HR Roll Call: Sal Perez (1), Kort Peterson 2 (2, 3), Seuly Matias (6), MJ Melendez (2)
BPKC Hitter of the Day: Kort Peterson 2-5 2 HR, 5 RBI
BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Trevor Oaks 7 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 10-5 GO-FO, 91p/53k
Hagerstown Suns 5, Lexington Legends 3
A close game got away on the bat of the Nationals #2 prospect late in Lexington on Saturday. After Royals prospect Nick Pratto shot an RBI single in the first and MJ Melendez followed in the second with a solo home run, the Suns chipped away at the small lead. It was a Soto triple that started the fourth, leading to the only run again starter Janser Lara. That lead stood up until the seventh when Andres Sotillet ran into some trouble, giving up three singles sandwiched around two outs, tying the game at 2-2. With two on and two out, Soto jumped on Sotillet’s first pitch, blasting it out to left field to give Hagerstown a 5-2 lead. The Legends would get a home run in the ninth off the bat of Seuly Matias, his sixth of the young season, but it wasn’t enough in the loss.
Seuly Matias 2-4, HR – 111 mph off the bat
Nick Pratto 2-4, RBI
Janser Lara 3.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 3-1 GO-FO, 52p/34k
Wilmington Blue Rocks 12, Frederick Keys 10
Since a good start in his first 17 appearances in the Carolina League left-hander, Cristian Castillo has struggled mightily. There was more of that on Saturday as he was tattooed from the leadoff home run to the end of his outing which lasted just 2.2 innings, giving up eight runs on eleven hits and a pair of walks. That gives the former Carolina League All-Star a 7.52 ERA and a 2-9 record over that time. Fortunately for Castillo, he was off the hook when the offense made a big comeback led by Kort Peterson. Trailing 8-3 to start the fourth frame, Wilmington’s offense chipped away at the lead getting a run in that inning, another in the fifth and two more in the sixth to pull within two runs after a Frederick run in the fifth. They did this with nine walks, a couple of errors by the Keys and nine hits, none bigger than Peterson’s three-run blast in the seventh that gave them a 10-9 lead. Two more runs were tacked on in that frame with a Khalil Lee double and Emmanuel Rivera sacrifice fly before the bullpen finished things off with just a run allowed. Wilmington will shoot for the four-game sweep on Sunday, sending struggling Jace Vines to the hill.
Khalil Lee 1-5, R, 2b, RBI, SB (5)
Emmanuel Rivera 1-3, 2 RBI, BB
DJ Burt 2-5, 2R, BB
Omaha Storm Chasers 6, Nashville Sounds 2
The Chasers received a second quality pitching outing in as many days to post a second consecutive win. Starter Trevor Oaks kept the ball down and in the park, limiting Nashville to just four hits over seven innings while retiring the last 11 hitters he would face. The offense scored more than five runs for just the second time this season. A double by Frank Schwindel plated a pair in the first inning before Alex Gordon singled in a run in the second as part of a two-run inning. The other player down on rehab besides Gordon, Salvador Perez blasted a home run in the fifth before doubling in the seventh to leadoff the inning. The Chasers lifted Perez for Terrance Gore who would come home on a Ramon Torres single later in the inning. The Chasers pen navigated around two Mike Broadway walks for the win.
Salvador Perez 3-4, 2R, 2b, HR
Alex Gordon 1-2, R, RBI, 2BB
Frank Schwindel 1-3, 2b, 2 RBI, BB
Sunday Probables
Omaha – TBD
NW Arkansas – Glenn Sparkman 1-1, 3.72 ERA, 1.03 WHIP
Wilmington – Jace Vines 0-3, 15.19 ERA 2.91, WHIP
Lexington – Nolan Watson 0-1, 9.49 ERA, 1.86 WHIP