Walks caught up to Eduardo Rivera very quickly, after allowing a home run to Red Wings (Nationals AAA) and 2024 10th overall draft pick Seaver King with just one out in the game. Before long, he had walked four and allowed five runs, although four of those came as a result of an errant Tsung-Che Cheng throw. It took 39 pitches and he didn’t even get out of the first, and then the rest of what would become a true bullpen game commenced. Mikey Romero hit a solo shot in the fourth and then got his second RBI of the game in the ninth to score Vinny Capra who just scored, but that was the closest the WooSox came in this one.
Another team with a mini-rally in the ninth, the Sea Dogs entered the last inning down by four and turned it into a high-leverage situation thanks to some small ball but couldn’t complete the comeback; the real cushion run Lehigh Valley (Phillies AA) gained was due to old friend Alex Binelas’ home run in the eighth. Johanfran Garcia had two doubles on the game along with another knock, but couldn’t get hit number four (the rest of the team combined also only had three) as he struck out to end the game.
The lone winners in the organization, the Winston-Salem (White Sox High-A) pitching staff was given trouble all night by Enddy Azocar, who had three hits including a home run. Also homering were some usual suspects; Jack Winnay belted his eleventh of the year, a three-run blast to put the Drive up 4-1 (the lead would grow to four in the next inning) and Isaiah Jackson, best known (for now) as the piece gained to send Vaughn Grissom elsewhere, launched his tenth of 2026 in the eighth inning to put the game away for good.
The RidgeYaks are now losers of five straight despite seven of their nine starters getting hits off the Woodpecker (Astros A) pitching staff and Barrett Morgan throwing a respectable five innings of work, though it wasn’t even one of his better outings. The night was made of “buts” including the aforementioned pitching performance. D’Angelo Ortiz had his first home run of the season, but it was a solo shot; Adonys Guzman and Avinson Pinto had twin doubles in the sixth but Fayetteville would clap back with three runs of their own in the seventh; the RidgeYaks pulled a Chad Tracy and had three catchers (Ortiz, Guzman, Kleyvar Salazar) in the lineup but they each got knocks. Sorry, thought I’d end with a bright spot despite the loss.
I’m done coming up with alliterations for Thursday for now. Have a great day.
