Minor league regular seasons come to an end today. Cedar Rapids prepares for the playoffs, beginning Wednesday. Elizabethton will play the final game of its first round playoff series tonight.
GAMES OF SEPTEMBER 3
LEHIGH VALLEY 5, ROCHESTER 1 IN LEHIGH VALLEY
The IronPigs scored all their runs on homers, getting a solo homer in the third, two solo shots in the fourth, and a two-run homer in the seventh. Tyler Duffey pitched well other than the homers, throwing a complete game while allowing five runs on seven hits and two walks with seven strikeouts. Leonardo Reginatto was 4-for-4. Mitch Garver was 2-for-4 and is batting .311. Tanner English was 2-for-3.
CHATTANOOGA 2, JACKSON 1 IN JACKSON
Two singles and a sacrifice fly produced a fourth-inning run that put the Lookouts up 2-1. Kohl Stewart and Randy LeBlanc took it from there. Stewart pitched six innings and gave up one run on three this and three walks with one strikeout. LeBlanc struck out four in three shutout innings, giving up no hits and two walks. He has now pitched ten scoreless innings since his promotion to AA. Niko Goodrum and D. J. Hicks were each 2-for-4.
FORT MYERS 7, BRADENTON 3 IN FORT MYERS (COMPLETION OF SUSPENDED GAME)
Joe Maloney hit a three-run homer in the sixth to put the Miracle up 4-3 and Fort Myers got three more in the seventh to put the game out of reach and keep the Miracle alive in the playoff race. Dereck Rodriguez had pitched five innings before it rained, giving up two runs on five hits and no walks with three strikeouts. Nick Gordon was 3-for-3 with a double and a walk. Christian Ibarra was 2-for-3 with a triple and a walk. Maloney's home run was his fifth.
BRADENTON 11, FORT MYERS 6 IN FORT MYERS (SCHEDULED GAME--7 INNINGS)
The Marauders scored six in the first inning and the game was never close. Sam Clay did not get out of the first inning, getting charged with all six runs on two hits and four walks in a third of an inning. Brian Navaretto was 3-for-3. The loss took the Miracle out of playoff contention.
CLINTON 8, CEDAR RAPIDS 5 IN CLINTON
The LumberKings scored three in the first and eventually built a 6-0 lead before the Twins scored some late runs to make the final score look better. Brady Anderson pitched 5.2 innings, allowing six runs on twelve hits and a walk with two strikeouts. Zander Weil was 3-for-5 with a home run, his seventeenth. Jaylin Davis was 2-for-4. J. J. Fernandez hit a home run, his tenth. Nelson Molina was 0-for-4 and is batting .304
JOHNSON CITY 7, ELIZABETHTON 4 IN ELIZABETHTON (PLAYOFF GAME 1)
It was tied 3-3 after seven, but Joshua Lopez hit a two-run homer in the eighth and the Cardinals got two more in the ninth to put the game out of reach. Miguel De Jesus pitched five innings, giving up three runs on four hits and three walks with four strikeouts. Lewin Diaz was 2-for-4 with a home run and a double. Caleb Hamilton and Luis Martinez were each 2-for-4. The playoff series is best-of-three.
GCL RED SOX 4, GCL TWINS 3 AT TWINS (ONE-GAME PLAYOFF)
The Red Sox scored three in the sixth and one in the seventh to take 4-0 lead. In the eighth, Akil Baddoo hit a two-run triple and scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-3, but the Twins did not get the tying run on base. Tyler Fox pitched 5.1 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks with one strikeout. Lean Marrero was 3-for-3 with a double. The loss ends the GCL Twins' season.
GAMES OF SEPTEMBER 4
ROCHESTER 5, LEHIGH VALLEY 4 IN LEHIGH VALLEY
Leonardo Reginatto's three-run double was the highlight of a four-run eighth that put the Red Wings up 5-2. They then held on, as the IronPigs scored one in the eighth and one in the ninth. Omar Bencomo pitched six innings, giving up two runs on six hits and a walk with four strikeouts. Mitch Garver was 2-for-2 with a double and two walks and is batting .329. Kennys Vargas was 2-for-3 with a double and a walk. Tanner English was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk and is batting .308. Reginatto was 2-for-4.
JACKSON 8, CHATTANOOGA 5 IN JACKSON
The Generals scored five in the first to go up 5-0. The Lookouts battled back and tied it 5-5 in the sixth, but it went for naught as Tyler Marlette hit a two-run homer in a three-run Jackson eighth. Ryan Eades pitched four innings, surrendering five runs on four hits and four walks with four strikeouts. Niko Goodrum was 3-for-3 with a double and a walk. He is 8-for-11 in his last three games and is batting .447 in his last ten games. T. J. White was 2-for-3 with a walk. D. J. Hicks was 2-for-4 with a double.
FORT MYERS 5, BRADENTON 2 IN FORT MYERS
The Miracle scored single runs in the third, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth to close out their season with a win. Keaton Steele struck out seven in seven innings, giving up two runs on four hits and two walks. Daniel Kihle was 3-for-3 with a home run (his second) and a double. A. J. Murray was 2-for-4 with a home run, his fourth. Alex Perez was also 2-for-4. Fort Myers ends its season with a record of 70-68.
CLINTON 5, CEDAR RAPIDS 0 IN CEDAR RAPIDS
Rayder Ascanio hit a three-run homer in the fifth to put the LumberKings up 4-0 and give them control of the game. Sam Gibbons pitched seven innings, allowing five runs (three earned) on eight hits and two walks with five strikeouts. Andrew Vasquez struck out three in two perfect innings. He has an ERA of 1.59, a WHIP of 0.88, and has 36 strikeouts in 28.1 innings. J. J. Fernandez was 3-for-4. Casey Scoggins was 2-for-4 with a double. Luis Arraez was 1-for-4 and is batting .347.
ELIZABETHTON 8, JOHNSON CITY 7 IN JOHNSON CITY (PLAYOFF GAME 2)
The Twins led 1-0, trailed 4-1, led 5-4, trailed 6-5, were tied 6-6, and finally took the lead for good on a run-scoring ground out in the sixth. The Cardinals had the tying run on third in both the seventh and the eighth. Tyler Wells lasted only 3.1 innings, surrendering six runs on seven hits and a walk with two strikeouts. Caleb Hamilton was 3-for-4 with a double. Mitchell Kranson was 3-for-5 with a double. Ben Rortvedt was 2-for-5 with a double. Shane Carrier hit a home run. The teams are tied 1-1. The deciding game of the series is scheduled to be played today.
TODAY'S TILTS
12:05 Clinton (Nick Wells, 1-8, 5.61) at Cedar Rapids (Eduardo Del Rosario, 6-2, 3.65)--last game of regular season
12:35 Rochester (David Hurlbut, 0-1, 2.45) at Lehigh Valley (David Buchanan, 9-9, 4.15)--last game of season
2:05 Chattanooga (Felix Jorge, 2-5, 4.55) at Jackson (Bryan Evans, 0-1, 4.76)
6:00 Elizabethton (Clark Beeker, 0-1, 2.38) at Johnson City (Ian Oxnevad, 5-3, 3.38)--playoff game 3