Charlotte Knights 4, Buffalo Bisons 0
The Charlotte Knights (40-32) picked up a nice victory over the Buffalo Bisons, getting an early spark from the top of the lineup and a dominant effort from the pitching staff. Rikuu Nishida set the tone in the top of the first by refusing to take a called third strike lying down, winning a review, then swiping second. Dustin Harris followed by launching a two-run shot, and just like that, Charlotte had a 2-0 lead. After some quiet middle frames, the offense struck again in the seventh, with Ryan Galanie and Jason Matthews doubling up before Nishida chipped in an RBI single. That was plenty for a pitching staff that, for once, didn’t implode. Mason Adams was nails: five shutout innings, three hits, one walk, and six punchouts. The bullpen kept the Bisons quiet, scattering two hits and one walk through the final four to finish the shutout.
Birmingham Barons at Pensacola Blue Wahoos — Rain Delay
If you’re into offense, this one did not disappoint. The Barons and Blue Wahoos were trading haymakers until the skies finally called mercy. The scoreboard looked like a college football matinee, with Birmingham up 13-12. Every Barons starter contributed a hit, so no passengers here. Pensacola drew first blood with a run off Lucas Gordon in the third, but the Barons counterpunched with three in the fourth on a Caleb Bonemer single, Anthony DePino double, Dylan Campbell two-run double, then Campbell scoring on a Colby Shelton knock, and it was 3-1, Birmingham.
The Barons added on in the fifth inning, Alec Briley uncorked a three-run bomb to make it 6-1, and then it was chaos. The Wahoos hung a ten-spot in the bottom half, nine of those runs coming with two outs, and three Barons pitchers left staring at their shoes. Suddenly, it’s 11-6, Pensacola. But Birmingham wasn’t done as they scored seven runs in the sixth, starting with solo shots from Grant Magill and T.J. McCants, then a conga line of singles, a walk, and an error for five more. Cue the rain, which stuck around for three hours, and I needed to go to bed. MiLB never changed the status, so I’m not sure exactly what’s happening. Tune in tomorrow for an update.
Winston-Salem Dash 8, Greensboro Grasshoppers 5
The Dash (38-28) looked dead in the water through the early frames, down 5-0 after Greensboro battered Justin Sinibaldi and then tacked on two more against Mathias LaCombe post-rain delay. But then George Wolkow ripped a leadoff triple in the fifth, and suddenly the bases were loaded on back-to-back walks to Rylan Galvan and Ely Brown. Arxy Hernández got Winston-Salem on the board with a ground out, Bryce Eblin contributed a run-scoring fielder’s choice, and then Alex Ungar wiped the slate clean with a three-run bomb. Tie game, just like that. In the seventh, Hernández reached on a single and took second on a throw that sailed. Eblin bunted for a hit, a wild pitch brought Hernández home, and Ungar kept the line moving with a single. Kyle Lodise then put the Grasshoppers out of their misery with a two-run double. The bullpen took it from there, holding Greensboro scoreless the rest of the way to complete the comeback victory.
Fayetteville Woodpeckers 9, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 4
The Cannon Ballers (33-33) faceplanted early and never really got up, losing a clunker to the Woodpeckers. Matthew Boughton did his part, cranking his third bomb of the year for a quick 1-0 lead in the third. That lasted about five minutes. Fayetteville hung an eight-spot in the bottom half, with Boughton’s glove helping grease the skids for the carnage. Five earned, three unearned. The Woodpeckers tacked on another in the fifth for a 9-1 laugher before Kannapolis managed to look alive late. An unearned run in the eighth (walk, single, error, you know the drill), then Derek Cerda put a charge into one for a two-run shot in the ninth. Too little, too late. At least Jesús Mendez spared more pain, spinning two hitless, scoreless frames to close it out.
ACL Diamondbacks 4, ACL White Sox 3
The ACL White Sox (10-24) let a late lead slip in a game that turned ugly at the end. Early on, things looked promising as Yordani Soto worked a leadoff walk in the second, scooted to third on a Jefrank Silva knock, and came home on a D’Angelo Tejada ground out. The D-backs answered with a solo shot in the third, and then both teams went quiet until the seventh, when Arizona stitched together a double and a single to nose ahead 2-1. The Sox worked back in the eighth when Alan Escobar doubled, Christian Gonzalez tripled him in, and Marcelo Ácala lofted a sac fly for a 3-2 lead. But that was all the fun. The bottom half was a meltdown, as Reinder Gomez lost the zone, walking three, plunking two, and firing a wild pitch, without giving up a hit. Two runs in, game over.
DSL White Sox 8, DSL Giants 3 (7 innings)
The DSL White Sox (5-8) finally found some offense, though they received a helping hand from the opposition, as only four of their eight runs were earned. The Sox pounced in the bottom of the second, capitalizing on a throwing error to plate three unearned tallies. Samuel Luis started the rally with a two-out single and a stolen base before coming home on a miscue. Dionys Medina followed with a base hit and a swipe of his own, and Hector Hernandez punched a two-run single to extend the lead. The White Sox put the game away with a five-run fifth inning, highlighted by an RBI double from Sebastian Romero, who kept his rampage. His .881 slugging leads the league, and his 1.341 OPS is third. Not bad at all. Righthander Roderic Ramirez turned in a strong start, allowing just one run on three hits over four innings while walking one and striking out three.