Orioles minor league recap 5/3: De León throws immaculate inning, Mayo extends homer streak

Delmarva’s starter needed only nine pitches to strike out all three batters in the first inning, and Coby Mayo homered in a fourth consecutive game for Norfolk.

Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 10, Nashville Sounds (Brewers) 6

Norfolk and Nashville only played three innings before the rain caused a pause in play, but the teams combined to score 14 runs over the first three frames. Coby Mayo needed only two at bats to drive in five runs. Mayo got the Tides on the board with a two-run shot in the first. The long ball marked his 11th homer on the season and his fourth straight game with a dinger.

Mayo returned to the plate in the second inning with the bases loaded but settled for a three-run double.

Billy Cook followed Mayo with a solo homer in the top of the first. The drive made it 3-0 and marked Cook’s first homer at Triple-A.

Despite the strong start, Norfolk actually trailed by three after the first inning. Justin Armbruester only recorded one out before getting chased from the game.

Armbruester issued back-to-back walks, a double, and two straight triples to blow the early advantage. Somehow, things managed to get worse after consecutive run-scoring triples. Nashville scored its fifth run when Armbruester was called for a balk, and the former 12th-round pick allowed a solo homer before mercifully exiting the game.

The Tides picked up Armbruester in a big way with a five-run second. Mayo’s double evened the score, and Daniel Johnson reclaimed the lead with a two-run single.

Jackson Holliday walked four times.

Double-A: Erie SeaWolves (Tigers) 11, Bowie Baysox 3

Jud Fabian drove in Samuel Basallo with a single in the fifth to make it 4-3, but Erie pulled away in a big way. Dylan Heid allowed a pair of runs in the sixth, and Houston Roth got shelled for five runs in the seventh inning.

Starter Trace Bright surrendered four runs on four hits over 4.2 innings. Bright struck out six and walked a pair. The former fifth-round pick allowed a pair of solo shots in the second inning and a two-run triple in the fourth.

TT Bowens accounted for a pair of Bowie’s five hits. Bowens homered, doubled, worked a walk and drove in a pair. Basallo finished 0-for-2 with a walk before being lifted for a pinch runner after a HBP. Frederick Bencosme and Dylan Beavers both went hitless but did take a walk.

High-A: Aberdeen IronBirds 7, Brooklyn Cyclones (Mets) 1 F/10

Randy Florentino plated a run with a single in the top of the second, but Aberdeen failed to score again until the 10th inning. Fortunately, Moisés Chace and Juan Nuñez combined to throw 8.2 innings of one-run ball. Chace limited Brooklyn to just one hit over four scoreless innings, while Nuñez allowed a pair of hits and thee Cyclones’ only run. Chace struck out four, and Nuñez doubled him up with 8 K’s.

The IronBirds broke out in extras with four singles, a double, a pair of walks and an RBI fielder’s choice. Florentino resecured the lead with another RBI single, and a pinch-hitting Creed Willems singled to load the bases. Tavian Josenberger plated a run with a single, and Carter Young chased two more home with a two-bagger. Elio Prado capped the scoring with a two-run single.

Yaqui Rivera shut the Cyclones out in the bottom of the tenth to clinch the victory.

Low-A: Delmarva Shorebirds 4, Fayetteville Woodpeckers (Astros) 3

Delmarva starter Luis De León delivered an absolutely spotless frame to start the game. De León notched an immaculate inning by striking out all three batters with only nine pitches. The 21-year-old fanned 10 batters over 4.2 innings of three-run ball.

The Shorebirds trailed 3-1 before tying the game in the seventh and winning it in the ninth. Angel Tejada did the heavy lifting with a leadoff triple, and Maxwell Costes drove in the winning run with a single to left field. Tejada finished 3-for-4 with a pair of runs scored.

Tejada brought the tying run to the plate after a bunt single to start the seventh. The 20-year-old proceeded to steal second and third before jogging home on a game-tying homer by Kevin Guerrero.

Box Scores

Friday’s Schedule

• Norfolk: vs Nashville, 7:35. Starter: RHP Chayce McDermott (0-1, 3.80 ERA)
• Bowie: vs Erie, 7:05. Starter: RHP Brandon Young (0-0, 4.32 ERA)
• Aberdeen: at Brooklyn, 7:00. Starter: Zach Fruit (0-1, 3.86 ERA)
• Delmarva: vs Fayetteville, 7:05. Starter: RHP Michael Forret (2-1, 3.07 ERA)