Today marks the first day in which all the affiliates play since last night the Baybears had a game suspended in the 5th inning. That game went the full 9 innings as part of a doubleheader.
Snake Stars
3 Stars: RF Mitch Haniger (Reno) 2 for 3, BB, 2-run HR (5)
2 Stars: RHP Ethan Elias (Visalia) 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 8 K, W (5-3)
1 Star: LHP Edwin Escobar (Reno) 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 2 K, W (4-1)
0 Stars: RHP Jose Martinez (Hillsboro) 1/3 IP, 2 H, 7 R (2 ER), 2 BB, 1 K
Reno 4, Albuquerque 1: Edwin Escobar continues to pitch well in Reno despite less than flattering peripherals. Escobar allowed 1 run in 6+ innings off of 6 hits and 2 walks and struck out 2 hitters. The only run he allowed came after he left the game with 2 on and no one out in the 7th. The offense gave him an early cushion with a pair of homers, a solo shot by Socrates Brito and a 2-run blast by Mitch Haniger, who after going 2 for 3 with a 2-run homer and a walk is batting .438/.500/.938 in 9 games after hitting a solid .294/.407/.462 slash in 55 games for AA Mobile. The bullpen consisted of two innings for Dominic Leone and Silvino Bracho getting the save with a scoreless 9th after the Aces tacked on an insurance run.
Mobile 2, Pensacola 3: This game was a continuation of play from Friday night's rain delay in a battle of the bullpens. Myles Smith went the first two innings, allowing no runs and no hits with a pair of walks and a strikeout. Offensively, the Baybears only mustered 2 hits and 2 walks for 4 more innings of play. Austin Wright came in the 7th and pitched a scoreless inning, but things changed in the 8th. Wright gave up two singles and a walk for what would be the winning run of the game.
Mobile 3, Pensacola 6: The game could not have started any better, with the Baybears posting a 3-spot in the top of the first inning. Evan Marzilli and Ildemaro Vargas reached to start the inning to put runners on the corners before a sac fly by Gabby Guerrero preceded a 2-run homer from Kevin Cron. Unfortunately, starter John Omahen quickly gave up the lead in the 2nd inning, allowing 4 runs to score there and put the Baybears in a 4-3 hole. Omahen lasted 4 innings, allowing 5 runs on 6 hits and 4 walks with 3 strikeouts. After the first inning, the Baybears weren't able to create any kind of offense. Luke Irvine pitched a scoreless 5th inning before Zac Curtis came in and gave up a run in the 6th inning.
Visalia 3, Lake Elsinore 2: Ethan Elias delivered a strong start and Colin Bray had the game of his career. Elias allowed 1 run on 3 hits and a pair of walks over 6 innings while striking out 8 for the victory. Bray carried the offense with a 3-hit day with 2 of them leaving the ballpark. He had 1 home run on the season coming into play. The Rawhide got on the board first when Bray launched his first homer of the game in the 3rd before following it up with another in the 5th inning. Marty Herum would also score in the 5th inning for what turned out to be a vital insurance run. Following Elias' strong outing, Miller Diaz pitched the 7th with a home run sandwiched between 3 strikeouts. Gabe Speier pitched the 8th and Bud Jeter pitched the 9th, the latter picking up his 12th save of the season and possibly looking at a promotion soon with the numbers he's posting this year.
Kane County 3, Clinton 6: The Cougars took advantage of terrible defense to put 2 runs on the board in the 2nd inning and Junior Garcia was cruising until the 4th inning, when he allowed a pair of runs to tie the game there. Garcia would face one more batter in the 6th, allowing a single. Austin Mason came in and proceeded to pour gasoline on the fire, allowing 3 runs including the inherited runner to score in the 6th. Zach Nehrir got a 2-out RBI in the 7th inning to make the game 5-3, but that was it offensively for the Cougars. Cody Clark allowed 1 run in 2 innings of work.
Hillsboro 3, Salem-Keizer 14: This was one of the ugliest games for the Hops and one they will likely forget quick. Tyler Mark had a horrible start to the game, allowing 6 runs in his final 2 innings of a 4-inning start on 8 hits and a walk with 2 strikeouts. Jose Martinez came in the 5th inning and was terrible as well, allowing 7 runs (2 earned) thanks to terrible defense that included a throwing error for himself. From there, we got to see the pitchers from the 2016 Draft as Tommy Eveld, Jake Winston, and Jordan Watson finished the game. Offensively, the best player was Billy Endris, who had 2 hits including a 5th inning solo HR.
Missoula 2, Billings 11: The Osprey took a 1-0 lead when Max Brown hit an RBI triple that scored Ramon Hernandez with two outs. The score remained that way until starter Bryant Holtmann gave up 2 runs in the 3rd and completely imploded in the 4th inning, not recording a single out and responsible for 5 runs. Ryan January tried his best to close the score with his first professional homer in the 4th inning, but offensively that was the last meaningful hit. Gabe Gonzalez came in and gave up 4 runs of his own to push the deficit to 11-2. Offensively, the team struggled with 11 strikeouts and picked up only 5 hits on the day.