Drew Butera shows off his speed. Three Fort Myers pitchers combine on a shutout. The Snappers jump out early.
SYRACUSE 5, ROCHESTER 4 IN ROCHESTER (GAME 1—8 INNINGS—SCHEDULED 7 INNINGS)
Batting stars: Darin Mastroianni was 2-for-3 with a triple and a walk. Joe Benson hit a two run homer, his first.
Pitching star: Cole DeVries struck out eight in six innings, giving up two runs on five hits and two walks.
Opposition stars: Jason Michaels was 3-for-4 with a double and a three run homer. Zach Duke gave up two runs on eight hits and a walk in six innings.
Key inning: The eighth. The score was tied at two, and the Chiefs had two out and none on. Casey Fien, who had retired the first five batters he faced, walked Tyler Moore and Bryce Harper. Michaels then hit a three run homer. Benson hit a two out, two run homer in the bottom of the inning, but Ray Chang flied out to end the game.
SYRACUSE 3, ROCHESTER 2 IN ROCHESTER (GAME 2—SCHEDULED 7 INNINGS)
Batting stars: Matt Carson was 2-for-3 with a home run. Drew Butera was 2-for-3 with a double.
Pitching stars: Jeff Manship gave up a run on two hits and two walks in four innings. Anthony Slama worked a perfect inning.
Opposition stars: Mark Teahen was 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Erik Arnesen gave up a run on two hits and no walks, striking out four in five innings.
Key inning: The sixth. Down 3-1, Butera led off with a double, took third on a fly out, and scored on a fielder’s choice on which no out was recorded. A single by Carson and a two out walk to Joe Thurston loaded the bases. Joe Benson hit into a force out to end the threat.
Other: Top prospect Bryce Harper is currently hitting .250 with an OPS of .708. Yes, it’s April…The sweep dropped the Red Wings to last place in the Thruway Series.
FORT MYERS 2, PALM BEACH 0 IN FORT MYERS
Batting star: Michael Gonzales was 1-for-3 and drove in both runs.
Pitching stars: Marty Popham worked 5.2 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and three walks. Ricky Bowen struck out three in 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up just one hit.
Opposition star: Richard Castillo took a complete game loss, giving up two runs on three hits and two walks in eight innings.
Key inning: The second. In a scoreless tie, Daniel Rohlfing singled and Jairo Perez walked. A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third, and Gonzales singled them both home.
Other: The Miracle made two errors. Both came in the first inning, and both came on missed pickoff throws.
BELOIT 8, BOWLING GREEN 3 IN BELOIT
Batting stars: Jonathan Goncalves was 3-for-4 with a double and four RBIs. Wang-wei Lin was 3-for-5 with two doubles. Eddie Rosario was 3-for-5 with a double and drove in two.
Pitching star: Matthew Tomshaw struck out three in 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up two hits.
Opposition stars: Cameron Seitzer was 3-for-4 with two doubles and drove in two. Jason McEachern struck out three in 2.1 scoreless innings.
Key inning: The first. The first four Snappers reached base: Lin doubled, Adam Bryant singled, Miguel Sano was hit by a pitch, and Rosario singled. A ground out scored a second run and Goncalves singled in two to give Beloit a 4-0 lead which was never challenged.
TODAY’S TILTS
5:05 Rochester at Buffalo P. J. Walters v. Jeurys Familia
5:35 New Britain at Richmond Luke French v. Justin Fitzgerald
6:05 Palm Beach at Fort Myers Chris Corrigan v. Pat Dean
6:30 Bowling Green at Beloit Felipe Rivero v. Madison Boer