Triple-A: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders 3, Norfolk Tides 2
The Tides gave up two runs in the 7th to break a 1-1 tie and couldn’t complete a comeback in their loss to the RailRiders.
The two teams entered the bottom of the 7th deadlocked at one apiece, only for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to take the lead with some small ball. Payton Henry led off the inning by being hit by a pitch and then moved to second after a Duke Ellis walk. The RailRiders would then walk the bases loaded, break the tie on their third walk of the inning and widen that advantage on a sac fly.
Now trailing 3-1, Norfolk started a rally of their own in the 8th. Luis Vázquez led off the inning with a single and moved into scoring position after a single from Enrique Bradfield Jr. Heston Kjerstad then tried to lay down a sac bunt, only to reach on a bunt single and load the bases. Christian Encarnacion-Strand would cut the deficit in half with a sac fly to center. Norfolk couldn’t get any closer, though, with Creed Willems striking out and Kjerstad being caught stealing to end the rally.
The Tide would come close to tying things again in the 9th. Johnathan Rodríguez led off the inning with a walk, and pinch runner Carter Young then moved into scoring position after a José Barrero one-out single. However, Young was cut down at third after a grounder by Michael Sani. Vázquez then popped up to leave both the tying and winning runs stranded and seal the loss.
Though he did not factor in the decision, the Tide got an excellent start from right-hander Trace Bright. The 25-year-old former fifth-round pick pitched six strong innings, only allowing four hits and one unearned run while punching out five. It was only the second time all season that Bright completed six innings and the first time he’s allowed only one run for Norfolk.
Double-A: Binghamton Rumble Ponies 5, Chesapeake Baysox 3
The Baysox fell behind early and couldn’t find enough offense to complete the comeback in their rain-dampened series opener against the Rumble Ponies.
Top pitching prospect Luis De León got the start for the Baysox, allowing a leadoff double in the bottom of the 1st. That turned into Binghamton’s first run via an RBI groundout, while the Rumble Ponies would add an unearned run on a throwing error by 1B Anderson De Los Santos.
A rain delay ended De León’s night prematurely, as Chesapeake turned to Gerald Ogando in the 2nd coming out of the delay. Already down 2-0, Ogando struck out the first two batters he faced before giving up a walk and a pop-up single. Both of those runners would come around to score after a balk and wild pitch allowed both to trot home. Back-to-back singles would deepen Chesapeake’s hole, as Ogando allowed a third two-out run before being lifted from the game.
The Baysox loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the 3rd on three walks. A ground ball double play pushed across the first Chesapeake run before an Aron Estrada single scored another to make things 5-2. The next inning, Griff O’Ferrall would lead off the inning with a single, steal second and come around to score after consecutive ground outs.
After that, the Chesapeake bats went silent. Their only other hit came via an O’Ferrall single with two outs in the 6th. Discipline was a problem for the Baysox, as they struck out 13 times while they failed to mount a comeback against the Rumble Ponies. They did benefit from seven free passes, but could only manage to go 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position while leaving seven runners on base.
High-A: Brooklyn Cyclones 5, Frederick Keys 3
The Cyclones broke the deadlock in the 6th inning and Keys couldn’t muster enough offense to score a come-from-behind victory over Brooklyn.
Thanks to a strong start from 2025 6th round pick Caden Hunter. The 22-year-old left-hander out of USC blanked the Cyclones over the first five innings of the game, only allowing four hits and no walks while punching out six. It was Hunter’s second straight outing of five scoreless innings, and the southpaw now has a 1.71 ERA over 26.1 IP since being called up to Frederick.
The Cyclones would break open the 0-0 tie in the 6th when Ronald Hernandez hit a two-out home run off Yaramil Hiraldo. Brooklyn would then use a two-out rally in the 7th to break the game open. Colin Houck singled and moved to second on a fielding error. Jamari Baylor’s single then brought home Houck, before Mitch Voit’s two-run homer doubled the Cyclones’ advantage to 4-0.
The Keys struck back for four runs of their own in the bottom of the 7th. A walk and two singles loaded the bases with no outs before Leandro Arias pushed across the first Frederick run on an RBI groundout. Catcher Colin Tuft then doubled to cut the deficit down to 4-2, followed by a Vance Honeycutt sac fly to make it 4-3.
The tying run would reach base in the 8th thanks to a two-out Ike Irish single. However, Wehiwa Aloy struck out swinging to send the Keys to the 9th down a run. Brooklyn picked up an insurance run in the top of the 9th via a Voit RBI single. Arias would reach on a one-out single in the bottom of the 9th, only for a Tuft strikeout and Honeycutt fly out to finish off the Frederick loss.
Low-A: Charleston RiverDogs 5, Delmarva Shorebirds 0
The Shorebirds scattered eight singles against the RiverDogs but couldn’t push across a run as they were shut out in their series opener against Charleston.
Despite taking the loss, Delmarva got an encouraging outing from 24-year-old right-hander Christian Rodriguez. The California native pitched around a one-out single to put up a scoreless 1st inning before coming back with a 1-2-3 second. He’d allow a leadoff double in the 3rd that turned into the first run after a two-out single. Another pair of singles in the 4th turned into the RiverDogs’ second run, but Rodriguez bounced back with a 1-2-3 5th to close his evening. His final line of 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R (1 ER), 0 BB and 7 Ks gave him his fifth straight outing of 5+ IP and 2 ER or fewer.
Offensively, the Shorebirds were led by outfielder Braylon Whitaker and DH Jordan Sanchez, who both went 2-for-4 with two singles. Delmarva struggled to string hits together, going 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position while also leaving seven runners on base.
Their best scoring opportunity came in the 8th, already trailing 5-0. Raylin Ramos led off the inning with a single, but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double. Jose Perez and Whitaker then also singled to put two on with one out. However, Stiven Martinez and Sanchez would both strike out to put all the pressure on SS DJ Layton. The infielder would bring the rally to an end before it ever started, grounding out to short to leave all three runners stranded.
Wednesday’s scheduled games
Norfolk Tides at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, 7:05pm ET (Christian Herberholz vs. Dom Hamel)
Chesapeake Baysox at Binghamton Rumble Ponies, 6:07pm ET (Juaron Watts-Brown vs. Brendan Girton)
Frederick Keys vs. Brooklyn Cyclones, 7:00pm ET (JT Quinn vs. Noah Hall)
Delmarva Shorebirds vs. Charleston RiverDogs, 7:05pm ET (Dalton Neuschwander vs. Blake Morgan)
