Wichita 2, Grand Prairie 1 – Box
Wichita 1B David Espinosa hit a walk-off home run to beat the Grand Prairie AirHogs, 2-1, completing a three-game sweep for the first-place Wingnuts.
The home run came on a day dominated by both teams’ pitchers. Wichita starter Jon Link struck out 16 batters — one shy of the American Association single-game record. He allowed just two hits and a walk in seven innings before giving way to reliever Michael Zouzalik.
AirHogs starter Danny Gutierrez pitched 7 2/3 innings of no-hit ball before Wichita 2B Taylor Oldham connected on a 1-1 pitch for a ground-rule double. Gutierrez allowed one hit, two walks and an earned run while striking out four.
Wichita CF Jarred McDonald willed the Wingnuts to a third-inning run after drawing a leadoff walk. He stole second and third and scored on SS Ryan Khory’s sacrifice fly to make it 1-0. McDonald walked twice and stole three bases in the game.
Grand Prairie tied the game in the top of the eighth as RF Frazier Hall walked to lead off the inning and scored when C Ryan Gasporra reached first on an error.
Zouzalik, who got the win after allowing one unearned run in two innings, pitched a scoreless ninth to set the stage for Espinosa’s walk-off shot — the Wingnuts’ first walk-off home run this season.
New Jersey 8, St. Paul 2 – Box
The New Jersey Jackals won their fifth straight game, extending their first-place lead in the Can-Am League to 1.5 games with an 8-2 interleague win against St. Paul.
New Jersey CF Alonzo Harris went 4-for-5 with two runs scored, a stolen base and an RBI, and 1B Jon Talley batted 3-for-5 with three doubles, two runs scored and two RBIs.
The Jackals took a 2-0 lead before pulling away with a four-run top of the fifth. Harris hit a one-out single to start that rally, advanced to second on a balk and to third on 3B Jeremy Barnes’s single. Harris scored on a wild pitch and DH Tony Caldwell brought home Barnes with an RBI single to right field. Talley then came to the plate with men on second and third, and hit a two-RBI double to center, giving New Jersey a 6-0 lead.
Jackals starter Michael Antonini struck out six in six innings, allowing two runs on four hits to pick up his eighth win of the season.
For the Saints, LF Willie Cabrera was the lone bright spot, batting 3-for-4 with a sixth inning two-run homer. St. Paul has lost nine straight games.
Fargo-Moorhead 10, Trois-Rivieres 4 (Game 1 – 7 innings) – Box
The RedHawks’ six-run third inning, capped by a three-run homer from RF Brandon Tripp, led to a 10-4 road win against Trois-Rivieres in the first game of a doubleheader.
Fargo-Moorhead 1B C.J. Retherford drove in the first run of the inning with an RBI double, followed by back-to-back RBI singles from C Petey Paramore and DH Sawyer Carroll, which made it 4-1. Tripp’s three-run homer extended the lead to 7-1, and a three-run sixth inning completed the rout.
Tripp went 2-for-3 with a walk and three RBIs, and CF Nic Jackson went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Right-hander Nick McCully got the win, allowing three runs on seven hits across five innings. He struck out five.
For the Aigles, SS Eric Grabe and CF Steve Brown each hit solo home runs.
Trois-Rivieres 2, Fargo-Moorhead 0 (Game 2 – 7 innings) – Box
Aigles starter Matthew Rusch shut out Fargo-Moorhead in the second game of a doubleheader to lead Trois-Rivieres to a 2-0 win. Rusch allowed five hits and two walks, striking out four in seven innings.
Trois-Rivieres C Kyle LaFrenz drove in the Aigles’ first run in the first inning, scoring 2B Jose Cuevas with an RBI double. Cuevas hit a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning to make it 2-0. SS Eric Grabe and LaFrenz led the Aigles with two hits.
Fargo-Moorhead starter Jake Laber allowed two runs on six hits through six innings. He walked one and struck out three.
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