(66-59) Columbus Clippers 11, (64-63) Gwinnett Stripers 10
- AJ Smith-Shawver, P: 5.2 IP 7 H 5 ER 4 BB 4 K, 5.29 ERA
- Alejo Lopez, LF-3B: 2-for-5, RBI, .313/.396/.401
- Nacho Alvarez Jr., 3B: 1-for-3, R, .312/.424/.518
- Chadwick Tromp, C: 2-for-5, 3 RBI, R, .330/.402/.500
- Luke Waddell, SS: 2-for-4, 3 R, RBI, .238/.315/.328
- Brian Anderson, 1B: 2-for-5, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, R, .218/.358/.345
AJ Smith-Shawver made the start for Gwinnett and was just okay, giving up five earned runs over 5.2 innings of work. Smith-Shawver featured his four pitch mix of fastball, slider, curveball, changeup and hit 98 on the radar gun before settling in around 92-94. When he was removed from the game, Gwinnett actually lead 6-5 thanks to a crazy bottom of the fifth inning where the Stripers scored five runs — all via singles and walks.
Gwinnett would then give up the lead in the sixth inning when Dylan Dodd (working his first full inning) gave up a single, homer, walk and double in what could only really be described as a pretty disastrous seventh inning. With the Clippers now leading 9-6, Gwinnett would respond with a rally of their own in the seventh inning — highlighted by a Chadwick Tromp two-run single to make it 9-8. Continuing to chip away, Gwinnett would add on another run and tie the game at 9-9 when Brian Anderson hit his third homer with Gwinnett.
After clawing their way back into the game and tying it 9-9 in the bottom of the eighth, Domingo Gonzalez (1IP 2H 2ER 1BB 1K) would come in in the ninth and give it right back to the Clippers by allowing a pair of runs. With the game 11-9 with two outs, Luke Waddell would be hit by a pitch before scoring on a Brian Anderson double which would then make it 11-10, before Zack Short would fly out to end the game.
(57-63) Mississippi Braves 0, (63-56) Pensacola Blue Wahoos 1
- Adam Żebrowski, C: 1-for-3, .320/.370/.320
- Keshawn Ogans, 3B: 1-for-3, .219/.284/.273
- Jhancarlos Lara, P: 5 IP 1 H 1 R 0 ER 6 BB 6 K, 3.18 ERA
- Drew Parrish, P: 3 IP 0 H 0 R 0 BB 5 K, 3.42 ERA
The fastball command struggles continued for Jhancarlos Lara in his third start at Double-A. This was a bizarre game that saw the Mississippi Braves lose despite giving up just one hit: A single in the bottom of the fifth inning with a runner on second who had reached via an error. Outside of that, the duo of Lara and Parrish struck out 11, with Lara walking six hitters. Lara has now walked 17 in three starts for the Mississippi Braves, but has somehow given up just four earned runs total. Despite the struggles with command, Lara’s fastball and slider are still fantastic pitches which is evident by the run totals in his first three games in the league.
How do you lose a game in which you give up one hit? Well, the Mississippi offense was downright horrendous. They collected a total of two hits (both singles), did not walk once, and struck out 12 times. They never even had a runner in scoring position. As a result, there’s really not much to talk about on the offensive side. Adam Zebrowski had a single in the fifth, and Keshawn Organs had one in the sixth and that’s everything.
(68-51) Greensboro Grasshoppers 5, (57-60) Rome Emperors 2
- Kevin Kilpatrick Jr., CF: 1-for-4, R, BB, .237/.318/.336
- Drew Compton, 1B: 2-for-3, 2B, RBI, .279/.371/.393
- EJ Exposito, 3B: 1-for-4, 2B, .236/.307/.419
- Mitch Farris, P: 6 IP 4 H 3 ER 1 BB 4 K, 2.80 ERA
After taking part in a no-hitter in his last start, Mitch Farris pitched well against the Grasshoppers but it wasn’t enough as the Rome Emperors fell for the sixtieth time this season. Mitch gave up just three earned runs over six innings and he has given up more than three runs in a game just three times this season. The new-to-exclusively-pitching Farris has fared extremely well in his first full season of professional baseball and now has a fantastic 2.80 ERA on the season. After scoring three on Mitch through three innings, the Grasshoppers scored their final two runs in the eighth inning off of Jared Johnson. The first run Jared gave up was a wild one — he hit a batter, allowed two steals, and then threw a wild pitch. Pitching a scoreless top of the ninth was LJ McDonough.
The Rome offense scored one run in the first inning, coming from a Drew Compton double that scored Kevin Kilpatrick Jr. They then didn’t score again until the ninth inning, which is when Justin Janas singled in Stephen Paolini to cut the deficit to two before the game ultimately ended.
Of note, Ambioris Tavarez made his return from the IL where he was out for a couple of months because of a broken bone in his wrist. Ambioris went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.
(44-36) Columbia Fireflies 0, (34-46) Augusta GreenJackets 8
- Isaiah Drake, CF: 0-for-1, R, 2 BB, 2 SB, .492 OPS
- Will Verdung, 1B: 2-for-4, RBI, 2B, R, .657 OPS
- Harry Owen, C: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 R, .666 OPS
- Ian Anderson, P: 3.1 IP 0 H 0 R 1 BB 5 K, 0.00 ERA
- Garrett Baumann, P: 5.2 IP 2 H 0 R 2 BB 6 K, 3.10 ERA
This game was a resumption of a game that was previously postponed back on July 6th with the GreenJackets leading 8-0. The biggest blow back in July was a Noah Williams (who has since been released) grand slam in the third inning which pushed the Augusta lead to 6-0. They would then add the final two runs on a Harry Owen homer of his own before rain got in the way and forced a postponement.
Fast forward to today where Garrett Baumann took to the hill and was spectacular — giving up just two hits and one double over the final 5.2 innings of the game. While it’s been a very strong year for Garrett, this was his first shutout since June 1st. He’s now given up three earned runs or less over his last five starts and is overall having a very strong first full season of play.
(64-55) Columbia Fireflies 6, (43-75) Augusta GreenJackets 5
- John Gil, SS: 1-for-4, 2B, .231/.322/.298
- Junior Garcia, RF: 3-for-3, R, BB, .143/.282/.153
- Mason Guerra, 3B: 3-for-4, RBI, .174/.309/.196
- Jacob Kroeger, P: 2 IP 1 H 1 ER 5 BB 2 K, 1.80 ERA
The rough season for the Greenjackets continued with their second loss of the day and 75th of the season. 2024 10th-round pick Jacob Kroeger started the game for the Greenjackets and walked five in just two innings of work. He needed 62 pitches to get through those two innings and overall struggled with his command — which can be summarized best with the fact that his lone earned run came in from a wild pitch. When he came out the game, however, Augusta was winning 4-1 after scoring four in the bottom of the first. A bases-loaded walk by Will Verdung tied the game at 1-1. Jake Steels plated a pair of runs thanks to an RBI single, and Mason Guerra grounded into a force out that scored the fourth run.
After Jacob, Juan Sanchez gave up a pair of runs himself in 1.2 innings of work (1.2 IP 1 H 2 ER 3 BB 1 K), trimming the lead down to 4-3. Hayder Ortiz would take over for Juan, and gave up a pair of his own runs (1.1 IP 2 H 2 ER 0 BB 2 K), giving the Fireflies a 5-4 lead. Augusta would make a breakthrough of their own in the sixth inning when a Junior Garcia single scored John Gil and trimmed the deficit to 6-5, but that’s all the Greenjackets offense could muster.
