Fuego pitching collapses in 19-2 road opener loss

The Santa Fe Fuego officially have their first losing streak of the Pecos League season. After opening with four straight wins at home, they have dropped their next two. The latest loss came in a forgettable performance at Alpine, the road opener for Santa Fe.

The Fuego defense committed seven errors and three pitchers combined to surrender 14 hits and seven walks in a 19-2 loss to the Cowboys at Kokernot Field on Monday night. Starter Colin Kelly (0-1) was battered for 10 hits and eight runs over five innings in his Santa Fe debut.

The only inning in which Alpine didn’t score was the bottom of the third. The Cowboys (4-1) scored at least two runs in every other at-bat, pulling away after the Fuego (4-2) cut it to 6-2 on a two-run single by Caleb Baker in the top of the third.

It got so bad for Santa Fe that manager T.J. Zarewicz came on to pitch the final 2⅔ innings in relief. He gave up six runs on five hits with a pair of walks. Only one of his runs was earned.

Fuego second baseman Aaron Stubblefield had three errors. Six of the team’s seven miscues were committed by the infield leading to nine unearned runs.

The loss dropped Santa Fe into second place in the Pecos League’s Mountain Division, one-half game behind Alpine. The teams resume their three-game series Tuesday night, with the Fuego scheduled to return home Thursday night for a fourgame series against Garden City.