, one they never relinquished.
Nystrom’s go-ahead homer in the seventh proved decisive, as Sonoma (18-12, 15-10 CCL) couldn’t mount a comeback and saw its four-game win streak snapped in a 4-3 loss.
“We didn’t hold them down,” Stompers manager Zack Pace said postgame. “I thought we could’ve played a little bit better defensively. We gave them some extra outs today. Then, they got that home run late to go ahead.”
Sonoma’s pitching has been the workhorse this season, with Devon Laguinto’s complete game shutout on Tuesday the latest example. On Wednesday, Shawn McBroom toed the rubber to open the game. He was a familiar face for the Stompers’ faithful but was recently added to their 2025 roster. Wednesday was his first appearance of the summer.
In 2024, McBroom went 3-0 in four outings. He didn’t surrender a run and served as a reliable reliever, often a set-up guy in the later innings. So, Wednesday’s start was uncharacteristic. And even with Sonoma in front, McBroom faltered on the mound, which led to its loss.
In usual fashion, the Stompers got ahead from the jump. The first inning saw Nic Sebastiani stay hot with a triple, and he scored right after when Paul Lizzul knocked a fielder’s choice to second baseman Kaleb Latimer.
In the following frame, Sonoma tacked on two more runs. McCann Libby grounded out, and Brady Shannon was retired on an unassisted groundout to Latimer. But after a bit of luck and mistakes from Alameda, Colton Boardman scorched a single to left field to drive in Cameron Hegamin and Trent Keys.
The Stompers’ 3-0 start would’ve served well for Laguinto. Harun Pelja, David Howard and Nick Santivanez probably could’ve kept Sonoma in front. But though it wasn’t entirely McBroom’s fault, his rustiness meshed with the Stompers’ destructive defense to lose the lead.
Throughout the contest, Sonoma made three errors. After a four-game stretch of three-plus errors in mid-June, the Stompers’ defense had settled in. Against the Merchants, their previous ways returned.
In the bottom of the second — with one out — Cy Turner tripled before scoring on a wild pitch. Latimer started the third-inning rally when he forced an error from Boardman. A pitch hit Jace Jeremiah, and after Nystrom’s single, Emmitt Phinney drove in Latimer and Jeremiah to tie the game.
Mistakes fueled the comeback. Pace said postgame that three errors were unacceptable. He’s also mentioned free passes, which pained the Stompers with wild pitches and hit-by-pitches.
“We gotta definitely cut down on the errors,” Pace said. “I thought our pitchers did a good job of working through and getting outs, but we don’t wanna give them extra (at-bats). That definitely helped (Alameda) out today.”
The middle innings stayed silent for both squads. The Merchants’ bullpen didn’t allow a hit after the fifth, while Micah Marquez, Chris Albee and Braden Guentz held the line for Sonoma. But Nystrom’s game-winner shattered the silence, a shot that deflated the Stompers and sealed the loss.