Norfolk’s TT Bowens and Coby Mayo, Chesapeake’s Braxton Bragg, and Delmarva’s Raylin Ramos had standout days.
Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 10, St. Paul Saints (MIN) 4
The bats were hot enough that Norfolk allowed a grand slam in the second inning and still won. That inning, the Saints put up a four spot on starter Chayce McDermott, who struggled with command, loading the bases on a single, HBP and walk and then giving the big blast to St. Paul’s Patrick Winkel.
No matter, the Tides weren’t done. TT Bowens hit a three-run jack, Vimael Machín cracked a run-scoring double, and in the fifth inning, Bowens homered again, Livan Soto too, and Luis Vázquez hit an RBI double.
Following McDermott’s 3.1 innings (4 R, 4 H, 5 BB, 7 K), Houston Roth, Rodolfo Martinez, and Kade Strowd combined for 5.2 scoreless.
The Tides spread around 12 hits on Sunday. Coby Mayo had two, including a home run. Machín and Vázquez had a pair, as well, including a double apiece. Samuel Basallo went 1-for-4 and walked.
Double-A: Chesapeake Baysox 6, Harrisburg Senators (WAS) 3
Braxton Bragg (no, not the Confederate general) is on some kind of run. The 2023 eighth-rounder keeps turning in good starts this season, and his latest was a gem: a six-inning, two-run showing with eight strikeouts and one walk. In nine games (eight starts) Bragg is now 4-1 with a 1.59 ERA. Daniel Lloyd worked 1.2 innings, allowing one run, to get the win. Yaqui Rivera and Keagan Gillies kept the Senators off the scoreboard.
Chesapeake scored its runs in pairs. Adam Retzbach made it 2-0 with a two-run, fourth-inning single. Retzbach also drove in a run in the eighth with a sac bunt following Jeremiah Jackson’s RBI single. In the ninth, with Chesapeake up 4-3, Silas Ardoin sealed the game with a two-run single to score Creed Willems and Douglas Hodo. Retzbach had a 3-for-3 day. Willems went 1-for-4 and walked. He’s OPS’ing .863.
High-A: Aberdeen IronBirds 8, Wilmington Blue Rocks (WAS) 5
Wilmington shot out to a 4-0 lead but Aberdeen scored eight consecutive runs to snatch a decisive win. Vance Honeycutt had one of the biggest blows in the comeback, a fifth-inning two-run triple to score Anderson de los Santos and a rehabbing Colton Cowser. Aron Estrada homered the next inning. Griff O’Ferrall reached on a throwing error, stole second, went to third and stole home.
Cowser walked in four trips to the plate. Honeycutt and Estrada had two hits each, one for extra bases. Reed Trimble had a double.
As for the pitching, Trey Gibson allowed two runs in three innings but he also struck out an eye-popping seven hitters. Nick Richmond allowed two runs on a home run over 1.2 innings. Kyle Virbitsky got the win with 1.1 scoreless. Riley Cooper and Carter Rustad earned a save and a hold, respectively.
Low-A: Delmarva Shorebirds 7, Salem Red Sox 5
After falling behind 5-2, Delmarva scored five runs in the last four innings. Elis Cuevas hit a two-run double, Raylin Ramos hit a two-run home run, and Alfredo Velásquez pushed home the seventh run with a sac fly. It was a standout day at the plate for Ramos, Cuevas and DH Kevin Guerrero, each of whom had three hits and at least an RBI.
Starting pitcher Luis de León allowed three runs in three innings before giving way to Jake Cravey, who was the standout today. Cravey pitched all the way to the ninth inning and allowed just one run, while striking out four.
Monday’s Schedule
Happy Memorial Day! There are no scheduled games today.