The Tides won big but there was a dark mark on the evening thanks to Kremer’s poor start
Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 14, Lehigh Valley (PHI) 8
The Tides offense went off last night, but before we jump into that we need to talk about Dean Kremer. Kremer made his second rehab start last night in his journey back from injury. If you’re hoping that Kremer will be able to jump back into the major league rotation to help the team, I have some bad news.
Kremer was unable to get out of the first inning last night, throwing 39 pitches in 0.2 innings and giving up five runs. He faced eight batters and retired only two. Two batters homered off of him. I think another rehab start is in his future.
And now the fun stuff. The offense scored 14 runs with half of them coming in one inning. The usual suspects all hit home runs: Heston Kjerstad (16), Connor Norby (11), and Kyle Stowers (12) all went deep. Stowers had a big blow with a grand slam; he also had a double in the game. All three of the big guns picked up four RBI each. Coby Mayo simply went 1-for-5 with a walk.
The most damage was done against former Orioles farmhand Blaine Knight. Knight pitched in the Orioles’ system from 2018-2022 and missed 2023 altogether. He gave up five runs in this game.
Double-A: Altoona Curve (PIT) 7, Bowie Baysox 6 – F/11
TT Bowens hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game and send it to extras. But they fell in extra innings when the Curve did a better job scoring their Manfred Men.
Ryan Higgins also homered in the game and Matthew Etzel had two hits and an RBI groundout. Samuel Basallo doubled and walked in the game.
Alex Pham started and struck out seven in 3.2 innings with two runs allowed. Dylan Heid took the loss when he pitched the 10th and 11th innings and gave up one run in each.
High-A: Aberdeen IronBirds 4, Wilmington Blue Rocks (WAS) 2
The IronBirds scored all four runs via the long ball with dingers from Douglas Hodo III, Reed Trimble, and Creed Willems. Hodo and Willems hit solo shots while Trimble’s came with Enrique Bradfield Jr. on board. Bradfield had two singles and a stolen base from the leadoff spot while cleanup hitter Willems reached base four times with two hits and two walks.
Peter Van Loon gave up two runs on three hits in the first inning and ultimately pitched 3.2 innings without another run allowed. He struck out three and didn’t walk a batter. Three relief pitchers combined to pitch 5.1 hitless innings.
Low-A: Delmarva Shorebirds 12, Fayetteville Woodpeckers (HOU) 7
Shorebirds starting pitcher Braxton Bragg gave up seven runs on nine hits and the team was down 7-2 after just three innings. But then the Shorebirds went on a tear and scored 10 unanswered runs to win in a rout.
The Shorebirds had 10 hits and 10 walks in the win, including home runs from Aron Estrada and Aneudis Mordán. Leandro Arias and Thomas Sosa both had multi-hit games with one of Sosa’s hits going for a triple. Designated hitter Luis Valdez had a single and two walks, and he stole four bases!
Today’s Schedule
- Norfolk @ Lehigh Valley, 1:35. Starter: Jacob Armbruester
- Bowie vs Altoona, 1:05. Starter: Cameron Weston
- Aberdeen @ Wilmington, 1:05. Starter: TBD
- Delmarva @ Fayetteville, 5:05. Starter: Daniel Lloyd