Toledo Mud Hens 9, Indianapolis Indians 8 (box)
After building a nice early lead, the Mud Hens’ bullpen imploded to let Indy back in the game, but they eventually pulled it out with late innings’ heroics. As a result they took the series four games to two, and now hold a 53-42 record.
The Hens got started fast. Akil Baddoo led off the bottom of the first with a walk. He then stole second and advanced to third on an errant throw. All that proved unnecessary, as Riley Greene pulled a two-run shot down the right field line for his first Triple-A home run. It was Greene again in the second inning, driving in two with an RBI single. Greene ended up with five RBI on the night. We think he’s doing okay.
Aderlin Rodriguez followed Greene with a single that scored Spencer Torkelson, and the Hens were up 5-0.
Things flipped the other way starting in the fifth. Nivaldo Rodriguez got into some trouble, and the Hens turned to Wladimir Pinto with two on, two out, and a run already in. Pinto walked the first hitter he faced to load the bases, while an error on Ryan Kreidler allowed another run to score. Pinto then walked in another before finally ending the inning. 5-3 Hens at that point. Pinto got into a huge jam of his own making in the sixth, with Nolan Blackwood eventually allowing a three-run shot that capped a five-run frame for Indy.
The Hens fought right back, however. A two-run double from Torkelson in the sixth was followed by a Greene single to score Torkelson, and trim the lead to 8-7. That set the stage for a wild bottom of the ninth. Indy reliever Tyler Bashlor allowed a leadoff double from Aderlin Rodriguez, and then walked a pair of hitters around a strikeout of JaCoby Jones. Ryan Kreidler dribbled a little swinging bunt that Bashlor couldn’t make a play on, plating Rodriguez to tie the game. Isaac Paredes tapped another swinging bunt that was converted into a game saving out at home plate, but Akil Baddoo was now at the dish with two outs and the game on the line. Gotta like those odds. Baddoo worked a 2-2 count and then smoked a laser beam to center field that might’ve gone for a triple were it not a game winning walkoff hit, and there was joy in Hensville.
Baddoo: 1-4, 2 R, RBI, 2 BB
Greene: 3-5, R, 5 RBI, HR, SO
Rodriguez: 2-5, R, RBI, 2B, SO
Coming Up Next: The Hens will welcome in the St. Paul Saints—which I suppose is no worse than the Los Angeles Angels—this week, so get your Greene/Torkelson fix while you can.
Richmond Flying Squirrels 5, Erie SeaWolves 2 (box)
A close fought game fell apart late as the SeaWolves’ bullpen imploded to lose this one. A.J. Ladwig got the start, and threw five innings of two run ball. Andrew Navigato started the scoring with a solo shot, his 11th, in the fourth inning. In the fifth, Cole MacLaren led off with a walk, advanced on a Yariel Gonzalez single, and scored on a Kerry Carpenter single. When Ladwig allowed his second run in the bottom of the fifth, we were knotted at five apiece.
Unfortunately, the SeaWolves couldn’t push any more runs across. Chavez Fernandez allowed a solo shot in the seventh as the Squirrels seized the lead, and they scored two more in the eighth against Fernander to send Erie to defeat.
Navigato: 2-4, R, RBI, HR, SO, SB
Carpenter: 1-2, RBI, 2 BB
De La Rosa: 1-3, 2B, SO, 2 SB
Coming Up Next: The SeaWolves head out to take on the Bowie Baysox this week.
Fort Wayne TinCaps 2, West Michigan Whitecaps 0 (box)
Adam Wolf put together a solid outing, but the offense couldn’t get on track in this one. Wolf tossed five innings of one run ball with no walks and seven strikeouts. Angel Reyes and Zack Hess each made scoreless appearances to keep the Whitecaps in this one for the distance. The lineup collected five walks on the day, but all of their six hits were singles, and they just couldn’t buy a hit with runners in scoring position. Wenceel Perez, Gage Workman, and Austin Murr each had a single and a walk in the losing effort. The loss made it three straight for Fort Wayne, as they came back to split the six-game set.
Coming Up Next: The Whitecaps head to Lansing for a series with the Lugnuts this week.
Lakeland Flying Tigers 9, Jupiter Hammerheads 4 (box)
The Tigers stormed back from an early deficit with a pair of big innings to take this one on Sunday. Kingston Liniak gave Lakeland a lead in the top of the first with an RBI single to score Colt Keith. Starter Carlos Pena lost that lead in the bottom of the inning, allowing a pair of runs to cross. An error from Trei Cruz in the fourth cost Lakeland another run, but in the fifth they got to work.
Chris Meyes led off with a walk, and a pair of singles brought him home. Ben Malgeri came through with an RBI single, and Liniak eventually scored Carlos Mendoza with a sacrifice fly to take a one-run lead. It was Meyers again, leading off the sixth with a single. Esney Chacon walked, and Keith singled to load the bases. Malgeri was then hit by a pitch to force in a run and a pitching change from Jupiter. Their new reliever promptly wild pitched in Chacon and moved everyone else up a base. Josh Crouch stepped to the dish and drilled a grounder back through the box for a two-run single that made it 8-4. They added one more run on Crouch’s RBI double in the eighth inning, Andrew Magno shut down the Hammerheads over the final two innings to lock this one up.
Crouch: 4-5, 3 RBI, 2B, SO
Keith: 1-3, 3 R, 2 BB
Malgeri: 2-4, R, 2 RBI, SO
Coming Up Next: The victory on Sunday earned the Flygers a 5-2 series win. They’ll welcome in Dunedin this week.