Adalberto Mejia does well in a rehab assignment, but the Red Wings miss the playoffs. The Lookouts set a modern-era wins record. The Kernels prepare for the playoffs. A big offensive day keeps the E-Twins alive.
ROCHESTER 10, PAWTUCKET 1 IN ROCHESTER
The Red Wings needed a win and an IronPig loss to make the playoffs. They did their part. With Rochester leading 2-1, Jonathan Rodriguez hit a two-run homer in the fifth to make it 4-1. They put the game out of reach with five in the seventh, as Matt Hague led off the inning with a home run and J. B. Shuck hit a three-run shot later in the inning. Hague hit another home run in the ninth. They did their part, but it wasn't enough,as Lehigh Valley won 4-3 and goes on to the playoffs. The bright side is that it allows the Twins to make more September call-ups without worrying about the effect in might have on Rochester's playoff chances, although they didn't appear to be overly concerned about that anyway.
Adalberto Mejia did well in a rehab assignment, pitching five innings and giving up one run on six hits and two walks with two strikeouts. His ERA is 2.83. Dietrich Enns pitched four shutout innings to drop his ERA to 2.29. Levi Michael was 3-for-5. Shuck was 2-for-3 with a home run (his fourth), a double, and four RBIs. Hague was 2-for-4 with two home runs (his ninth and tenth) and scored three times. Leonardo Reginatto was 2-for-4 with a double and finishes at .303. Robbie Grossman, on a rehab assignment, was 1-for-3 with two walks.
CHATTANOOGA 2, MONTGOMERY 1 IN CHATTANOOGA
Two singles and two walks brought home a Lookouts run in the first. Andy Wilkins homered in the fourth to make it 2-0. The Biscuits got on the board in the sixth on a Joe McCarthy home run. Montgomery got only one hit after that, though, as Chattanooga held on to set a new club record for wins in the modern era at 91.
Ryan Eades pitched five shutout innings, giving up three hits and a walk with one strikeout. Keaton Steele pitched two shutout innings to lower his ERA to 1.29. Wilkins was 1-for-1 with his twelfth home run and three walks. Edgar Corcino was 1-for-4 and finishes the year batting .302.
FORT MYERS MIRACLE
No game scheduled. The playoffs begin tonight.
BELOIT 3, CEDAR RAPIDS 0 IN BELOIT
The Snappers scored on a wild pitch in the first inning. It stayed 1-0 until the eighth, when Beloit scored a pair of insurance runs. The Kernels only once advanced a man past first base.
Tyler Beardsley pitched six innings, giving up one run on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts. Logan Lombana pitched a perfect inning to make his ERA 2.60. Lewin Diaz was 2-for-3.
ELIZABETHTON 14, GREENEVILLE 7 IN ELIZABETHTON (PLAYOFF GAME TWO)
Jose Benjamin singled home a run in the top of the first, but the Twins responded with six in the bottom of the first and went into the lead to stay. A wild pitch tied the score and J. J. Robinson's three-run homer put Elizabethton ahead. The Astros got within four runs in the top of the fifth, at 7-3, but the Twins again had a big inning, scoring five, to put the game out of reach. Kolton Kendrick had a two-run homer in the fifth inning.
Brusdar Graterol struck out five in three innings, giving up one run on five hits and a walk. Melvi Acosta struck out eight in four innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on four hits. Kendrick was 3-for-5 with a home run and a double. T. J. Dixon was 2-for-3. Robinson was 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk, and three RBIs. Akil Baddoo was also 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk, and three RBIs. Carson Crites was 2-for-4.
TODAY'S TILTS
5:35 Palm Beach at Fort Myers (Playoff Game One--best-of-three series)
6:00 Greeneville (Cole Watts, 2-3, 6.68) at Elizabethton
PLAYOFF PICTURE
Chattanooga faces Montgomery in a best-of-five series beginning Wednesday, Sept. 6
Fort Myers faces Palm Beach in a best-of-three series beginning tonight.
Cedar Rapids faces Kane County in a best-of-five series beginning Wednesday, Sept. 6.
Elizabethton faces Greeneville in the conclusion of their best-of-three series tonight.