Pioneer League: Missoula takes 3 straight over Ogden as first half concludes
BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner
Ogden Raptors first baseman Connor Bagnieski sees a throw in at first base for an out on Sunday, Jun 29, 2025, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.The first half of the Pioneer Baseball League season came to a close Sunday with both playoff berths wrapped up and a new slate set to begin Tuesday.
The Ogden Raptors injected some drama into the first-half playoff scenario by beating Missoula three times to open the week, but the Paddleheads responded with three wins of their own. Saturday’s victory at Lindquist Field clinched the second playoff berth for the Montana squad.
The Raptors end the first half with a 26-21 record, finishing in sixth place. Ogden begins the second half Tuesday with a six-game series at Idaho Falls (27-20) before returning home July 22-27 for six games against Boise (30-18).
Oakland (37-11) clinched the first-half title with three games left and cleared Missoula (33-15) by four games, ultimately winning 16 of the last 17 games. Those two teams eye September’s playoffs while the PBL’s other 10 teams battle for two playoff spots in the second half.
The Raptors’ second-half schedule appears to provide a runway for playoff contention, especially after Ogden put together a 20-game stretch with a 15-5 record before Missoula claimed the final three games this week. The Raptors played 21 of 47 games in the first half against Oakland, Missoula and third-place Yuba-Sutter (going 8-13), but will face none of those three in the second half.
Around the league, Idaho Falls infielder Ben Rosengard leads the PBL with a scorching hot .487 batting average in 39 games. Ogden catcher Chris Sargent is the team’s top batting-average hitter at .387 and racked up 72 RBIs, trailing only Boise’s Max Jung-Goldberg (79) for the league lead. Missoula’s Roberto Peña leads the PBL with 22 home runs; Sargent leads Ogden with 15, fourth-best.
Pitching-wise, Oakland’s Carson Lambert leads the league with an ERA of 0.69. Ogden closer Nik Cardinal was keeping pace at 0.83 before Sunday, when he gave up three earned runs to Missoula, bumping his ERA to 1.99. Jestin Jones, another reliever, carries a 2.04 ERA for Ogden.
Idaho Falls starter Gary Grosjean has a league-best seven wins; Ogden is led by Chase Chatman with four. Cardinal has five saves, trailing league-leader Connor Sullivan of Oakland, who has 10. Glacier’s Ty Bothwell is tops in strikeouts with 60; Chatman leads Ogden with 37.
