Home runs by Kennys Vargas and Chris Carter backed a stellar outing by Omar Bencomo. Another rough start by Kohl Stewart. Some offense for the Miracle at last. A big inning carries the Kernels.
ROCHESTER 5, DURHAM 2 IN DURHAM
Chris Carter hit a two-run homer in a four-run fourth that put the Red Wings up 5-0. The Bulls got both of their runs in the ninth.
Kennys Vargas was 2-for-4 with a home run, his seventh. Carter was 1-for-4 and the home run was his second. Wynston Sawyer was 1-for-4 and is batting .350.
Omar Bencomo, in his 2018 Rochester debut, pitched six shutout innings, giving up one hit and no walks and striking out four. Alan Busenitz struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up two hits. His ERA is 0.54.
BIRMINGHAM 7, CHATTANOOGA 1 IN BIRMINGHAM
The Barons scored four in the second and led the rest of the way. LaMonte Wade drove home the Lookouts' lone run with an RBI single in the sixth.
James Ramsey was 2-for-3. Zander Wiel was 0-for-4 and is batting .316. Chattanooga had just five hits.
Kohl Stewart had another rough outing, going just four innings and allowing seven runs (six earned) on ten hits and three walks and striking out four. Sam Clay struck out three in two shutout innings, giving up three hits and a walk. Paco Rodriguez struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.
FORT MYERS 6, CLEARWATER 3 IN CLEARWATER
Taylor Grzelakowsi (whose name is apparently pronouced "JEL-a-KOW-ski") hit a two-run double in a three-run sixth that put the Miracle up 4-1. The Threshers got two of them back in the bottom of the sixth but could come no closer.
Jaylin Davis was 3-for-4 with a double and scored twice. Travis Blankenhorn was 3-for-4 with a double and scored twice. Jimmy Kerrigan was 2-for-5 with a home run (his sixth) and is batting .301.
Brady Anderson pitched 5.1 innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and four walks and striking out four. Andrew Vasquez struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up two hits and a walk. His ERA is 0.66. Tom Hackimer struck out two in 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up one hit. His ERA is 2.57.
CEDAR RAPIDS 15, WISCONSIN 4 IN CEDAR RAPIDS
Leading 6-4, the Kernels scored nine runs in the eighth to put the game out of reach. They hit four home runs in the inning, including a grand slam by Jose Miranda.
Ben Rortvedt was 3-for-4 with two doubles and a walk. Miranda was 3-for-5 with two doubles and a grand slam (his fourth homer), driving in six. Robby Rinn was 3-for-5 with a home run. He scored twice and is batting .500. Royce Lewis was 2-for-5 with a double, scoring three times and driving in two. He is batting .312. Akil Baddoo was 1-for-3 with a home run (his third) and three walks, scoring four times. Jacob Pearson was 1-for-4 with a home run. Alex Kirilloff was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk and is batting .326. Jordan Gore was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring twice. He is batting .316.
Blayne Enlow pitched just 3.2 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits and four walks and striking out three. Jovani Moran struck out five in 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk. He has 38 strikeouts in 25.1 innings. Calvin Faucher pitched two perfect innings. His ERA remains at zero in seventeen innings. Jose Martinez pitched a scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out one.
NEXT DAY'S GAMES
Rochester (Dietrich Enns) at Durham (Anthony Banda)
Chattanooga (Sean Poppen) at Birmingham (Spencer Adams)
Fort Myers (Clark Beeker) at Clearwater (Adonis Medina)
Wisconsin (Nelson Hernandez) at Cedar Rapids (Tanner Kiest)