Columbus Clippers 15, Toledo Mud Hens 11 (box)
It was a big night for the offense and a rough one for the pitching staff, and that applies to both clubs as the Clippers outslugged the Hens in an old fashioned slobberknocker on Thursday.
Chase Anderson started the game and was rocked for five runs and bounced in the second. Ricardo Pinto improved on that, giving up four runs in two innings and getting pulled for Nolan Blackwood, who gave up two runs just in getting one out. Anyway…
What matters here is that Riley Greene crunched a three-run shot in the fourth inning, collecting a pair of hits, a walk, two runs scored and three RBI. The Tigers may have permanently played themselves out of any playoff chase fun, but this is still going to be a pretty fun summer in Detroit. Austin Meadows walked and struck out in three plate appearances.
Jamie Westbrook, Brendon Davis, and Ryan Lavarnway also homered in the losing effort.
Greene: 2-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR, BB, SO
Westbrook: 3-5, R, 3 RBI, HR, 2 SO
Meadows: 0-2, R, RBI, BB, SO
Lavarnway: 3-5, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR, SO
Coming Up Next: Righthander Garrett Hill ( 0-1, 4.15 ERA) will make his third Triple-A start on Friday night. The Clippers will send LHP Tanner Tully (4-0, 3.57 ERA) out to defend home turf.
Erie SeaWolves 4, Harrisburg Senators 3 (box)
A Dane Myers two-run homer in the sixth inning proved the decisive blow in this one. The shot was Myers’ sixth of the year.
Chance Kirby gave Erie a good outing, tossing five innings of two run ball with five strikeouts. A walk, single, walk combination loaded the bases for the SeaWolves in the third. They would get two runs, one on a balk, the other on an Andre Lipcius sacrifice fly, but let a bigger opportunity slip through their fingers. Harrisburg tied things up in the fifth, and after Myers two-run shot, right-hander Dario Gardea allowed a solo shot in the eighth to make it a one-run game. Yaya Chentouf allowed a single in the ninth, but recorded three strikeouts to pick up his fifth save.
Myers: 2-3, R, 2 RBI, HR
Nieporte: 1-3, R, 2B, SO
Kirby (W, 5-1): 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, BB, 5 SO
Coming Up Next: RHP Markus Solbach (0-2, 3.50 ERA), just transferred back from Toledo, will get the start on Friday night at 6:35 p.m. EDT. The Senators are still in TBD mode.
West Michigan Whitecaps 16, Lake County Captains 8 (box)
Dylan Smith had a rough outing, but the Whitecaps mashed six home runs to blow out the Captains on Thursday. 20-year-old Colt Keith led the way with a pair of solo shots, his seventh and eighth of the year, in a four hit game as he’s continued to push for promotion.
Daniel Cabrera, just sent down from Double-A Erie, got right to work with a solo shot to start the game. Corey Joyce struck out, but Keith followed with a blast to right center field. Jake Holton and Wenceel Perez followed with singles, but Josh Crouch grounded into a double play to end the top half of the first.
Smith has been pretty good early in his pro career, but he was hit fairly hard in this one. He allowed a solo shot and a triple in the third that allowed Lake County to tie the game. The offense took over the game at that point. West Michigan reopened a one run lead in the fourth, and then scored five in the fifth. Colt Keith led off with a double, and Holton and Perez walked. This time catcher Josh Crouch smoked a grand slam to straightaway center field, and the wild rumpus began.
Keith then homered in the sixth, and Bojarski in the seventh, each with no one aboard, and the Whitecaps led 10-4. In the eighth, four walks, a Jose King bases clearing triple, and a two-run shot from Ben Malgeri carried them to a six-run inning that put this one in the bag.
Keith: 4-5, 4 R, 2 RBI, 2 HR, 2B, BB, SO
King: 2-5, R, 3 RBI, 3B, CS
Perez: 1-4, 2 R, 2 BB, SO
Smith (W, 5-3): 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, BB, 3 SO
Coming Up Next: RHP Ty Madden (2-4, 4.46 ERA) takes on RHP Gavin Williams (2-1, 1.40 ERA) on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
Lakeland Flying Tigers 9, Bradenton Marauders 4 (box)
Izaac Pacheco had a huge four-hit night at the plate, and Lakeland got a strong start from Nicky Davila to take down the Marauders.
Davila spun five innings of one hit ball with no walks and five strikeouts. The Flying Tigers got on the board with one in the third, and Bradenton scored in the fourth. A tie game changed quickly in the bottom of the fifth as singles from Esney Chacon and Alvaro Gonzalez led to two runs. Pacheco singled with one out, stole second base, and moved to third on a Manuel Sequera single. A Roberto Campos ground out scored Pacheco, and it was 4-1 Lakeland.
Izaac Pacheco hits a missile but gets cut down trying to stretch it into a double. Has made two fine plays ranging to his left tonight at SS also. Love this kid, pic.twitter.com/VULQ04Fcpv
— Detroit Tigers Minor League Tracker (@Tiger_Lifer) June 3, 2022
The two clubs traded runs in the sixth and seventh inning, but Lakeland roared ahead with an eight-run bottom of the eighth to put the game away. Carlos Mendoza kept up his outrageous on base percentage with a leadoff walk and stole second base. Chacon and Alvaro Gonzalez followed with doubles, and after an Austin Schultz fly out, Pacheco singled in Gonzalez.
Pacheco: 4-5, 2 R, RBI, 2B, SO, 2 SB
Chacon: 3-4, 3 R, RBI, 2B, SO, SB
Gonzalez: 3-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2B
Davila (W, 3-4): 5.0, ER, 5 H, 5 SO
Coming Up Next: The two clubs meet up again at 6:30 p.m. EDT on Friday night.