Snake Stars:
3 Stars: Reno 1B Christian Walker 3 for 4, 3B, HR (20), 5 RBI, 3 R
2 Stars: Reno CF Socrates Brito 3 for 4, HR (2), 3 RBI, R
1 Star: Reno LHP Eric Jokisch 5 2⁄3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K, GS 69, W (7-3)
0 Stars: Jackson RHP Miller Diaz 2⁄3 IP, 4 H, 5 R (4 ER), 3 BB, 1 K
AJ Pollock rehab: 1 for 3, 2 BB, 2 R
Pavin Smith 1 for 4, 2B, R
Reno Aces 12, El Paso Chihuahuas 0: The Aces went Terminator on the Chihuahuas pitching staff, scoring 12 times between the 3rd and 5th innings. Christian Walker once again flirted with another potential cycle with a single, triple, and homer while driving in 5. AJ Pollock went 1 for 3 with a pair of walks and two runs scored in his rehab game. Everyone in the lineup contributed, although Hank Conger was the only Aces position player without a hit, but he walked and scored a run so we can forgive him. Eric Jokish and Louis Coleman combined for a 2-hit shutout over 7 innings.
Reno Aces 4, El Paso Chihuahuas 3: A little bit closer than Game 1, but the Aces won anyway. Socrates Brito carried the offense with a 3 for 4 game, including a 2-run homer as part of a 3-run 5th inning. Frank Duncan gave up a lot of hits, 9 of them in 4 2⁄3 innings before getting lifted for Jake Barrett for the final out of the 5th inning. Silvino Bracho pitched a scoreless 6th inning and Jimmie Sherfy gave up a solo HR to Ryan Schmipf, who pretty much either walks, homers, or strikes out these days.
Jackson Generals 4, Tennessee Smokies 5: Ivan Pineyro put the Generals in an early 4-0 hole, allowing 8 hits in 4 innings. The Generals continued to chip away at the lead, scoring in the 5th, 6th, and 7th inning and tying the game at 4 going into the bottom of the 7th. Unfortunately, Drew Muren forgot how to throw a baseball and redefined the term wildness on the mound as he allowed the winning run to score on a wild pitch. Dawel Lugo drove in 2 and Michael Perez hit a pair of doubles in the game.
Jackson Generals 3, Tennessee Smokies 9: The second game was even uglier, with Gabe Speier allowing 4 runs in the bottom of the first after being spotted a 1-0 lead thanks to Kevin Cron’s 15th homer of the year. To make things worse, Miller Diaz did his best Trevor Cahill impression and could not get out of the 3rd inning after the offense shrank the deficit to 4-3. The Generals were down 9-3 at that point and pretty much no hope left. Cron also doubled and drove in a 2nd runner in the game.
Visalia Rawhide 4, Stockton Ports 5: Cody Reed wasn’t very sharp, allowing 5 runs in 5 innings on 6 hits and 4 walks while striking out 6. Despite the early 5-0 hole, the offense battled back with deuces in the 5th and 7th inning to make it a game. Unfortunately, they were unable to get the 5th run across. Grant Heyman drove in 2 and Fernery Ozuna homered. The bullpen did their best to keep it close with 3 scoreless innings, but the offense ran out of outs for a comeback attempt.
Kane County Cougars 1, Peoria Chiefs 8: Sam McWilliams was pretty decent overall but suffered the loss due to bad run support. Overall he gave up 2 runs in 6 2⁄3 innings, but the Cougars did not score until 2 outs in the 9th inning when Ramon Hernandez ripped a homer. The game was 2-0 going into the 9th, but an error followed by the worst pitching performance following an error led to a 6-run top of the 9th. All those runs were unearned, so Trevor Simms still has a 0.00 ERA.
Hillsboro Hops 3, Everett Aqua Sox 0: Jhoan Duran and 3 relievers combined for a 2-hit shutout of the Aqua Sox. Pavin Smith went 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored and Drew Ellis smacked a 2-run double in the first inning. In the 6th, Bryan Araiza tacked on some insurance with a solo shot that made it 3-0. Erbert Gonzalez pitched the final inning and picked up his 3rd save.
Missoula Osprey 6, Helena Brewers 5: The Pioneer League is gonna Pioneer League, although the Osprey were able to score 5 runs in the first two innings. Death by a million singles, right? Brady Muller was able to keep the big lead, allowing 4 runs in 6 innings, but the defense was outright terrible in the 7th and that led to an unearned run scoring. However, Kyle Smith untied the game with a solo homer that gave the Osprey a 6-5 lead and that lead ultimately held up.
AZL Dbacks 14, AZL Dodgers 12: Holy offense, Batman! The Dbacks opened up the scoring with 12 runs in the first 3 innings and ultimately had to hold on for dear life. As you expected, the pitching was terrible and the offense went cold during innings 4-7. After the Dodgers were able to tie it at 12, Luis Tejada homered to give the Dbacks a 13-12 lead and they would add another run in the 9th. Buddy Kennedy went 2 for 4 with a triple and a RBI.