A big Rock Cat comeback. Matt Koch hits a game-winning homer. Infield hits sink the DSL Twins.
TOLEDO 8, ROCHESTER 1 IN ROCHESTER
Batting star: Dan Rohlfing was 1-for-3 with a walk and scored once.
Pitching stars: Blake Martin retired all four batters he faced, striking out one. Shairon Martis pitched a perfect inning.
Opposition stars: Ramon Garcia pitched 6.2 innings, allowing one run on four hits and two walks. Nick Castellanos was 3-for-5 with a two-run homer and scored twice. Jordan Lennerton was 2-for-5 with a two-run homer and scored twice.
Key inning: The first. Kevin Russo led off the game with a home run. With one out, Lennerton singled and Castellanos hit a two-run homer to put the Mud Hens up 3-0 before the Red Wings even batted. The runs came off Virgil Vasquez, who gave up five runs on six hits and a walk in just four innings.
NEW BRITAIN 11, BOWIE 8 IN BOWIE (GAME 1--9 INNINGS--SCHEDULED 7 INNINGS)
Batting stars: Kyle Knudson was 3-for-5 with four RBIs. Daniel Ortiz was 2-for-4 with a walk and a double, scoring once. Josmil Pinto was 1-for-4 with a walk and a two-run homer, scoring twice.
Pitching stars: Matt Hauser pitched two shutout innings, giving up one hit. B. J. Hermsen struck out two in 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up three hits. Edgar Ibarra struck out two in 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up one hit.
Opposition stars: Steve Bumbry was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer. Aaron Baker was 2-for-3 with a walk and scored once. Tim Bascom allowed one run on two hits and a walk in 3.2 innings.
Key inning: The ninth. The Rock Cats had overcome a seven-run first by the Baysox to tie the score at eight. Pinto led off the inning with a walk and Reynaldo Rodriguez singled. A bunt moved runners to second and third. With two out, Jordan Parraz was intentionally walked to load the bases. Chris Pettit was hit by a pitch to bring in the go-ahead run and Knudson delivered a two-run single.
Prospect watch: In his AA debut, Tom Stuifbergen allowed seven first-inning runs. He did settle down after that, but his line was three innings, seven runs, five hits, two walks, and three strikeouts.
BOWIE 6, NEW BRITAIN 4 IN BOWIE (GAME 2)
Batting stars: Daniel Ortiz was 2-for-3 with a home run, scoring twice and driving in three. Reynaldo Rodriguez was 1-for-2 with a walk and a double, scoring twice.
Pitching stars: None.
Opposition stars: George Barber was 2-for-3 and scored twice. Ty Kelly was 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Tyler Wilson struck out six in five innings, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks.
Key inning: The sixth. Bowie led 3-2. In the top of the inning, Rodriguez doubled and scored on an Ortiz single. A single, a hit batsman, and a Curt Smith sacrifice fly gave the Rock Cats a 4-3 lead. In the bottom half, an error, a single, and a ground out put runners on second and third with two out. Brian Ward delivered a two-run single to put the Baysox back in front and Kelly's RBI single produced an insurance run.
FORT MYERS 5, BRADENTON 4 IN FORT MYERS
Batting stars: Matt Koch was 2-for-4 with a double and a home run, scoring twice and driving in two. Kennys Vargas was 2-for-3 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in one.
Pitching stars: Ryan O'Rourke struck out two in two perfect innings. Nelvin Fuentes gave up a hit and a walk in 1.1 scoreless innings.
Opposition stars: Willy Garcia was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer. Carlos Mesa was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer. Alex Hanson was 2-for-5.
Key inning: The sixth. The Miracle led 4-0. Two-run homers by Garcia and Mesa in the top of the sixth tied the score. The runs came off starter Tyler Duffey, who had pitched five shutout innings. In the bottom of the inning, Koch homered with two out to give Fort Myers the run they needed.
KANE COUNTY 15, CEDAR RAPIDS 1 IN CEDAR RAPIDS
Batting stars: Tyler Grimes was 3-for-4 and scored once. Byron Buxton was 3-for-5 with an RBI.
Pitching stars: Josue Montanez struck out one in a scoreless inning, giving up a hit and a walk. Alex Muren struck out one in a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.
Opposition stars: Michael Heesch allowed one run on eight hits and a walk in 6.1 innings. Albert Almora was 4-for-5 with a home run, scoring twice and driving in four. Jeimer Candelario was 3-for-4 with two walks and a home run, scoring twice.
Key inning: The second. Leading 1-0, the Cougars struck for six. Gioskar Amaya led off the inning with a home run. Wilson Contreras had a two-run single and Oscar Zapata had a two-run double. Marco Hernandez singled to bring in the sixth run.
DSL ORIOLES1 9, DSL TWINS 3 AT ORIOLES
Batting star: Dubal Baez was 1-for-3 with a triple and a walk, scoring once and driving in one.
Pitching star: Sebastian Perez struck out one in a perfect inning.
Opposition stars: Wendell Floranus struck out five in five innings, allowing one run on one hit and three walks. Junior Taveras was 3-for-4 with a run and two RBIs. Rochendrick Alexander was 2-for-4 with a triple, scoring twice and driving in one.
Key inning: The first. The first five Orioles1 batters reached base on three singles, a double, and another single. Alexander drove in one with a single, Victor Medina had an RBI double, Taveras drove in a run with a single. A fourth run scored on a wild pitch. Finally two batters were retired, but Brailyn Duran singled in a fifth run. Three of the hits were infield singles. The runs came off Carlos Aponte, whose line was three innings, five runs, six hits, no walks, and five strikeouts.
TODAY'S TILTS
9:30 DSL Diamondbacks and DSL Twins
12:00 Fort Myers (Taylor Rogers, 5-1, 1.35) at Bradenton (Adrian Sampson, 2-2, 5.96)
12:05 Toledo (Shawn Hill, 0-7, 6.38) at Rochester (Kyle Gibson, 5-5, 3.34)
1:05 New Britain (Logan Darnell, 5-5, 2.90) at Bowie (Jake Pettit, 3-2, 3.95)
2:05 Kane County (Dillon Maples, 0-1, 7.06) at Cedar Rapids (Hudson Boyd, 1-3, 5.79)