Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 9, Charlotte Knights 6
The Tides scored eight runs across the first four innings and collected 17 hits in a come-from-behind win over the Knights.
Charlotte took an early 3-0 lead after loading the bases in the 1st and pushing across runs on a walk and two-RBI double. That lead was short-lived after a Norfolk rally in the 2nd. Creed Willems led of the inning with a single and came around to score on a two-run homer from José Barrero. Then, with two outs and runners on first and second, Heston Kjerstad doubled on a bloop
single to right to tie the game at three.
A pair of homers in the bottom of the 2nd restored Charlotte’s three-run advantage. Norfolk would then take the lead for good thanks to a four-run 3rd. Christian Encarnacion-Strand led off the inning with a double before Barrero drove him home with single up the middle. Reed Trimble then delivered the Tides’ biggest hit of the evening, blasting a three-run homer to right center to give Norfolk a 7-6 lead.
Encarnacion-Strand added some insurance in the 4th, doubling home Johnathan Rodríguez for his second hit of the night. Jud Fabian then added the Tides’ ninth and final run in the 9th, reaching on a bases-loaded infield single.
Two Orioles had very different rehab games Tuesday in Charlotte. In his first game of a rehab assignment in Norfolk, Kjerstad went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Jackson Holliday, on other hand, continued his post-hand-surgery struggles by going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
Double-A: Akron RubberDucks 6, Chesapeake Baysox 3
A rough 5th and 6th innings sunk the Baysox Tuesday, as they couldn’t rally to score a win over the RubberDucks.
The Baysox took the first lead in the top of the 5th thanks to SS Griff O’Ferrall. After Carter Young reached on a single to center, O’Ferrall doubled off the wall in center to drive him home. That 1-0 lead would not last, however. In the bottom of the 5th, Akron sparked a two-out rally with a Nick Mitchell double and a Ralphy Velazquez homer giving the RubberDucks a 2-1 lead.
That pattern would repeat itself in the 6th inning. In the top of the inning, the Baysox tied the game with some small ball. Anderson De Los Santos led off with a walk and moved to second on a Frederick Bencosme single. Adam Retzbach then executed a safety squeeze to score De Los Santos and tie the game at two.
That tie was immediately broken in the bottom of the 6th. After the RubberDucks walked the bases loaded, Mitchell cleared them with a three-run triple to right field, then scored on a wild pitch, Akron had a 6-2 lead that it wouldn’t relinquish.
Chesapeake tried to mount a 9th inning comeback, with Tavian Josenberger leading off with a triple and scoring on a Young RBI groundout. O’Ferrall then picked up a single for his third hit of the night, but ended up stranded after a fly out and groundout ended the game.
High-A: Frederick Keys 9, Hudson Valley Renegades 3
The Keys used a five-run 3rd inning to blast past the Renegades and earn a series-opening win in Fishkill, NY.
Frederick came into the the top of the 3rd up 1-0 thanks to a Victor Figueroa sac fly in the 1st. After Ryan Stafford reached via an error but was caught stealing, Vance Honeycutt officially started the rally with a walk and steal of second. Ike Irish then repeated that feat, giving the Keys runners on second and third. Wehiwa Aloy walked to load the bases before Figueroa demolished a 1-2 pitch to deep center for a grand slam. Frederick added its fifth run of the inning after Braylin Tavera walked, stole second and third and scored on a Colin Yeaman single.
Tavera would go on to launch a long ball of his own in the 7th, sending a two-out shot over the left field fence to give Frederick a 7-3 lead. Aloy and Figueroa then sparked another rally in the 8th. The Frederick SS lined a one-out single to right before Figueroa picked up his sixth RBI of the game on a triple that skipped under the glove of the sliding CF.
The heart of the Frederick order has been the story of the Keys’ season so far, and it was no different Tuesday. Irish was the only one who didn’t register a hit, but walked and scored two runs and is sporting a .944 OPS on the season. Aloy led the way with three hits Tuesday and is now hitting .321 with a 1.007 OPS. The long ball Tuesday was Figueroa’s ninth of the season, and the six RBIs bring his total up to 29, tied for 3rd in the South Atlantic League.
Low-A: Delmarva Shoebirds 7, Fayetteville Woodpeckers 2
Stiven Martinez launched two late-inning home runs and the Shorebirds got 4.2 no-hit innings from Caden Hunter in an impressive opening win vs. the Woodpeckers.
Hunter, the 22-year-old 6th-round pick from last year’s draft, was locked in from the get-go Tuesday. He punched out two Woodpeckers in the 1st inning and another two in the 2nd inning before striking out the side in the 3rd. He struck out 10 of the 15 batters he faced and didn’t allow a runner until a two-out walk in the 5th. That’d prove to be the last batter for the former USC Trojan, who exited after throwing 77 pitches. After finishing with a final line of 4.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB and 10 Ks, Hunter lowered his season ERA to 0.60 and now has 23 Ks in 15 IP.
Despite Hunter’s best efforts, the Shorebirds entered the bottom of the 7th down 2-1. Martinez quickly erased that deficit, leading off the inning with a solo shot to center to tie the game at two. With one out, Joshua Liranzo walked and moved to third on a single by Jose Perez. Félix Amparo drove home Liranzo on a groundout to first to give Delmarva a 3-2 lead.
Martinez would seal the win with another long ball in the 8th. Catcher Juan Ortega started the rally with a leadoff walk and a steal of second. Junior Aybar then lined a double into left field to score Aybar and increase the Shorebird lead to 4-2. After a Braylon Whitaker walk, Martinez unloaded on a 1-0 pitch low in the zone, sending a three-run opposite field homer over the right field fence. After going 3-for-5 with two long balls and four RBIs, the 18-year-old Martinez is hitting .265 this season with a .788 OPS.
Wednesday’s scheduled games
Norfolk Tides at Charlotte Knights, 6:35pm ET (Albert Suárez vs. Jonathan Cannon)
Chesapeake Baysox at Akron RubberDucks, 6:35pm ET (Luis De León vs. Dylan DeLucia)
Frederick Keys at Hudson Valley Renegades, 11:05pm ET (Boston Bateman vs. Luis Serna)
Delmarva Shorebirds vs. Fayetteville Woodpeckers, 7:05pm ET (Esteban Mejia vs. TBD)
