atlanticleague.com

Gastonia 10, York 0

The Gastonia Honey Hunters slugged their way to a 10-0 shutout win on Wednesday over the York Revolution at Peoples Bank Park.

Gastonia erupted for five home runs on the evening, as Joseph Rosa hit two bombs on the night. Reece Hampton, Jack Reinheimer and Jake Skole each fueled the 11-hit attack for the Honey Hunters, each homering in the ballgame.

The offensive highlight for Gastonia was in the fourth inning, as Hampton, Reinheimer and Rosa went for back-to- back home runs, stretching the Gastonia lead to 8-0. The home runs

Skole´s home run was a solo blast that left the deepest part of Peoples Bank Park in the seventh inning, going well beyond the batter's eye in dead center.

Of the eleven hits for Gastonia, seven hits were for extra bases.

Not forgotten in the game was a gutty pitching effort from Ian McKinney. McKinney spun six masterful frames, striking out six hitters on one hit allowed. McKinney picked up his third win of the season against a single loss for Gastonia.

The stellar Gastonia bullpen closed the deal, striking out seven hitters in the final three innings.Henry Martinez punched out one York hitter, as Chad Sobotka and Jesus Balaguer scattered two hits while striking out the side in the eighth and ninth innings.

The win for Gastonia(57-21) moves their franchise-high win streak to 13 games. Gastonia is now 36 games over .500 for the first time ever.

Thursday, Gastonia goes for the sweep, as Reilly Hovis works opposite Nick Travieso at 11:00 am.

Southern Maryland 4, Long Island 3

(7/20/2022, Waldorf, MD) The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs defeated the Long Island Ducks for the second straight night on Wednesday, winning by a score of 4-3. 

Southern Maryland struck first blood in tonight's contest in the bottom of the first inning. 

Centerfielder Jack Sundberg greeted Ducks starter Joe Iorio (6-4) with his league-leading seventh triple of the season. He would come in to score just two batters later on Zach Collie’s first sac fly of the night. 

Blue Crabs starting pitcher Daryl Thompson (10-2) surrendered in the next half inning after Ducks' first basemen Carlos Castro drove the first pitch he saw over the left-center field wall. The homer was Castro’s eighth of the season. 

Long Island struck again in the top of the third, taking a 2-1 lead on a Sam Travis RBI single. The inning could have been a whole lot worse for Thompson if not for a baserunning mistake by Ducks center Fielder Alejandro De Aza. 

De Aza was cut down trying to go first-third on the play for the first out of the inning. Thompson was able to escape without any further damage despite allowing four of his 12 hits in the frame. 

The Crabs would tie it up in the bottom of the third on the aforementioned Collier’s second sac fly of the game. 

Pigs flew in the top of the fourth when Ducks starting pitcher Joe Iorio clobbered a home run over the mini-monster in left. The home run was the first of the year for Iorio, and the first (and most likely only) home run by a pitcher in the Atlantic League this season. 

The homer would be the last run Thompson would give up in the game. Southern Maryland’s ace gutted his way through seven, striking out only two and giving up 12 hits. 

Southern Maryland answered back once again in the bottom of the sixth. Right fielder Braxton Lee came inches within hitting his first home run of the season. He instead settled for his sixth triple, tying the game 3-3.

The Crabs finally regained the lead in the seventh when Ducks reliever Edubray Ramos uncorked a wild pitch, allowing Ryan Haug to score the go-ahead run. 

The wild pitch would prove fatal for Long Island’s chances in this one. Patrick Baker (HLD, 4) and Mat Latos (SV, 21) came on in relief of Thomspon to put a bow on Southern Maryland’s 57th win of the season and ninth of the second half. 

The final game of this three-game set will be tomorrow night at 6:35. Fans will be packing the Legends Club for the sixth edition of “Beer and Wings” Night presented by Foster’s Grille.

High Point Rockers 25, Lexington 9
 

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The High Point Rockers and the Lexington Legends engaged in one of the strangest games in the brief history of the Rockers franchise on Wednesday afternoon at Wild Health Field. In the end, the Rockers came away with a 25-9 win with no less than 19 records set or tied.

• The Rockers overcame an early 5-2 deficit with a pair of eight-run innings in the third and eighth
• Third baseman Michael Russell hit for the cycle, the first Rocker to ever do-so
• The Rockers set a record by hitting three home runs in one inning
• The Rockers twice had players hit back-to-back home runs

And on the other hand, the Rockers set records for the most walks issued in a game with 15 and provided Lexington with three runs via bases-loaded walks and another on a passed ball.

And all of this in a modest four-hour game that will go down as the longest game in club history.

Things started off well for High Point with Russell opening the game with a lead-off double in the top of the first. That was followed by a Logan Morrison RBI double and a Jerry Downs RBI single to give High Point a 2-0 lead after the first half inning.

But High Point starter Austin Glorius opened the bottom of the first by throwing 14 consecutive pitches outside of the strike zone and walking the bases loaded. After striking out Isaias Tejeda, Glorius was able to get Manuel Geraldo to bounce into a force out, scoring one run, but that was all the Legends could tally.

The Rockers went down in order in the second before Lexington struck four times in the second. Glorius allowed a lead-off double to Montrell Marshall then issued two more walks to load the bases. A third walk to Boog Powell forced in one run. After a mound visit, Glorius walked Phillip Ervin to force home another run and give Lexington a 3-2 lead. Kyle Mott came on in relief and allowed a run on a passed ball and another run on a bases-loaded walk. At the end of two, the Legends led 5-2.

The Rockers retaliated by scoring eight runs in the top of the third. The newly-acquired Cesar Trejo drove in High Point’s first run with a sacrifice fly. Tyler Ladendorf hit a three-run home and Jay Gonzalez made it back-to-back homers with a solo shot. After a walk to Giovanny Alfonzo and a walk to Mike Gulino, Russell blasted a three-run homer. High Point led 10-8 after three innings.

The Legends plated a run in the sixth to pull within a single run at 10-9 when Pete Yorgen singled to score Rusber Estrada.

High Point then threw up another eight-spot in the top of the seventh. Henry Owens replaced Brett Schneider on the mound for Lexington and hit the first two batters he faced in Downs and Ladendorf. A sac bunt by Gonzales moved the runners up a base. A walk to Gulino loaded the bases before Alfonzo singled home two runs for a 12-9 lead. Russell reached on a fielding error by Lexington third baseman Cesar Cuevas with Gulino coming home to make it 13-9. Ben Aklinski’s sac fly and an RBI single by Logan Morrison made it a 15-9 game. Zander Wiel then poked a two-run homer to left and Downs followed with a blast to right for an 18-9 Rockers lead.

Bryce Hensley pitched scoreless seventh and eighth innings for High Point and the Rockers added another six runs in the top of the ninth. Pitcher Jonathon Crawford pinch hit and walked before Yorgen, the catcher turned pitcher, induced fly ball outs from Downs and Ladendorf. Gonzalez singled, Gulino doubled home a run and Alfonzo walked. Russell then singled to drive in a run before Aklinski hit a grand slam for a 25-9 lead.

Joe Johnson pitched the ninth inning for the Rockers and while he walked two, High Point turned a double play to keep the Legends from scoring any more runs.

After Russell’s game-starting double, he singled and homered in the third inning, singled in the sixth, reached on an error in the seventh, and achieved the cycle with a triple in the eighth. He added another single in the ninth as he finished the day with a club record six hits and six runs scored.

Russell on the day was 6-for-7 with a double, triple, home run and four RBI. Aklinski was 2-for-3 with a double, homer and team-high five RBI. Ladendorf was 2-for-5 with a homer and three RBI while Downs was 2-for-4 with three runs scored and a homer and Gonzalez was 2-for-5 with two runs scored and a homer.

The Rockers improved to 41-38 overall and 2-11 in the second half.

High Point and Lexington will play the final game of this three-game series on Thursday at 6:35 p.m. at Wild Health Field.

Charleston 10, Lancaster 7

Alfredo Gonzalez has had a career series at Clipper Magazine Stadium.  The Charleston slugger belted his fifth home run in five games and drove home four to lead the Dirty Birds to a 10-7 victory over the Lancaster Barnstormers Wednesday evening.

The Barnstormers had built a 6-1 lead over the first four innings.  A fielding error by Gonzalez tied the game at 1-1 in the second.  Anderson Feliz slugged a two-run homer in the third inning to put Lancaster up, 3-1.  Melvin Mercedes clubbed a three-run homer in the fourth to put the Barnstormers into a commanding 6-1 advantage.

Charleston began to whittle away at the Lancaster lead in the top of the fifth.  Angel Garced dribbled a single behind third base.  Scott Kelly was hit by a Nile Ball pitch for the second time in the game.  Ball picked up a strike out of Nick Heath, but Jose Rosario lined a single into center to load the bases.  Gonzalez followed with a soft single into center, scoring one.  Engel Beltre hit a grounder on the right side on which Melvin Mercedes got a force at second as a run scored.  Beltre then beat a throw to second, and Rosario raced home to cut the lead to two.

In the sixth, Donald Goodson walked Tyler Blaum who stole second.  Goodson struck out the next two before Kelly hit a dribbler toward shortstop, Feliz missed a barehanded pickup, and Blaum came across to score as the ball rolled away.

Gonzalez took the game into his hands, belting a two-run homer onto the right field picnic deck off Brett Clarke in the top of the seventh.

Trayvon Robinson slammed his sixth homer of the homestand past the left field walkway to bring the game back into a 7-7 tie. 

Gonzalez had one blow left to turn the tide.  With two outs and Kelly at third in the top of the ninth, Gonzalez, then the catcher, Gonzalez slapped a double down the right field line off Cole Aker (2-2) to break the tie.  Engel Beltre blooped a single to left for a 9-7 lead.  Diego Goris launched a double deep into the left field corner to cap the scoring.

Kevin Siegrist (2-0) pitched a scoreless eighth to earn the win.  Isaac Sanchez retired the side in order in the ninth to pick up the save.

NOTES:  Mercedes’ homer extended his hitting streak to 17 games, three shy of the club record…It was his career-high sixth long ball…Robinson has six homers and 20 RBI in 11 games…Cordero has hit safely in six straight, 12 of 13, 17 of 19, 21 of 24, 28 of 32 and 40 of 46…The Barnstormers once again tied their season high with 15 strikeouts.

Kentucky 5, Staten Island 2