Three shutouts! Two 1-0 victories! And then there's New Britain.
ROCHESTER 1, CHARLOTTE 0 IN ROCHESTER
Batting stars: Doug Bernier was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk. Chris Parmelee was 1-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
Pitching stars: Alex Meyer struck out eleven in six innings, giving up two hits and three walks. Matt Hoffman pitched 1.2 innings, giving up one hit. Matt Guerrier pitched 1.1 innings, giving up a walk and striking out one.
Opposition star: Dylan Axelrod struck out seven in six innings, allowing one run on three hits and three walks.
The game: Charlotte had a couple of threats early, getting two men on in each of the first two innings. Rochester's lone run came in the third, when Danny Santana singled, stole second, and scored on a Parmelee double. Meyer seemed to get stronger as the game went on, not giving up a hit after the second. The bullpen was equally strong to preserve the 1-0 victory.
Of note: Santana was 1-for-4 with a run. Deibinson Romero was 0-for-2 with a walk. Oswaldo Arcia was 0-for-2 with a walk. Wilkin Ramirez was 0-for-3. Eric Farris was 0-for-3.
HARRISBURG 9, NEW BRITAIN 0 IN HARRISBURG
Batting stars: None.
Pitching stars: Jim Fuller struck out four in 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk. Ryan O'Rourke struck out three in 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up two hits.
Opposition stars: Kevin Keyes was 3-for-5 with a triple, scoring once and driving in two. Justin Martinson was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring twice and driving in two. Robert Gilliam struck out four in 4.2 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and two walks.
The game: Harrisburg scored all its runs in two innings. They took a dominant early lead with six in the second. Two of the first three batters were retired, but a single, a double, a single, an error, another error, a single, and a two-run triple by Keyes made it 6-0. The score stayed there until the seventh, when the Senators added three more on Martinson's two-run double and an RBI double by Brandon Bantz. The closest New Britain came to scoring was in the third, when a single and a hit batsman put men on first and second with two out.
Of note: Kenny Wilson was 0-for-2 with a walk. Nate Hanson was 0-for-4. Kennys Vargas was 0-for-2 with two walks. Matt Koch was 1-for-3. A. J. Pettersen was 1-for-3.
FORT MYERS 7, BRADENTON 0 IN FORT MYERS
Batting stars: Niko Goodrum was 4-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in three. Dalton Hicks was 1-for-4 with a home run and a walk, scoring twice. Travis Harrison was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once.
Pitching star: Jason Wheeler pitched a complete game, giving up two hits and no walks with three strikeouts.
Opposition star: Josh Smith struck out three in 1.2 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and two walks.
The game: It was scoreless until the fourth, when Hicks led off with a homer. Goodrum had an RBI double later in the inning to make it 2-0. Fort Myers added two more in the fifth on a wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk. They scored one in the seventh and two in the eighth, but the game was decided by then. Wheeler was dominant, allowing only two baserunners, both on singles.
Of note: Levi Michael was 2-for-4 with a run. Jorge Polanco was 2-for-5 with a run. Adam Brett Walker II was 1-for-4 with a walk and a run. Max Kepler was 1-for-4.
CEDAR RAPIDS 1, KANE COUNTY 0 IN CEDAR RAPIDS (6 INNINGS--RAIN)
Batting star: Mitch Garver was 1-for-3 with a double and a run.
Pitching star: Ryan Eades struck out six in a complete game, giving up three hits and a walk.
Opposition star: Paul Blackburn pitched five innings, allowing one run on three hits with four strikeouts.
The game: Kane County nearly got on the board in the first inning, as Jason Kanzler threw out a man trying to score from second on a single with two out. The Cougars would not threaten again. Cedar Rapids did not exactly have an offensive juggernaut, but scored in the second when Garver led off with a double and scored on a ground out and a sacrifice fly. It turned out to be enough.
Of note: Kanzler was 0-for-3. Tanner Vavra was 0-for-3. Zach Larson was 1-for-2. Ivory Thomas was 0-for-2.
TODAY'S TILTS
10:35 Charlotte (Duente Heath, 1-0, 1.69) at Rochester (Kris Johnson, 2-2, 2.86)
6:00 New Britain (Taylor Rogers, 0-3, 9.33) at Harrisburg (Matt Purke, 0-4, 9.37)
6:05 Bradenton (Jason Creasy, 1-1, 3.48) at Fort Myers (Tyler Duffey, 3-0, 2.82
6:35 Kane County (Tyler Skulina, 1-0, 4.29) at Cedar Rapids (Ethan Mildren, 0-1, 3.00)
Seeing Dalton Hicks' name always gets my excited for the future, then realize its the wrong Hicks.
The rotating images on the featured image are great.