Twins affiliates get swept. Three of the losses come in the last inning. Jorge Polanco's big day wasn't enough for the Red Wings. A bullpen meltdown costs the Lookouts. Nick Gordon seems to quietly be starting to figure things out. E-Twin errors waste a fine effort by Dereck Rodriguez.
SYRACUSE 4, ROCHESTER 1 IN SYRACUSE
Batting stars: Jorge Polanco was 4-for-4 with a double and a run. Danny Ortiz was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk. Jose Martinez was 2-for-4.
Pitching star: Caleb Thielbar pitched a perfect inning with one strikeout.
Opposition stars: Chris Nelson was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs. Mario Lisson was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Taylor Jordan pitched six shutout innings, allowing five hits and one walk with four strikeouts.
The game: Rick Hague singled in a run in the fourth. Three singles and a Jason Martinson double led to two in the fifth, making the score 3-0 Chiefs. The Red Wings threatened in the first, sixth, and seventh but did not score until the eighth, when Polanco led off with a double and scored on a pair of productive outs. The Chiefs got the run back in the bottom of the eighth. In the ninth the Red Wings started with a double and a single, bringing the tying run to the plate with none out, but could do nothing with the threat.
Of note: James Beresford was 1-for-4. Chris Herrmann was 1-for-3 with an RBI. Reynaldo Rodriguez was 0-for-4. Greg Peavey pitched six innings, giving up three runs on eight hits and a walk with two strikeouts.
MISSISSIPPI 11, CHATTANOOGA 10 IN CHATTANOOGA
Batting stars: Travis Harrison was 2-for-4 with a home run (his fourth) a double, and a walk, scoring twice and driving in five. Stuart Turner was 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs. Stephen Wickens was 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs.
Pitching star: Jason Wheeler pitched seven innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on nine hits and no walks with three strikeouts.
Opposition stars: Emerson Landoni was 5-for-5 with a triple and three doubles, scoring four times and driving in three. K. D. Kang was 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs. Kevin Ahrens was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, driving in three.
The game: Turner's two-run double in the sixth put the Lookouts up 4-3. In the seventh, Harrison hit a two-run homer and Adam Brett Walker II followed with a solo shot to make it 7-3. The Braves got two in the top of the eighth, but Harrison hit a three-run double in the bottom of the eight to give the Lookouts a seemingly safe 10-5 lead. It didn't turn out that way, though. The first two Braves in the ninth were retired. Then came a walk, a single, a double, another single, three more walks, and a two-run double by Sean Godfrey that put the Braves in front 11-10. The Lookouts went down in order in the bottom of the ninth.
Of note: Shannon Wilkerson was 1-for-4 with a walk and a run. Kennys Vargas was 1-for-4 with a walk and a run. Adam Brett Walker II was 1-for-5 with a home run, his twenty-fourth.
CLEARWATER 4, FORT MYERS 1 IN FORT MYERS
Batting stars: Mitch Garver was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Tanner Vavra was 2-for-4. Michael Quesada was 1-for-3 with a double.
Pitching stars: Stephen Gonsalves pitched five innings, giving up three runs (one earned) on eight hits and four walks with two strikeouts. Nick Burdi struck out three in two perfect innings. Tyler Jay pitched a perfect perfect inning, striking out all three batters he faced.
Opposition stars: Mitch Walding was 0-for-1 with three walks and a run. Rhys Hoskins was 2-for-5 with a run. Brandon Leibrandt pitched six innings, allowing one run on six hits and no walks with three strikeouts.
The game: Malquin Canelo singled in a run in the third and the Threshers added two more in the fourth to take a 3-0 lead. Garver doubled in a run in the bottom of the fourth to cut the lead to 3-1, but that was as good as it would get for the Miracle, who never had more than one man on base after that. The Threshers added an insurance run in the ninth.
Of note: Jason Kanzler was 0-for-3 with a walk. Alex Swim was 0-for-4.
KANE COUNTY 3, CEDAR RAPIDS 1 IN KANE COUNTY
Batting stars: Nick Gordon was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Brett Doe was 2-for-3. Edgar Corcino was 2-for-4.
Pitching stars: Sam Gibbons pitched 5.1 innings, giving up one run on seven hits and a walk with three strikeouts. Luke Bard struck out two in 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up two hits.
Opposition stars: Ildemaro Vargas was 1-for-1 with a two-run homer, his second. Marty Herum was 2-for-4 with a double and a run. Ex-Twin Marcus Solbach pitched seven innings, allowing one run on nine hits and no walks with four strikeouts.
The game: In the fourth, Herum doubled and scored on a pair of productive outs to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead. The Kernels stranded five runners in the first two innings but did not score until the eighth, when Gordon singled in a run to tie it 1-1. With two out in the bottom of the ninth, Vargas hit a pinch-hit two-run walkoff homer.
Of note: Tanner English was 0-for-3. Zack Larson was 0-for-4. Sean Miller was 1-for-4 with a run.
JOHNSON CITY 3, ELIZABETHTON 2 IN ELIZABETHTON (10 INNINGS)
Batting stars: Nelson Molina was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer. Brad Hartong was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run. LaMonte Wade was 2-for-4.
Pitching stars: Dereck Rodriguez struck out six in six innings, giving up an unearned run on four hits and a walk. Anthony Mciver pitched two shutout innings, giving up two hits and a walk with one strikeout. Logan Lombana pitched a perfect inning.
Opposition stars: Edmundo Sosa was 2-for-4 with a run. Luke Doyle was 1-for-4 with a walk and a run. Juan Caballero struck out four in three shutout innings, allowing one hit.
The game: A single, a walk, and an error put the Cardinals on the board in the first inning. Molina hit a two-run homer in the second to make it 2-1. The Cardinals threatened a few times, but the score stayed 2-1 until the ninth, when an error brought home the tying run. The Cardinals opened the tenth with three singles to go ahead at 3-2. The Twins got a man on with one out in the bottom of the tenth, but a double play ended the game.
Of note: Ariel Montesino was 1-for-4. Amaurys Minier was 0-for-4.
TODAY'S TILTS
9:30 DSL Giants at DSL Twins
11:00 GCL Rays at GCL Twins
12:00 Cedar Rapids (Luke Westphal, 1-1, 4.50) at Kane County (Josh Taylor, 1-0, 5.06
6:00 Johnson City (Ryan Helsley, 0-0, 1.59) at Elizabethton (Alexis Tapia, 1-1, 2.76)
6:05 Clearwater (Ricardo Pinto, 2-1, 3.46) at Fort Myers (Aaron Slegers, 6-4, 3.07)
6;15 Mississippi (Stephen Janas, 0-1, 6.30) at Chattanooga (David Hurlbut, 4-4, 5.57)