Another big day for Reynaldo Rodriguez. Kennys Vargas may be getting back on track. Walkoff wins for the Miracle and the Kernels. The E-Twins win on their last at-bat. The GCL Twins hang on. A big inning does in the DSL Twins.
ROCHESTER 7, GWINNETT 5 IN GWINNETT
Batting stars: Reynaldo Rodriguez was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in three. James Beresford was 2-for-3 with a walk, scoring once and driving in one. Danny Ortiz was 2-for-5 with a home run, his thirteenth.
Pitching stars: Alex Meyer pitched three innings, giving up a run on three hits and two walks with one strikeout. Michael Tonkin pitched a perfect inning with one strikeout.
Opposition stars: Sean Kazmar was 2-for-3 with a double and a walk, scoring twice and driving in one. Christian Bethancourt was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Jose Yepez was 2-for-4 with an RBI.
The game: Kazmar and Yepez each drove in a run in the fourth to give the Braves a 4-0 lead. The Red Wings turned it around quickly, scoring six runs in the fifth inning. Rodriguez had a three-run double and Ortiz homered in the inning. The Braves scored once in the sixth to cut the lead to 6-5, but left the tying run on third. The Red Wings added an insurance run in the eighth.
Of note: Danny Santana was 1-for-4 with a walk and two runs. Oswaldo Arcia was 0-for-5. Jason Wheeler pitched four innings, giving up four runs on seven hits and no walks with one strikeout.
JACKSON 10, CHATTANOOGA 6 IN JACKSON (GAME 1--7 INNINGS)
Batting stars: Kennys Vargas was 2-for-3 with a home run (his sixth) and a walk, scoring twice and driving in four. Max Kepler was 1-for-1 with two walks and two runs. Niko Goodrum was 2-for-3 with a double.
Pitching stars: None.
Opposition stars: Jordy Lara was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his sixth) and a double, scoring twice. Aderlin Rodriguez was 2-for-4 with two doubles, scoring twice and driving in one. Tyler Bortnik was 1-for-2 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in three.
The game: Vargas singled in two as part of a four-run first, but the Generals were undaunted. They came back to score six in the second, getting four doubles in the inning. Vargas hit a two-run homer in the fifth to tie it 6-6, but Bortnik's two-run double in the bottom of the fifth restored the Generals lead and Lara's two-run homer in the sixth rounded out the scoring.
Of note: Jorge Polanco was 1-for-4 with a run. D. J. Hicks was 0-for-3 with a walk. Adam Brett Walker II was 1-for-4.
JACKSON 4, CHATTANOOGA 0 IN JACKSON (GAME 2--7 INNINGS)
Batting stars: Jairo Rodriguez was 2-for-3. Kennys Vargas was 1-for-2 with a walk.
Pitching stars: David Hurlbut pitched a six-inning complete game, giving up four runs on six hits and three walks with three strikeouts.
Opposition stars: Tyler Smith was 1-for-2 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in one. Daniel Paolini was 1-for-2 with a double and a walk, driving in one. Kyle Hunter struck out four in three shutout innings, allowing a hit and a walk.
The game: Paolini had an RBI double in a two-run first and Luis Caballero and Smith each had an RBI double in a two-run second. That was it for the scoring. The closest the Lookouts got came in the fourth, when Vargas led off with a single and went to third on a pair of ground outs.
Of note: Shannon Wilkerson was 0-for-3 with a walk. Jorge Polanco was 0-for-3 with a walk. Adam Brett Walker II was 0-for-2 with a walk. D. J. Hicks was 0-for-3.
FORT MYERS 6, ST. LUCIE 5 IN FORT MYERS
Batting stars: Ryan Walker was 3-for-4 with a walk, scoring twice and driving in one. Logan Wade was 2-for-3 with a double, scoring twice and driving in one. Mitch Garver was 2-for-3 with a walk and two RBIs.
Pitching star: Kohl Stewart pitched seven innings, giving up a run on six hits and two walks with six strikeouts.
Opposition stars: Victor Cruzado was 2-for-3 with a triple and two walks, scoring twice. Matt Oberste was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his sixth) and a walk. Maikis De La Cruz was 2-for-3 with two walks and two RBIs.
The game: Garver's two-run single capped a three-run second that put the Miracle in front 4-1. It was 5-1 after seven, but the Mets scored two in the eighth and Oberste hit a two-run homer in the ninth to tie it 5-5. Wade led off the bottom of the ninth with a double and scored on Walker's single to win the game.
Of note: Zach Granite was 1-for-4 with a run. Aderlin Mejia was 0-for-3 with a walk and an RBI.
CEDAR RAPIDS 5, DAYTON 4 IN CEDAR RAPIDS
Batting stars: T. J. White was 2-for-4 with two doubles and a walk, scoring once and driving in one. Tanner English was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once. Zack Larson was 1-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs.
Pitching star: Michael Theofanopoulos struck out three in three innings, giving up one run on four hits and a walk.
Opposition stars: Jimmy Pickens was 3-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI. Gavin LaValley was 3-for-5 with a run and two RBIs. Jeremy Kivel struck out four in 4.1 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and a walk.
The game: The Dragons scored in the fifth to tie it 3-3. It stayed tied until the ninth, when LaValley singled home the go-ahead run. Trailing by one, the Kernels scored two in the ninth to win the game, with the winning run coming on a Nick Gordon single.
Of note: Edgar Corcino was 1-for-4 with a walk. Zach Tillery struck out six innings, giving up three runs on nine hits and a walk.
ELIZABETHTON 4, JOHNSON CITY 2 IN JOHNSON CITY (12 INNINGS)
Batting stars: LaMonte Wade was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his sixth), a double, and two walks, scoring twice. Brian Olson was 3-for-5 with a run. Chris Paul was 2-for-6 with an RBI.
Pitching stars: Samuel Clay struck out eight in seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits and no walks. C. K. Irby struck out four in 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk. Kuo Hua Lo struck out four in 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and two walks.
Opposition stars: Allen Staton was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in one. Josh Wirsu struck out seven in seven innings, allowing two runs on seven hits and two walks. Jhonatan Escudero pitched three shutout innings, allowing only a walk with two strikeouts.
The game: Paul singled home a run in the sixth and Jermaine Palacios did the same in the seventh. The Cardinals tied it in the seventh when Staton delivered an RBI double and scored on a Joey Hawkins single. It stayed there until the twelfth, when Wade came through with a two-out two-run homer. The last four Cardinals batters struck out.
Of note: Palacios was 1-for-6 with an RBI.
GCL TWINS 5, GCL ORIOLES 4 AT TWINS
Batting stars: Luis Arraez was 3-for-4 with a triple and a double, scoring once. Lewin Diaz was 2-for-3 with a double and a walk, scoring once and driving in one. Robert Molina was 1-for-4 with two runs.
Pitching star: Williams Ramirez struck out six in six innings, giving up two runs on five hits and two walks.
Opposition stars: Frank Crinella was 1-for-3 with a double and two walks, scoring once. Ronald Soto was 2-for-3 with a double and a walk. Jason Heinrich was 1-for-4 with a home run, his second.
The game: The Twins turned three singles, an error, and two wild pitches into three first-inning runs, taking a 3-1 lead. It was 3-2 after two and stayed there until the firth, when an Arraez triple and a Diaz double produced two runs and made it 5-2. The Orioles scored single runs in the eighth and ninth, but a caught stealing in the ninth helped kill the rally.
Of note: Christian Cavaness was 2-for-3.
DSL MARINERS1 6, DSL TWINS 2 AT MARINERS1
Batting stars: Edwin Franco was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Zaino Henriquez was 2-for-3 with a triple and a run.
Pitching stars: Fredderi Soto struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up two hits and two walks. Erick Balbuena pitched a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.
Opposition stars: Eugene Helder was 5-for-5 with three doubles, scoring once and driving in two. Ivan Gonzalez was 2-for-5 with a double, scoring once and driving in one. Carlos Herrera pitched seven innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
The game: Each team scored once in the third. Three errors brought home a run for the Twins in the top of the fifth, giving them a 2-1 lead, but the Mariners1 scored five in the bottom of the fifth to put the game out of reach. The Twins made two errors in the inning, which also featured three doubles and a steal of home.
Of note: Emmanuel Morel was 0-for-4. Antonio Tovar was 0-for-4. Jorge Parra was 0-for-3 with a walk. Juan Herrera pitched five innings, giving up six runs (five earned) on ten hits and no walks with four strikeouts.
TODAY'S TILTS
9:00 GCL Twins at GCL Red Sox
Game 2 GCL Red Sox at GCL Twins
9:30 DSL Twins at DSL Rockies
5:35 Fort Myers (Luke Westphal, 3-3, 3.82) at Palm Beach (Corey Littrell, 6-7, 2.73)
6:00 Bluefield (TBA) at Elizabethton (Dereck Rodriguez, 4-1, 1.37)
6:05 Rochester (Pat Dean, 8-9, 2.92) at Charlotte (Scott Carroll, 4-2, 2.45)
6:15 Mobile (Braden Shipley, 8-8, 3.74) at Chattanooga (TBA)*
6:35 Bowling Green (Chris Pike, 8-5, 3.18) at Cedar Rapids (Randy Rosario, 1-2, 2.42)
*milb.com lists David Hurlbut as the starter, but that seems doubtful, since he pitched six innings yesterday.