St. Paul 8, Gary SouthShore 7 – Box
The St. Paul Saints walked off with an 8-7 win over the Gary SouthShore RailCats thanks to a wild pitch that scored C Vinny DiFazio. Earlier in the bottom of the ninth, the Saints tied the game with DH Angelo Songco’s RBI single. Most of the match was back and forth with a few runs here and there, but St. Paul came through in the end. DiFazio hit a two-run homer in the first inning, 3B-SS Ryan Cavan hit one of his own in the seventh and Songco hit a solo homer in the eighth. Three RailCats – 3B Jose Sermo, DH Dustin Geiger and C Michael Vaughn – each had two hits.
Saints reliever Michael Zouzalik picked up the win after pitching a scoreless ninth inning. He struck out two in his inning.
Sioux Falls at Winnipeg – Cancelled
The game between Sioux Falls and Winnipeg has been cancelled due to rain. Since the two teams do not play again this season, the game will not be made up.
Fargo-Moorhead 7, New Jersey 3 – Box
The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks scored six runs in the seventh inning to overcome a two-run deficit and win 7-3 over the New Jersey Jackals. The inning included a two-run triple from CF Drew Muren, a trio of RBI singles and an error. Muren finished the game 3-for-4 with one run and three RBIs. DH Michael Leach had two hits for the RedHawks.
Fargo-Moorhead starting pitcher Tyler Alexander went eight innings deep and allowed just three runs.
DH A.J. Kirby-Jones gave New Jersey a shot in the arm in the third inning with a solo homer. In the first, 3B Mark Threlkeld had an RBI single for the Jackals.
Sioux City 5, Grand Prairie 2 – Box
Sioux City starting pitcher John Straka pitched a gem in leading the Explorers to a 5-2 win over the Grand Prairie AirHogs. Straka didn’t allow an earned run in seven innings, but he also fanned 12 batters. Billy Bullock and Jose Flores, who got the win, came in relief and each tossed a scoreless inning. Straka received some run support, especially back-to-back RBI doubles from DH Brock Kjeldgaard and SS Noah Perio in the fifth. Kjeldgaard had a balanced stat line of two hits, two runs, one walk and one RBI.
Grand Prairie scored both of its runs off a two-run homer from DH Victor Diaz in the sixth inning.
Amarillo 3, Wichita 2 – Box
The Amarillo Thunderheads rallied with three late runs to grab a 3-2 win over the Wichita Wingnuts. Down 2-0 heading to the eighth inning, the Thunderheads scored three – all with two outs. 1B Rene Leveret started with an RBI double, and then DH Stefan Gartrell blasted a two-run homer to give Amarillo the lead. Earlier in the game, Wichita scored off a SS Leo Vargas RBI double and 2B Taylor Smart’s sacrifice fly.
Amarillo starter Alex Koronis pitched 6.1 innings and allowed just two runs while also striking out seven. However, it was Randy Hamrick who picked up the win after 2.2 scoreless innings to close out the game. Wichita starter Jon Link went six innings with no runs allowed.
Joplin 6, Lincoln 3 – Box
The Joplin Blasters hit a homer and scored three total runs in the first inning and held onto that early lead to win 6-3 over the Lincoln Saltdogs. To start the game, 3B Jairo Perez hit an RBI double followed by DH Matt Padgett’s two-run homer. Perez and SS Maikol Gonzalez led the Blasters with three hits each. CF Oscar Mesa had two hits, one walk and two runs for Joplin.
Lincoln scored its runs from a DH Curt Smith RBI double and a pair of C Juan Medina RBI singles. Medina had a strong game with three hits, but CF Matt Forgatch led the Saltdogs with four.
On the mound, Joplin reliever Carlos Fuentes got the win after pitching 6.2 innings with just two runs allowed. Fuentes also struck out 10 batters. On the other side, Lincoln reliever Zac Westcott tossed three scoreless innings.
