Toledo Mud Hens 6, Omaha Storm Chasers 1 (box)
Ben Malgeri and Corey Julks stayed red hot, while Dylan File threw a really good game for the Hens on Thursday.
File cruised through the early innings while his teammates built up a big lead. He scattered four hits through the first five innings, with two walks, before he allowed a solo shot in the sixth that ended his outing. The right-hander struck out six on the night, showcasing his deep pitch mix and getting whiffs on five different offerings.
Cal Stevenson opened the scoring with a leadoff homer
in the bottom of the third. Malgeri, playing center field as Max Clark had the night off, followed him with a 445 foot blast to left center field for his third homer in two games.
Tyler Gentry followed those homers by reaching on a passed ball that would’ve been strike three, and then stole second base. Gage Workman struck out, but Julks yanked his fifth homer of the season to left, and it was 4-0 Hens.
In the fourth it was more of the same. Stevenson was hit by a pitch leading off the inning, and Malgeri stepped in and crushed another massive 446 shot to center field. 6-0 Hens. That’s two straight games in which Malgeri has homered twice, and they aren’t cheapies.
Lefty Drew Sommers relieved File after the starter allowed a solo shot to Kameron Misner in the sixth. Sommers collected five outs with just a walk allowed against three punchouts. Sean Guenther and Tanner Rainey took it the rest of the way.
Malgeri: 2-5, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR, K
Julks: 2-3, R, 2 RBI, HR, BB
Stevenson: 2-2, 2 R, RBI, HR, BB, HBP, CS
File (W, 2-0): 5.1 IP, ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 6 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 7:05 p.m. ET start in Toledo on Friday night, with the Hens holding a 2-1 series lead.
Erie SeaWolves 3, Binghamton Rumble Ponies 1 (box)
Lefty Carlos Pena was dealing on Thursday, while the bats struggling to cash in on a ton of baserunners, but did enough to win.
Pena gave up a solo shot in the third inning but was otherwise spotless, using his changeup and breaking balls to good effect as he punched out eight Ponies over five innings of work without a walk.
The offense quickly gave Pena a lead to work with when Brett Callahan led off the game with a double down the right field line. Peyton Graham moved him to third, and John Peck singled in Callahan. Peck was caught trying to steal second, but Justice Bigbie came through with a knock, scoring on a Chris Meyers double for a 2-0 lead.
The SeaWolves pounded out 10 hits and drew three walks in this one, but they only tacked on another run in the fifth. Bigbie led off with a walk, and a Meyers singled moved him to third. An Izaac Pacheco sacrifice fly made it 3-1 SeaWolves, and it would end there.
Yosber Sanchez tossed a perfect sixth inning with a pair of strikeouts. Wandisson Charles handled the next two frames with four punchouts against a hit and two walks allowed. Luke Taggart punched out a pair in a perfect ninth to earn his second save.
Meyers: 3-4, RBI, 2B
Bigbie: 2-4, 2 R, BB, K
Callahan: 2-5, R, 2B, K
Peña (W, 2-1): 5.0 IP, ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 8 K
Coming Up Next: The SeaWolves will look to make it four straight on the road at 6:07 p.m. ET on Friday.
Lake County Captains 7, West Michigan Whitecaps 1 (box)
Right-hander Lucas Elissalt was knocked around a bit on Thursday, while the ‘Caps offense went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
The Whitecaps got on the board first, with a solo shot from catcher Ricardo Hurtado, his second of the year.
Elissalt cruised through the first with a pair of strikeouts, but he gave up a single run in each of the next three innings while pitching through quite a bit of traffic. He did show really good composure, holding runners, making pitches when he needed to, but just never really got into a groove.
With one out in the fifth, Jaison Chourio singled for Lake County. Elissalt got the next hitter on a lineout, but that was the end of his day as Jalen Evans took over. He gave up a single, but a double steal attempt saw the Whitecaps throw to second, where Juan Hernandez fired home to Hurtado to get Chourio. Evans turned away the threat and struck out the side swinging in the sixth.
CJ Weins leaked a run in the seventh, while a Junior Tilien error in the ninth with Luke Stofel on the mound led to a four-run inning.
The ‘Caps were on base a lot throughout this one, and just couldn’t cash in.
Hurtado: 2-4, R, RBI, HR, BB, K
McCarthy: 1-2, 2 BB, K
Hernandez: 2-4, 2B, 2 K
Rainer: 0-4, 2 K
Elissalt (L, 0-2): 4.1 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 5 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:35 p.m. ET start on Friday in Comstock Park with the Whitecaps down 2-1 in the series.
Tampa Tarpons 11, Lakeland Flying Tigers 8 (box)
The Flying Tigers jumped out to a big early lead, but Malachi Witherspoon labored through a short outing and the Tarpons beat up on the bullpen to roar back on Thursday.
After Witherspoon struck out two in the top of the first, Jesus Pinto led off the bottom half with a triple, and the Flygers were off and running. Jude Warwick walked, while Zach MacDonald lifted a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0. Jack Goodman singled, and Beau Ankeney doubled in Warwick. An Anibal Salas sac fly scored Goodman, and three straight walks made it 4-0, though there was an opportunity for much more.
JoJo Jackson led off the second with a solo shot off of Witherspoon, and he gave up another run in the third. 4-2 Lakeland.
In the third, Salas doubled and scored as Edian Espinal reached on an error. 5-2 Lakeland.
Witherspoon was lifted after the third at 58 pitches. Jan Carabello took over and gave up a run in the fourth. Ankeney singled in Warwick in the bottom half to make it 6-3 Lakeland.
Cash Kuiper gave up two runs in the fifth, but Javier Osorio answered back with a solo shot. 7-5 Lakeland.
Things went on like this, until Kuiper was lit up for three more in the sixth. Pedro Garcia and Andrew Pogue continued to leak runs from the Flying Tigers bullpen. Osorio doubled, stoled third, and scored on a Pinto single in the eighth, but by then it was 11-8 Tampa and they held on.
Osorio: 2-3, 2 R, RBI, HR, SB
Pinto: 2-5, R, RBI, 3B, 2 K
Ankeney: 2-5, R, 2 RBI, 2B, K
Witherspoon: 3.0 IP, 2 R, ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 5 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 6:30 p.m. ET start on Friday.
