{"id":464805,"date":"2026-09-15T20:30:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T20:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/464805\/"},"modified":"2026-09-15T20:30:16","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T20:30:16","slug":"playoff-preview-coast-sets-sail-for-championship-series-against-billings-mustangs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/464805\/","title":{"rendered":"Playoff preview: Coast sets sail for Championship Series against Billings Mustangs"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to contenders in the Pioneer Baseball League (PBL), two teams stood above the rest: the Billings Mustangs and the Long Beach Coast.<\/p>\n

The Coast was the first team to punch their ticket to the playoffs after securing a top-two record in the first half of the season on July 7. The Mustangs clinched their playoff berth the next night, leaving the league\u2019s other 10 teams in the dust.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although Billings played one fewer game than the Coast, both squads ended with 67 regular-season wins. No other team reached 60.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There were no regular-season meetings between the Mustangs and Coast, but it\u2019s only fitting these two titans meet at the top for the PBL title. The 2026 PBL champion will be decided by a best-of-three series beginning Tuesday night in Long Beach.<\/p>\n

Goliath v. Goliath: Coast pitching against Mustang bats<\/p>\n

The Mustangs\u2019 lineup features dangerous bats swung by Jacob Gutierrez, A.J. Shaver and Cameron Bowen. Those three players topped the lineup card for Billings\u2019 playoff games so far \u2014 and for good reason. The trio combined to hit for a .385 batting average, .440 on-base percentage and .637 slugging percentage.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve got a very good offense, but if you don\u2019t walk people, they have to earn every run they get,\u201d Coast manager Troy Percival said during Monday\u2019s media day availability. \u201cWhen we get up there, we have to really focus on no free passes and understand there\u2019s going to be balls that leave the ballpark.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Zach Voelker, closer for the Long Beach Coast, gets substituted in the ninth inning earning three outs to keep the Coast lead and on the way to their first Pioneer Baseball League championship appearance on Sept. 12, 2026. The Coast beat the Roadsters 6-3. (Samuel Chacko | Signal Tribune)<\/p>\n

Percival is wise to emphasize the prevention of walks. As supreme as Billings\u2019 offense is, their walk rate is right in line with the PBL average of 13.3%. Percival acknowledged it\u2019s hard to make comparisons when the Mustangs play in a smaller ballpark 3,150 feet above sea level while the Coast plays in a larger field at sea level.\u00a0<\/p>\n

No other team is more equipped to handle the force of the Mustangs\u2019 bats. The Coast set the standard this season of keeping hitters at bay, evidenced by their league-leading 5.31 earned run average and 1.59 walks and hits per inning pitched this year. In the offense-friendly PBL environment, Blair Field can be a humbling experience, which their first-round opponent, the Modesto Roadsters, can attest to.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In 84 games away from Long Beach, the Roadsters averaged 9.4 runs per game. That run-scoring average dropped down to 3.6 when matched against the Coast.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As far as attacking the Mustangs\u2019 hitters, Coast pitching coach Jerome Williams is teaching his arms to focus on what has worked for them instead of targeting the batters\u2019 weaknesses.<\/p>\n

\u201cPitch to your strengths, that\u2019s all I can say,\u201d Williams said. \u201cIf we can limit those free passes and execute, I think we have a great chance of winning this series.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Long Beach Coast starting pitcher Nathan Hemmerling began game two of divisional playoffs with three quick innings on Sept. 11, 2026. However, things quickly got out of hand after the Modesto Roadsters\u2019 designated hitter Max Handron hit a three-run home run on Hemmerling as the Roadsters beat the Coast 4-1 at Blair Field. (Samuel Chacko | Signal Tribune)<\/p>\n

Nathan Hemmerling will start for the Coast\u2019s first championship appearance. The California Baptist product has been dependable all season and got through most of Game 2, pitching 6 \u2153 innings while striking out five and allowing just one walk.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The five hits and four runs that followed, Hemmerling isn\u2019t dwelling on.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just going to do the same thing I\u2019ve been doing all year,\u201d he said. \u201cFocus on getting first-pitch strikes, just trying to keep us in the ballgame as long as we can.\u201d<\/p>\n

Game 1 winner Nick Bautista is also expected to start again. The former MLB draft pick out of Cypress College allowed just one earned run and struck out seven in a 96-pitch outing that lasted 6 \u2153 innings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Coast offense aided by additional firepower<\/p>\n

The Coast also possesses a formidable offense to provide ample run support for their pitchers. One of the components is first-round series hero Benjamin Rosengard, who has been a welcome addition since his Coast debut on July 24.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While he doesn\u2019t hit for power, Rosengard has an uncanny ability to capitalize on the defensive gaps. He showed that skill against Modesto, going 6-for-11with 3 RBIs in the first round. He hopes to carry that momentum to the Championship Series.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s some adrenaline and obviously, it\u2019s meaningful baseball and that\u2019s the most exciting type of baseball to play,\u201d Rosengard said. \u201cThat carries into the playoffs and it carries into a championship series, back to where some of us were last year and didn\u2019t get to finish the job so obviously want to come in this time and do what we can to get two more wins.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Benjamin Rosengard, Long Beach Coast third baseman, made his team debut against the RedPocket Mobiles on July 24, 2026 at Blair Field. (Samuel Chacko | Signal Tribune) <\/p>\n

Rosengard played for the Idaho Falls Chukars last season, losing the 2025 Championship Series (2-3), and set the PBL single-season batting average record, hitting .463. That play earned him a contract with the Washington Wild Things of the Frontier League to start 2026 before he was traded to the Coast.\u00a0<\/p>\n

More notably, Rosengard represented Israel in this year\u2019s World Baseball Classic<\/a> and played against countries with star-studded lineups like the Dominican Republic and eventual champion Venezuela. After missing the team\u2019s first champagne celebration when they clinched the playoffs, Rosengard is setting his sights on another celebration.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnytime there\u2019s champagne involved, something good happens,\u201d he said. \u201cSo you get a little taste of it, which is fun, but we also understand that the job isn\u2019t finished and the most important and hardest three games of the year are ahead of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another emerging bat is Cooper Vest. With 14 home runs during the season, Vest wasn\u2019t one of the team\u2019s biggest power threats, but brought the lumber during the Coast\u2019s playoff start. Vest provided instant offense, slugging two home runs in the first-round series.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Cooper Vest, Long Beach Coast right fielder, (right) rushes to the Coast dugout as short stop Jacob Jablonski (left) puts on the Long Beach Coast chain on Sept. 10, 2026. Vest\u2019s lone home run propelled the Coast to a 5-1 victory against the Modesto Roadsters in game one of the Pioneer Baseball League (PBL) playoffs at Blair Field. (Samuel Chacko | Signal Tribune)<\/p>\n

He\u2019s also settled into his new spot in right field during the playoffs after playing first base during the regular season. His defensive versatility peaked when he gunned down a runner at third base and one at home plate against Modesto.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a super fun adjustment, fun change,\u201d Vest said. \u201cIt\u2019s a pretty long season, so to get to have some new stuff to work on late in the year is pretty fun, but I\u2019ve just loved getting some help from [Emilio Corona], Eddy [Pelc] and Bardo [Matthew Bardowell], especially with right field at Blair. It\u2019s been super fun to learn the new tactics and tricks and just get to help the team out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regardless of what happens in the series, Game 1 of the Championship Series will be the Coast\u2019s last home game at Blair Field, while the remaining games will be in Billings, Montana. Percival expressed his appreciation for the community support throughout the season, and asked that it continue in earnest Tuesday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I can say one thing, come out in droves,\u201d Percival said. \u201cWe need the people here. I\u2019ve had two of the coaches say, \u2018My God, even when it\u2019s half full, the electricity in here is the best palace in the league,\u2019 but we need 3,000 people in here tomorrow. That\u2019s what we need.\u201d<\/p>\n

Game 1 of the Championship Series will be played Tuesday at Blair Field. The rest of the three-game series will be held in Billings, Montana. Game 2 will take place on Thursday and, if necessary, Game 3 will take place on Friday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tickets for Game 1 can be purchased on the team\u2019s website here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"JoshuaJoshua MinReporter<\/p>\n

Joshua Min is a senior journalism student at California State University, Long Beach and an assistant copy editor for the school\u2019s newspaper, the Long Beach Current. In his first month with the Current, Joshua\u2019s column \u201cFuture U ignores today\u2019s problems, leaving \u2018U\u2019 out of the picture\u201d won third place for Best Opinion Piece at the California College Media Association Awards. Aside from his copy editing duties, Joshua loves to cover sports and fill in to report on games whenever necessary.<\/p>\n

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