Mark Contreras hits a big home run.  So does Andrew Bechtold.  A very bad day for Sawyer Gipson-Long.  Christian Encarnacion-Strand just keeps hitting.

ST. PAUL 6, OMAHA 5 IN ST. PAUL

The Saints trailed 5-1, but Mark Contreras hit a three-run homer in a four-run fourth to tie it.  Gilberto Celestino singled home the deciding run in the ninth.

Batting stars:  Celestino was 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.  Tomas Telis was 3-for-5.  Contreras was 2-for-3 with a three-run homer (his fourteenth) and a walk.  Jose Miranda was 2-for-5.

Pitching stars:  Robinson Leyer retired all four men he faced, striking out two.  Jovani Moran struck out two in two shutout innings, walking two.  Kyle Barraclough struck out two in a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.

Opposition stars:  Erick Mejia was 2-for-4 with a home run, his fourth.  Bobby Witt, Jr. was 2-for-4 with two doubles.  Jace Vines struck out three in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.

Starter:  Bryan Sammons pitched 4.2 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits and no walks and striking out two.

Good stats:  Miranda is batting .326.  Telis is batting .304.  Barraclough has an ERA of 2.75.

Bad stats:  B. J. Boyd was 1-for-1 and is batting .129.  Sammons has an ERA of 5.54.  Leyer has an ERA of 6.28.

Record:  The Saints are 56-53, in third place in the AAA Southeast/West, seven games behind Toledo.

WICHITA 3, NORTHWEST ARKANSAS 1 IN WICHITA

Andrew Bechtold homered in the seventh to break a 1-1 tie.

Batting stars:  D. J. Burt was 3-for-3 with two doubles and two runs.  Bechtold was 1-for-3 with a home run, his seventeenth.

Pitching stars:  Cole Sands pitched six innings, giving up an unearned run on four hits and two walks and striking out five.  Kody Funderburk pitched three shutout innings, giving up one hit and striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Jeison Guzman was 2-for-4.  Drew Parrish struck out five in 4.2 innings, giving up one run on three hits with no walks.

Good stats:  Roy Morales was 0-for-4 and is batting .303.  Funderburk has an ERA of zero.  Sands has an ERA of 2.86.

Bad stats:  None.

Record:  The Wind Surge is 63-46, in first place in the AA Central/North, four games ahead of Arkansas.

WISCONSIN 8, CEDAR RAPIDS 7 IN WISCONSIN

The Timber Rattlers scored six in the first.  The Kernels battled back but could never get even.

Batting stars:  Matt Wallner was 3-for-4 with a grand slam (his twelfth homer) and a double.  Aaron Sabato was 2-for-4.  Edouard Julien was 1-for-2 with a home run (his tenth), three walks, and two runs.  Seth Gray was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, his tenth.

Pitching stars:  Andrew Cabezas struck out four in 3.1 innings, giving up one run on four hits and two walks.  Osiris German pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and striking out two.

Opposition stars:  Joey Wiemer was 4-for-5 with a home run (his ninth), a double, two runs, and two RBIs.  Freddy Zamora was 3-for-3 with a walk.  Harold Chirino struck out four in two shutout innings, giving up a hit and a walk.

Starter:  Sawyer Gipson-Long pitched just one-third of an inning, allowing six runs on three hits and three walks and striking out one.

Good stats:  Yunior Severino was 1-for-4 and is batting .336.

Bad stats:  Tyler Palm allowed a run in two innings and has an ERA of 5.36.  German has an ERA of 5.64.

Record:  The Kernels are 59-50, in second place in the High-A Central/West, twelve games behind Quad Cities.

FORT MYERS 6, PALM BEACH 2 IN FORT MYERS

Fort Myers scored five in the fifth to break a 1-1 tie.  Charles Mack hit a two-run homer in the fifth inning.

Batting stars:  Christian Encarnacion-Strand was 3-for-3 with a triple and a walk.  Charles Mack was 2-for-4 with a two-run homer (his sixth), a double, and two runs.

Pitching stars:  Zarion Sharpe struck out eight in six innings, giving up two runs on five hits and two walks.  Matthew Swain struck out five in three shutout innings, giving up a hit and a walk.

Opposition star:  Patrick Romeri was 3-for-4 with two doubles.

Good stats:  Encarnacion-Strand is batting .453.

Bad stats:  Justin Washington was 0-for-3 and is batting .161.  Misael Urbina was 0-for-3 and is batting .187.  Willie Joe Garry, Jr. was 0-for-4 and is batting .190.

Record:  The Mighty Mussels are 53-52, in third place in the Low-A Southeast/West, seventeen games behind Tampa.

TODAY'S TILTS

12:05  Cedar Rapids (Cody Laweryson, 1-4, 4.94) at Wisconsin
1:05  Omaha at St. Paul (Drew Strotman, 0-1, 7.39)
6:00  Palm Beach at Fort Myers (John Stankiewicz, 0-0, 2.70)
7:05  Northwest Arkansas at Wichita (Austin Schulfer, 6-7, 4.56)