Pioneere League Insider: July 10

History made: With his three-run home run in the first inning against the Missoula PaddleHeads, Glacier Range Riders’ Kingston Liniak passed Christian Kirtley for the franchise-record in home runs with 36. Liniak has been with the Range Riders since their inception in 2022 but has missed time playing in other leagues. However, current teammate Gabe Howell is not far behind Liniak with 32 career home runs. It will be an interesting race the rest of the season to determine who holds the top two spots or if Christian Kirtley remains in second with 35.  

Red-hot Ballers: The Oakland Ballers are currently riding a 12-game winning streak with a balanced attack of offense and pitching. In six of the games during their winning streak, they scored double-digit runs. During that same stretch they have recorded two shutouts and have held opponents under five runs in five of those games. They have scored 129 runs and hold a +86-run differential during their incredible run.  

Ice cold Rocky Mountains: After being in the middle of the pack and a first-half playoff hopeful last week, the Rocky Mountain Vibes are not vibing and riding an eight-game losing streak. To make matters worse, they are in their second game of a six-game series with the team that can’t lose, the Oakland Ballers.  

Race to clinch: We are in the final week of the Pioneer League’s first half of the season with it wrapping up on July 13. The top two teams with the best record clinch a playoff berth, regardless of how the second half goes, and Oakland (33-10) is currently one game away from clinching a berth. Missoula still has a chance for the top seed, as they currently sit three games back with a 30-13 record. Yuba-Sutter is two games back of Missoula and has an outside chance at making up the ground in the final week. They would need at least two Missoula losses and would need to win the next four of the next five. 

Notable: Former PBL manager of the year from the Grand Junction Jackalopes Bobby Jenks passed away on July 4 after battling cancer. Jenks led to Jackalops to a 62-33 record and the Pioneer League championship in 2022. Before that he was a two-time All Star for the Chicago White Sox and closed out Game 4 of the 2005 World Series that ended an 88-year championship drought. ... In the final week of the first half PaddleHeads’ Roberto Pena still sits atop the home run leaderboard with 21, while teammate Adam Fogel is behind with 16. ... Ty Bothwell of the Range Riders still leads the league in strikeouts with 54, but teammate Luke Schafer is closing in with 53. ... No pitcher or hitter of the week awards were released as of Wednesday.