High Point 6, So. Maryland 2

WALDORF, Md. – The High Point Rockers took a massive step forward in their fight to win the Atlantic League’s South Division first half championship with a 6-2 win at Southern Maryland on Thursday night. The Rockers’ victory, coupled with a Gastonia loss, leaves High Point one game behind the Honey Hunters with a looming meeting on Friday night at Truist Point.

Gastonia fell at Spire City 18-8 and the Honey Hunters are now 41-20 on the season. Thursday’s win leaves the Rockers at 40-21. Each team has two games remaining on the first half schedule. If High Point wins its final two games of the half, it will claim the first half championship and secure a postseason playoff berth.

For Zander Wiel, the game was a welcome relief for the Rockers slugger who had managed just five hits over the last 11 games. Wiel went three-for-four with an RBI double in the first, a solo homer in the third, a single in the seventh and a walk in the ninth.

High Point went on the attack offensively right from the very start. After Shed Long, Jr. popped out to lead-off the game, Ryan Grotjohn singled and scored on a double by Wiel. Ben Aklinski singled to plate Wiel and give the Rockers a 2-0 lead. After a Brian Parreira single, Michael Martinez slapped another base hit to score Aklinski. Emmanuel Tapia followed with a fourth straight hit, a double to right that plated Parreira though Martinez was thrown out at the plate. When the smoke settled, High Point held a 4-0 lead.

Wiel blasted a solo homer leading off the third, his 16^th homer of the season, to put the Rockers up 5-0.

The Blue Crabs managed their first run in the third when Jack Sundberg doubled and scored on a single by Philip Caulfield.

High Point starter Justin Nicolino (W, 1-0) went five innings and held So. Maryland to four hits while walking two and striking out seven. He departed after walking Khalil Lee to start the sixth and allowed a single to Braxton Lee. A.J. Cole was summoned from the bullpen and walked K.C. Hobson to load the bases. Alex Crosby ripped a line drive that was snagged by Long, Jr. who was able to toss to Grotjohn at second for a double play. Ryan Haug then hit a flare to left to bring in the Blue Crabs’ second run and the Rockers held a 5-2 lead. Cole then struck out Isaias Quiroz to get out of the inning.

Lefty Sam Selman allowed a pair of walks in the seventh but struck out two while Cam Bedrosian struck out the side in the eighth for the Rockers.

High Point added a run in the top of the ninth for a 6-2 lead. Daikan Yoh hit a sac fly to score Long, Jr. who had reached base with a single. Ryan Dull then set down the Blue Crabs in the ninth to secure the win.

The third and final game of the series is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Thursday night at Regency Furniture Stadium. A win by the Rockers guarantees they will play for a championship on Friday night at home. The game will be streamed live on FLO Baseball and also available on the Mixlr app.

NOTES: Zander Wiel’s homer was the 48th of his Rockers career and ties him with Quincy Latimore for the franchise career record. Wiel needed 176 games and 617 at-bats to hit 48. Latimore did it in 266 games and 905 at-bats . . . High Point has recorded its second 40-win half-season in club history. The Rockers were 41-30 in the first half of the 2019 season… High Point has not won a half-season championship though they have finished second three times . . . Shed Long, Jr. reached base for the 27^th consecutive game, the second-longest active streak in the Atlantic League.

Long Island 12, Lancaster 4

The Long Island Ducks found the short right field dimension at Clipper Magazine Stadium much to their liking on Wednesday evening.

Long Island slugged five homers in three innings en route to their second consecutive one-sided win, 12-4, in the middle game of a three-game set against the host Barnstormers.

With the score tied, 3-3, Alex Dickerson launched a one-out homer in the fourth inning off Spencer Johnston (1-1).  Brantley Bell, who knocked in five for the game hit a two-run shot later in the inning for a 6-3 advantage.

Brian Goodwin connected for a leadoff shot in the fifth.  In the sixth, Chance Sisco unloaded a two-run shot off Johnston, and Goodwin later blasted his second of the night.  All five long balls were hit off Johnston.

Lancaster had taken a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first.  With one out, Melvin Mercedes lined a base hit into right center and went to second on a bobble by Goodwin.  Andretty Cordero doubled to left center for the first run.  He scored on a single to left center by Ariel Sandoval.  Sandoval stole second, took third on a deep fly out and came home on a single up the middle by Joseph Carpenter.

McKenzie Mills (1-1) allowed only one more hit in the remainder of his five-inning stint, an RBI single by Sandoval in the fourth.  Only Yeison Coca managed a hit off the Long Island bullpen, grounding a single up the middle to start the ninth against Justin Alintoff.

Brent Teller (4-3) will make the start on Thursday in the series finale against Matt Solter (3-2 with High Point).  Fans may tune into the game on Blue Ridge 11 or FloBaseball, beginning at 6:30.

NOTES:  Sandoval and Coca both extended hitting streaks to seven games…Sandoval is now hitting .392 for the season but is still short of the number of plate appearances he needs to qualify for the batting lead…Anthony Peroni was 1-for-3 in his return to the Barnstormers…He signed earlier in the day after being released by Long Island the week before…To make room, Lancaster released catcher Marshall Rich.

Lexington 8, Staten Island 4

The Staten Island FerryHawks fell to the Lexington Counter Clocks by a score of 9-4 on Wednesday night in Staten Island. The FerryHawks held a lead late into the game, but the wheels fell off after a tough walk the tied the game and shifted the momentum. 

The Counter Clocks got on the board first with a sacrifice RBI and homerun that propelled them to a 2-0 lead after the first inning. However, the FerryHawks wasted no time as Angel Aguilar drove in Ricardo Cespedes in the bottom half of the inning to cut it to 2-1.

Lexington added a run in the 5th to extend the lead to 3-1, but that would be short lived. In the bottom half of the 5th, Tottenville High School baseball product Kevin Krause hit a 3-run no doubter over the left field fence to take the lead 4-3!

In the 8th things got hairy for the Hawks as The Counter Clocks, with one out, loaded the bases. Recent CSI graduate, John Esposito was called upon by manager Homer Bush to work out of the jam and alleviate the damage. He struck out the first batter he faced, making it two outs with the bases loaded and a one run FerryHawks lead. In the next at-bat, Esposito worked himself into a full count. A fastball that missed the strike zone by a hair walked in the tying run, unfortunately.

From there, the Counter Clocks rode the momentum swing as they plated 6 more runs to bring the lead to 9-4 and put this one away. In a game where the FerryHawks were mostly in the driver's seat, this one stings just a little more than the rest. On a more positive note, Ricardo Cespedes went 4-4 with a walk in his return to the lineup.

The FerryHawks and Counter Clocks will wrap things up tomorrow at 6:30PM as this series comes to a close. Thursdays just got better in Hawk City thanks to Ho’Brah! For $20, fans can get a ticket, Ho’Brah burrito bowl and FerryHawks rally towel. This weekend, the FerryHawks have a loaded promo schedule with a t-shirt giveaway on Friday, Star Wars Night on Saturday, and American Dream Night on Sunday with an appearance by Chase from Paw Patrol!

Spire City 18, Gastonia 8

FREDERICK, MD – After faltering in their first 11 games vs Gastonia, Spire City has now won three straight against the Honey Hunters and clinched this week’s series with an 18-8 offensive explosion on Wednesday night.  

In the first inning, Raudy Read reached on an error that allowed Leobaldo Cabrera to score, and Jimmy Paredes scorched an RBI single to make it an early 2-0 Ghost Hound lead. 

They exploded for six more in the second inning. After a one out single by Osvaldo Abreu, Leobaldo Cabrera, Starlin Castro, and Jose Marmolejos rattled off three straight RBI singles, and Craig Dedelow added to the scoring with a sacrifice fly. Kole Cottam capped off the six spot with a two run double, and suddenly it was 8-0 Spire City. 

Marmolejos got another RBI single in the third inning. A Jimmy Paredes bases loaded walk and Cottam two run single made it a 12-0 game. 

Jake Fisher left the game after three hitless innings, but Carlos Franco greeted Nate Peden with Gastonia’s first hit, a solo homer to start the fourth inning. Kevin Santa added another run with an RBI single in the fifth. 

The sixth inning saw six runs score for the Ghost Hounds on three home runs: A Jimmy Paredes solo shot, two-run blast from Luke Becker, and three run homer from Marmolejos. Marmolejos finished the day with five RBIs. 

A pair of Gastonia home runs chipped into the lead, with Luis Curbello hitting a grand slam and Johnni Turbo blasting a two-run home run to cut the game to 18-8. 

Brendan Medoro closed out the game with a scoreless ninth, and the South Division race is now within just one game between Gastonia and High Point.  

The two will close out the series on Thursday with a 6:30 start time.

York 3, Charleston 0
York 8, Charleston 7

(July 5th, 2023 – York, Pa.): Tomo Otosaka capped an epic 10-inning battle with a walk-off base hit as the York Revolution swept a doubleheader against the Charleston Dirty Birds, winning 8-7 in the wild nightcap after a 3-0 victory in the opener on Wednesday evening at WellSpan Park. The Revs have won four straight, lowering their magic number to two to clinch a first half North Division title which they can do with a win vs. Charleston and a Long Island loss in Lancaster on Thursday night.

Game one of Wednesday’s twinbill had the Revs as the road team in their own ballpark as it was a makeup from a rainout at Charleston on June 22.

Both teams had threats in the first two innings but failed to score. York had a chance in the second inning but right fielder Dwight Smith Jr. dove and robbed Ryan January of potentially two RBI on a shot down the line.

The Revs finally broke open the scoring in the top of the fourth as Birds starter Troy Bacon threw 40 pitches in the frame and gave up the game’s only three runs. Drew Mendoza doubled as he ripped one on one hop to the wall in right center, and Trey Martin followed with a long fly down the right field line that landed fair. Mendoza scored easily, and as Martin ran to third, the throw was missed by the cutoff man and trickled into the infield as Martin came home to score on the third inside the park home run in Revs history. The Revs weren’t done as Jacob Rhinesmith reached on an error by first baseman Telvin Nash, Richard Urena singled, and January walked to load the bases. Trent Giambrone drove home a run on a walk of his own, making it a 3-0 lead for the Revs.

York starter J.T. Hintzen (6-3) pitched five scoreless, giving up six singles and no runs on three walks and eight strikeouts. He is now 6-0 with a 2.25 ERA in nine outings (28.0 innings) since May 24.

Bacon (4-3) suffered the loss as the reigning Atlantic League Pitcher of the Month only got through four innings on 97 pitches, allowing three runs (two earned).

York reliever Nelvin Correa worked around a leadoff walk to set down the next three batters in the bottom of the sixth. Correa stayed on in the seventh to attempt the save and got the first two outs but walked Nash who reached on a walk in all four plate appearances. Correa was replaced by lefty J.P. Woodward who got Bobby Bradley to roll out to second on one pitch for the save, completing the 3-0 victory.

Pedro Vasquez got the ball in game two, facing Matt Reitz who Charleston signed earlier in the day.

Vasquez retired his first seven batters but gave up two runs in the third on an RBI single from Clayton Mehlbauer and an RBI double by Jalen Miller.

Charleston added one more in the fifth for a 3-0 lead when Bradley hit a sac fly to center field. That plated Miller with an unearned run after a single, stolen base, and advancement on a throwing error.

The Revs were held scoreless on four hits through the first four innings against Reitz. York finally got on the board in the fifth as Nellie Rodriguez singled to start the inning, Otosaka came in as the designated pinch runner, moved to second on a ground out, stole third, and was balked home by Reitz making it a 3-1 game.

Victor Capellan tossed a scoreless inning in the sixth out of the Revs bullpen, his third consecutive scoreless appearance.

Troy Stokes Jr. led off the bottom of the sixth with a ringing double to left field off the Arch Nemesis, greeting lefty Williams Jerez who came on in relief. Jerez walked Mendoza, and Martin roped an RBI single off Mehlbauer’s glove at shortstop and into center field scoring Stokes Jr. to make it 3-2. Alejandro Rivero tied the game with a smash to third with the bases loaded as it caromed off of third baseman Luis Roman for a game-tying infield hit. Jhon Nunez ripped a two-strike offering to deep left center for a two-run double, giving the Revs their first lead of the game at 5-3. Giambrone drilled one over Yefri Perez’ head in center to drive in two more on a double of his own as the Revs exploded in front with a 7-3 lead on their third six-run inning in the last four games.

Andrew Gross found trouble trying to finish the game on the mound as Mehlbauer walked and Miller roped a double to right field. Gross rebounded to strike out Roman who was ejected from the game, but hit Bradley with a pitch to load the bases. Yovan Gonzalez hit a seeing eye single through the left side scoring two, cutting the lead to 7-5. Perez blooped a single to right plating another run and advancing the tying run to second. Will McAffer took over on the mound and lost Nash to a pinch-hit walk loading the bases. Smith Jr. lined a sac fly to center to tie the game at 7-7 before McAffer struck out Angel Garced to end the inning.

York threatened as Mendoza was hit by a pitch on the first pitch of the bottom of the seventh by Ryan Clark. Mendoza was bunted over by Martin and advanced to third with two outs but Clark struck out Otosaka to end the threat.

Will Carter came in for the eighth with the automatic runner at second and retired all three batters to keep the game tied.

The Revs got the winning run to third once again in their half on a Rivero sac bunt but Clark struck out two more to end another threat.

Carter loaded the bases in the ninth but got Nash to ground into a 1-2-3 double play to get out of another inning without allowing a run.

Charleston righty Ricardo Gomez struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth to strand two including Mendoza who was intentionally walked.

Tasker Strobel started the 10th inning and got a great defensive play on a sinking liner to left field where Stokes Jr. sold out and made a spectacular diving catch to rob Smith Jr. saving a run. Strobel (2-2) struck out the next two ending the top of the 10th.

The Revs finally secured their first walk-off win of the year as Urena singled to left, advancing Martin to third base to start the bottom of the 10th. With the infield in, Otosaka singled home Martin on a shot past a sprawling Nash at first, igniting a celebration in the infield as the Revs picked up their first extra-inning victory of the season.

York will send lefty Nick Raquet (6-5, 3.49) to the mound on Thursday night at 6:30 p.m. looking to clinch their first playoff berth since 2019 and their first First Half crown since 2016. He’ll be opposed by Charleston lefty Danny Wirchansky (1-2, 2.54). It is Boomer’s Book Club Night #4 and a Hunger Free Thursday presented by Members 1st Federal Credit Union. Tickets are on sale at YorkRevolution.com, (717) 801-HITS, and in-person at the Shipley Energy Ticket Office.