The Long Beach Coast’s Game 3 against the Modesto Roadsters on Saturday night was everything you’d expect from a win-or-go-home matchup—and one that ended in champagne showers for the first-year franchise.
After playing the Roadsters in their last six games dating back to the regular season and splitting the first two games of the series, the two teams once again traded blows throughout Game 3. But it was the Coast that got the last laugh, pulling away for a 6-3 win at Bohl Diamond at Blair Field to punch its ticket to the championship series.
The Coast will host Game 1 of the championship series at Bohl Diamond at Blair Field on Tuesday against the Billings Mustangs before traveling to Montana for Games 2 and 3 (if needed) to decide the 2026 Pioneer League champion.
“It’s fantastic. These guys have rallied around the next-guy-up mentality, and they just kept showing up and battling,” said Coast manager Troy Percival of the win. “They’ve just kept giving it everything they’ve got all season and, man, I love this team.”
The Coast received the ultimate bullpen game in Game 3 from a pitching staff that has dealt with injuries and shifting roles throughout the season. Gary Grosjean got the start and didn’t allow a hit while surrendering a pair of runs through two innings. Jack Martin followed and allowed just one run across four innings before Jake Dixon, Ryan Faulks and Zach Voelker each tossed a scoreless inning to close out the game, allowing just one hit between three.
“To tell you the truth, it was our bullpen,” Percival said of the key to the win. “I knew coming into the game that it was going to be a bullpen game. Our bullpen was just so resilient, coming out, putting up zero after zero, and finally today we had enough runs for them to work with.”
“Credit to them, they kept us in it the whole time,” added third baseman Benjamin Rosengard. “They gave us time, and our offense was able to get some good at-bats and string it together, which was important. But I think it’s just the chemistry that this team has and the belief in one another, from our coaches all the way down, that helps us stick to it in a game like this.”
In a game that was knotted up at 2-2 through three innings, Rosengard delivered the blow that gave the Coast its final lead with a two-RBI double in the bottom of the fourth. Rosengard drew a pair of walks to go along with his lone hit and two RBI, while David Whittle went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Eddie Pelc, Cooper Vest and Jacob Jablonski each added an RBI.
The Coast found itself in early trouble in the first inning, as right-handed pitcher Gary Grosjean delivered a strikeout against his first batter before issuing three straight walks. Grosjean then forced a pop-up into shallow right field by Leiker Figueroa before the throw by Vest to catcher David Whittle was in time for the inning-ending double play at home.
Meanwhile, the Coast’s offense was able to get going in the second inning after Emilio Corona recorded Long Beach’s first hit of the game with a one-out double. After a flyout, Jablonski then broke his bat on a ball hit just over the head of Modesto’s second baseman to bring in Corona for the game’s first run.
The Coast continued to break through from there, as Whittle drew a walk before an Anthony Mata single loaded the bases. Pelc then drew a bases-loaded walk to bring Jablonski around and give the Coast a 2-0 lead through two innings.
The Roadsters then responded in the top of the third, drawing back-to-back walks to open the frame. That’s when the Coast brought Martin to the mound, but a bunt and an RBI single from Max Handron brought in Modesto’s first run. Leiker Figueroa then smacked an RBI single to even the game at two runs apiece.
Both teams traded 1-2-3 innings before the Coast struck again in the bottom of the fourth. First baseman Trevor Rogers started a rally with a leadoff single before Whittle reached on an error one out later. After a walk, Rosengard then brought around a pair of runs with a two-RBI double to give the Coast a 4-2 lead.
The Coast built on that momentum and added to its lead in the next frame, as Vest smacked a leadoff homerun to deep right field to open the bottom of the fifth. Long Beach then added to that after Rogers reached on an error, before Whittle hit an RBI single to right field to increase the Coast’s lead to 6-2.
The Roadsters were able to tack on another run in the top of the seventh, as Martin surrendered back-to-back singles before the Coast brought left-hander Jake Dixon in from the bullpen. Dixon then allowed an RBI sacrifice fly to Jacob Lojewski before inducing a pop-out to minimize any further damage.
Voelker then came in to pitch the final inning for the Coast, working a 1-2-3 frame that ended in jubilation as Long Beach celebrated its championship series-clinching win. Percival was met with a pair of Gatorade baths as champagne bottles popped and beer was poured and sprayed throughout the celebration.
“It’s a long season. You grind through 96 regular-season games, and you don’t wanna go home after just three more,” Rosengard said. “It’s special, and it’s something we’ve worked for the whole year. We faced a little adversity, and we go back with this team for a while, so it adds some fire. They came out strong yesterday, and credit to them, but today we came out and played the baseball we know how to play.”
The Coast will host Game 1 of the Championship Series on Tuesday at Bohl Diamond at Blair Field, with the first-pitch time yet to be announced.
