HR Roll Call: Nick Dini (3), Sebastian Rivero (1), Cal Jones (1)
BPKC Hitter of the Day: Cal Jones 2-5, 2R, 2b, HR, 3 RBI
BPKC Pitcher of the Day: Nolan Watson 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 4-4 GO-FO, 88p/55k
Transactions – Lexington placed Dennicher Carrasco and Ricky Aracena on injured reserve. In their spots, they added Matt Morales and Brewer Hicklen. Omaha added Clay Buccholz while optioning Zach Lovvorn to NW Arkansas and placing Seth Manness on the Idaho Falls roster.
Lexington Legends 9, Hagerstown Suns 2
After relievers blew leads in the last two games, the Legends pitching staff straightened things out while the offense kept slugging for a win to secure a series split. Nolan Watson rebounded after a difficult last outing to toss five innings of one-run baseball (0 ER), giving up just an unearned run on four singles and a pair of walks. The righty whuffed five as he hit the zone with 55 of 88 pitches on the afternoon. A four-run fourth inning gave Watson a lead with his batterymate Sebastian Rivero connecting on his first home run of the season, a two-run number that scored Jeison Guzman. That lead stood up until the eighth when Cal Jones connected on his first longball to push the score to 8-1. A Nick Pratto double would add a tally while extending his multi-hit streak to four games before Lexington goes back on the road to Asheville.
Nick Pratto: 2-4, 2b, RBI, BB
Jeison Guzman: 3-4, 3R
Sebastian Rivero: 2-4, 2R, HR, 2 RBI
Frederick Keys 6, Wilmington Blue Rocks 2
The Rocks were unable to finish off the four game series sweep of the Keys as the offense struggled to do damage on Sunday. Just three hits from Wilmington along with three walks with Frederick pitchers piling up the groundouts, collecting fourteen of them on the day. An Angelo Castellanos error in the sixth helped break a 2-2 tie before a pair of home runs off reliever Grant Gavin put the game out of reach.
Khalil Lee: 0-3, RBI
Emmanuel Rivera: 1-4, R
Jace Vines: 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 11-2 GO-FO, 77p/50k
Tulsa Drillers 8, NW Arkansas Naturals 6
A close game got away from the Naturals when one of their relievers had trouble keeping the ball in the yard. NW Arkansas scored a pair in the first inning off hard-throwing Yadier Alvarez when Donnie Dewees singled in a pair with two out. That lead held up until the fifth inning when an error by Elier Hernandez to start the inning may have made it difficult for Glenn Sparkman to get things together, giving up the lead with a single and a triple that plated two runs to put NW Arkansas behind 3-2. The Naturals would tie the game in the seventh and again in the eighth, but in both innings home runs off reliever Franco Terrero would put them back down. The right-handed reliever struggled mightily, giving up four home runs in just two innings of work, allowing five runs to take the loss after a comeback bid by the offense fell short.
Jason Adam: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 31p/18k
Nicky Lopez: 2-3, 2R, 2BB, SB (4)
Donnie Dewees: 1-4, 2 RBI, BB, SB (3)
Omaha Storm Chasers 4, Nashville Sounds 1
Three players that will likely be Royals by the end of next week paced the way to a Chasers win on Sunday. Starting pitcher Clay Buchholz continued his preparation for a shot at the Royals major league roster with 6.1 innings of efficient pitching. The right-hander, who says he’s pitching pain-free for the first time in a couple of years, worked around the lineup with relative ease, giving up just a solo home run to Franklin Barreto while getting nine groundouts. On the offensive side, a pair of RBI doubles by Salvador Perez and Alex Gordon, in their final tune up before heading back to Kansas City, plated three runs in the sixth inning to give Omaha a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. Catcher Nick Dini tagged a solo home run one inning later to give the offense their final margin of victory. Scott Barlow worked the final two innings to earn the save.
Clay Buchholz: 6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 9-2 GO-FO, 84p/54k
Alex Gordon: 1-3, 2b, RBI
Salvador Perez: 1-3, R, 2b, 2 RBI
Monday Probables
Omaha – Jon Dziedzic (lhp) 0-1 1.50 ERA 1.22 WHIP
NW Arkansas – Foster Griffin (lhp) 1-1 3.09 ERA 1.54 WHIP