Lexington 11, Frederick 10

In a thrilling and high-scoring showdown in Lexington, the Frederick Baseball Club and the Counter Clocks battled until the very last out.

Right from the start, the Frederick  came out swinging, putting five runs on the board in the first inning. Luke Becker grounded out, but Starlin Castro's single and Jose Marmolejos' double set the stage for Raudy Read, who delivered a clutch double of his own, scoring two runs. Craig Dedelow then drew a walk, and Leobaldo Cabrera and Steven Brault followed with a single and a double, respectively, bringing the lead to 5-0.

The Counter Clocks struggled to find their footing early on, failing to score in the first three innings. However, they managed to get on the board in the fifth when Mitch Ghelfi launched a solo home run, energizing the home crowd.

The Frederick Baseball Club responded in the top of the sixth, as Kole Cottam blasted a home run to extend the lead to 7-1. But the Counter Clocks were far from done. In the bottom half of the inning, they erupted for four runs, courtesy of a stolen base by JC Encarnacion and a home run from Thomas Dillard closing the gap to 7-3.

The seesaw battle continued in the seventh when the Frederick Baseball Club added two more runs, thanks to a sacrifice fly by Luke Becker and a fielding error by the Counter Clocks. However, the resilient home team had a huge inning of their own in the bottom half. A barrage of home runs by JC Encarnacion, Thomas Dillard, Connor Owings, and Hector Roa propelled the Counter Clocks into the lead, 9-8.

Not to be outdone, the Frederick Baseball Club fought back in the eighth, as Steven Brault scored on a sacrifice fly and Scott Kelly crossed home plate on a single by Jose Marmolejos. The game seemed destined for extra innings, but the Counter Clocks had other plans. In the bottom of the ninth, with the score at 10-9 in favor of Frederick, JC Encarnacion singled and stole second base. Thomas Dillard then came up clutch with a double, driving in the tying run. Moments later, Connor Owings and Hector Roa delivered back-to-back singles, securing an exhilarating 11-10 victory for the Counter Clocks.

Charleston 5, Lancaster 3

Bobby Bradley and Dwight Smith, Jr. belted early home runs on Friday evening, leading the Charleston Dirty Birds to a 5-3 victory over the Lancaster Barnstormers in the opener of a three-game series at Clipper Magazine Stadium.

It was the fifth straight loss for the Barnstormers.

Following a two-out double to left by Telvin Nash, Bradley connected off Dominic DiSabatino (3-2) with a two-run shot to right center for a pair of first-inning runs.  Smith led off the third with his blast, a drive over the tents in right field for a 3-0 lead.

Meanwhile, the Barnstormers were stumped by right-hander Troy Bacon (2-2).  Lancaster’s first hit of the night was a bunt single by second baseman Yeison Coca, extending his hitting streak to nine.  Coca took second on Bacon’s wild throw and went to third on a wild pitch.  Melvin Mercedes picked up the run with a sacrifice fly.

Nash doubled home a run in the fifth, but the Barnstormers were able to trim the lead to one in the home sixth.  Coca led off with a walk and took third on a double off the right field wall by Mercedes.  Andretty Cordero’s grounder on the right side scored one.  Mercedes scored when a third strike to Kelly Dugan got behind catcher Zachary Bridges.

The Barnstormers, who managed only four hits on the night, left the tying run at third in the eighth, and the Dirty Birds struck for an insurance run in the ninth on a double by Yefri Perez on a fly ball lost in the twilight and a single through the right side by Smith.

Joan Martinez survived a leadoff walk in the ninth for his second save.

Nile Ball (2-1) will take the mound on Saturday evening at 6:30 against Charleston lefty Danny Wirchansky (1-2).  Fireworks will follow the game, which will be streamed live on FloBaseball, beginning at 6:25.

NOTES:  Trayvon Robinson lost a nine-game hitting streak…Andrew Lee struck out all three right-handed batters he faced in the ninth inning…Right-handers are 2-for-41 (.049) against him on the season…Zach Warren replaced DiSabatino in the eighth and struck out both batters he faced…Robinson reached base for the 14^th straight game…Jack Conley caught for the 13^th straight game.

Southern Maryland 8, High Point 6

HIGH POINT, N.C. – Southern Maryland and High Point played a version of Home Run Derby on Friday night with the Blue Crabs coming out on top, 8-6 on the scoreboard and 5-4 on the home run tally. K.C. Hobson of So. Maryland and High Point’s Zander Wiel each claimed the individual award with two home runs apiece.

The loss drops High Point to 29-15 on the season and one and one-half games back from Gastonia (30-13) in the race for Southern Division title in the Atlantic League.

Ian Kahaloa (W, 3-3) was the starter and picked up the win for the Blue Crabs, giving up eight hits and five runs, while striking out eight.

Southern Maryland scored first off Rocker’s starter Liam O’ Sullivan. Hobson hit a solo home run off the video board leading off the second to give the Blue Crabs a 1-0 lead.

The Rockers responded in the bottom of the second off Kahaloa. Wiel hit a solo home run to left field to tie the game.

With three runs in the fourth, Southern Maryland regained the lead. Braxton Lee hit a solo home run to left field. Hobson walked and scored on a home run from Alex Crosby, to put the Blue Crabs up 4-1.

High Point plated two more runs in the bottom of the fourth. Ryan Grotjohn hit a home run to right field, his seventh of the year. D.J. Burt singled up the middle followed up by a single from Michael Martinez. Brian Parreira flew out to right to move Burt to third base. Dai-Kang Yang then drove in Burt with a single to make the score 4-3.

The Blue Crabs extended the lead 5-3 at the top of the fifth. Michael Baca hit a double to center field, followed by a fielding error by Burt to advance Baca to third. Matt Hibbert hit an RBI single to score Baca.

High Point tied it up in the bottom of the fifth. Michael Russell singled to left field. Wiel then hit his second home run of the night off the center field wall to score Russell and make the score 5-5.

Jeremy Rhoads (L, 5-1) came on to pitch the sixth and allowed a solo homer to Khalil Lee leading off the frame that put So. Maryland back in front 6-5. The home run was followed up by back to back singles from Jose Rosario and Ryan Haug and a walk to Baca. Cam Bedrosian then came in to pitch for the Rockers with bases loaded. Bedrosian was able to pitch out of the inning with back to back strikeouts and a groundout to first.

Taylor Guerrieri pitched the eighth for High Point. Baca reached with a fielder’s choice and moved all the way to third when Guerrieri’s pickoff attempt sailed wide of first. A wild pitch then scored Baca, giving the Blue Crabs a 7-5 advantage.

Hobson hit his second home run of the night off Jameson McGrane to put Southern Maryland up 8-5 in the top of the ninth inning.

Issac Mattson came in too close for the Blue Crabs in the ninth, picking up his third save of the season.

In one last effort to catch the Blue Crabs, Dai-Kang Yang hit an opposite field home run off Mattson to put the score at 8-, in the bottom of the ninth.

High Point and Southern Maryland will play the second game of the three-game series on Saturday at 6:35 p.m. at Truist Point. The game will be streamed live on FloBaseball and also available on the Mixlr app. The first 1,000 fans will receive a free baseball courtesy of B & H Heating & Air Conditioning Inc.

Gastonia 5, Staten Island 4

Zach Jarrett hit two home runs, each of them over 400 feet long, and helped Gastonia defeat Staten Island 5-4 on Friday night.

Jarrett first teed off in the opening frame, hitting a no-doubter to left to tie the game at 2.

Kevin Krause didn’t move a step in left field, as the ball sailed 407 feet and was hit 111 miles-per-hour off Jarrett’s bat.

Gastonia’s right fielder connected on a solo shot in the fifth inning to right-center, which traveled 437 feet.

Jarrett hit his 15th and 16th long balls of 2023, and now has the most home runs in the Atlantic League.

Honey Hunters manager Goose Gozzo stressed how great of a teammate and person Jarrett is, and how he gives it his all night in and night out.

“[Jarrett’s] a class act all the way around – defensively, offensively, human being, clubhouse guy, great teammate,” Gozzo said. “I saw him today outside picking up balls that were home runs in batting practice. Great kid, great character. I’m never worried about Zach Jarrett. He’s gonna give you 100 [percent] every single time.”

Jarrett’s second bomb gave Gastonia a 4-2 lead after five.

A big reason why the Honey Hunters had that lead was because of their starting pitcher.

Although Ian McKinney was slated to pitch on Friday, the player/coach was signed by the Kiwoom Heroes of the Korean Baseball Organization before the contest.

Ryan Conroy stepped in for his first start of the season, and he finished with a solid line.

The right-hander went four innings, giving up two runs on five hits. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out four.

Conroy has now fanned 12 hitters and hasn’t issued a walk all season.

Jaime Schultz came on for the fifth inning, even though he’s been used in the closer role all season.

Schultz was coming off two bad ninth-inning outings in a row, so he was put in for the middle innings.

“I just thought it was a really good time to give [Schultz] some low-leverage innings in the middle of the game so it’s not just only depending on him,” Gozzo said. “So kind of a little bit less pressure.”

Schultz responded by facing the minimum in the fifth and the sixth, striking out three hitters.

It was still 4-2 Gastonia after six, but Staten Island tied the game in the seventh.

Roldani Baldwin hit an opposite-field two-run shot off Todd Van Steensel to make it 4-4.

The FerryHawks continued to rally against Van Steensel, as Deibinson Romero singled and Garrett Keuber walked with one out.

Mikey Edelman then grounded it sharply to J.C. Escarra, who started at third base for the first time all year.

Escarra fell to the ground on the backhand to field it, got to his feet, stepped on third and threw across the diamond to complete a 5-5-3 inning-ending double play.

Just like McKinney, Escarra was also saying goodbye to Gastonia on Friday.

The Atlantic League Player of the Month in April/May signed with the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican Baseball League, so Friday night was Escarra’s last game as a Honey Hunter.

After the phenomenal double play, momentum was on Gastonia’s side.

Luis Curbelo led off the bottom of the seventh with a single, and then a Jarrett double made it second and third with nobody out.

Curtis Terry hit an RBI groundout to short, which ended up being the game-winning run.

Sam Freeman threw a scoreless eighth, and Bryan Blanton pitched a 1-2-3 ninth frame to get his second save of the year.

The last out of the game was made by Romero, who lined it to the left of Escarra. The first-time third baseman ran to make the catch – the final play in his last game with the team in a poetic finish to his Honey Hunters career.

Gastonia became the first team in the Atlantic League to 30 wins, and it improved to a game and a half over High Point after the Rockers lost to Southern Maryland on Friday.

Game 2 between the Honey Hunters and FerryHawks is on Saturday at 6:35 p.m.

York 13, Long Island 5

(June 16th, 2023 – York, Pa.):  Drew Mendoza drove in five runs as part of a huge late game outburst as the York Revolution won for the fifth consecutive game, whipping the Long Island Ducks 13-5 on Friday night at WellSpan Park. The Revs maintain a 1.5-game lead for first place with the victory.

Trailing 4-2 at stretch time, the Revs erupted to score six runs in the seventh and five more in the eighth to take the lead and eventually run away with the victory.

Long Island jumped to an early lead with three runs in the top of the third. Alejandro De Aza roped one just inside the chalk along the left field line that scored a pair, and Alex Dickerson knocked in a run on a single to right field as the Ducks led 3-0. Revs starter Jorge Martinez left the game due to injury after just 2.1 innings pitched.

The Revs answered with two runs in their half of the third. Ryan January singled and Trent Giambrone doubled down the left field line to start the inning. Trey Martin drove a liner to right center for a sac fly, and with two outs, Richard Urena stayed hot and shot one up the middle for an RBI single, cutting the Ducks lead to 3-2.

Revs righty J.T. Hintzen (4-3) played a huge role in the victory, taking over after Martinez’ departure and allowing just one run in 4.2 innings to pick up the victory.

Long Island’s only run off Hintzen came in the top of the seventh on a base hit from Tzu-Wei Lin, making it a 4-2 game. Hintzen gave up just three hits with no walks to go with five strikeouts.

Ducks starter Ian Clarkin did not allow another hit after the third innings, limiting the Revs to just two runs on four hits in six innings as he handed the lead to the bullpen in the late innings.

Joe Kuzia came in for the Ducks in the bottom of the seventh and got the first out of the inning before the Revs mounted a huge game-changing rally. Giambrone laid the foundation with an infield single and Martin smoked a base hit into left. Jacob Rhinesmith fouled off five two-strike pitches before capping a clutch nine-pitch battle with an RBI single to center, bringing York within a run. Urena singled to center to load the bases, chasing Kuzia (2-2) with still just one out.

Tomo Otosaka was called upon to pinch hit and the Ducks brought in lefty Kyle Lobstein. Otosaka tied the game with a first pitch single to left field that was lined off the glove of third baseman Joe DeCarlo, squaring the score at 4-4. Mendoza followed with a two-run single to center field giving the Revs their first lead at 6-4 with six consecutive singles. Alejandro Rivero fought his way on base with a two-out walk to load the bases for January who drove a two-run double off the right field wall, giving the Revs an 8-4 advantage after seven innings.

J.P. Woodward tossed a 1-2-3 eighth, striking out a pair.

The offense put together another huge inning, scoring five in the eighth to put the game away. Martin walked and stole second before moving to third on a fly ball. Urena drove one off the wall in right to score Martin on a double, extending the lead to 9-4. Mendoza nailed a three-run home run to right field as the lead exploded to 12-4. The Revs still weren’t done, loading the bases on two walks and a Rivero double before Giambrone rolled one to the right side for an RBI groundout, plating the Revs’ 11th unanswered run.

Tasker Strobel was touched for a run on three hits but recorded the final three outs to close out the victory.

Notes: York improves to 16-8 in comeback decisions, an impressive 6-15 when trailing heading to the seventh, and 10-8 when the opponent scores first. York leads the league with 44 runs in the seventh inning (outscoring opponents 44-23). The Revs are now 15-6 at home, having won 10 of the last 11 home games. York’s 27-16 record establishes the best 43-game start to a season in franchise history. The Revs are 17-4 since May 24, having outscored opponents 162-103 on that stretch. The five-game winning streak is the Revs’ third streak of five-plus wins this season, joining Gastonia with the most such streaks in the league so far this season; York and Gastonia are the only teams with more than one five-game winning streak. The offense posted 14 hits and 10 walks; York leads the league in total hits (424), walks (197), team batting (.284), and on-base percentage (.373) while ranking second in runs (275). Mendoza’s five-RBI game is the Revs’ third of the year, joining Otosaka (May 10) and Troy Stokes Jr. (Sunday); all three have come against the Ducks. Mendoza is now hitting .439 with four homers and 21 RBI in 16 games since May 25. Stokes Jr. stole three bases, his most since a three-steal game in last year’s home opener (May 3, 2022 vs. Gastonia) and now has 40 steals in his Revs career, three shy of reaching the franchise’s top ten. The Revs improve to 7-6 on the season against the Ducks, having won five of the last seven. York is averaging 8.5 runs per game against Long Island. The Revs played error free defensively for the fifth consecutive game. Hintzen has a 2.25 ERA in five outings (12.0 innings) since returning to the bullpen and has picked up the win in comeback victories in each of his last two appearances. Woodward worked a fifth straight scoreless outing. Urena extended his hitting streak to eight straight. Revs pinch-hitters had been 0-for-9 on the season before Otosaka’s game-tying single in the seventh. York righty Tom Sutera (3-2, 5.40) starts Saturday’s contest against Long Island righty Robert Stock (debut) with first pitch at 6:30 p.m. It is Jeep Night presented by PA Jeeps featuring Inside-the-Park Fireworks presented by Blue Moon Light Sky. Tickets are on sale at YorkRevolution.com, (717) 801-HITS, and in-person at the Shipley Energy Ticket Office.