July 29: Ducks drop seesaw contest 5-4 to SeaWolves

July 30th, 2026
Alex Mooney rounds third after hitting a solo homer.
Alex Mooney rounds third after hitting a solo homer.Hayden Gazda

RubberDucks Game Recap | Box Score

Erie SeaWolves (20-9, 56-41) 5, Akron RubberDucks (11-18, 46-51) 4

WP: Marco Jimenez (1-0) LP: Jay Driver (6-2) Save: Trevin Michael (5)

Summary

Alex Mooney homered as part of a two-hit night, but the Erie SeaWolves outlasted the Akron RubberDucks 5-4 on Wednesday night at UPMC Park.

Turning Point

After the RubberDucks tied the game in the top of the eighth, the SeaWolves once again took the lead in the bottom half. Josue Briceno opened the inning with a solo home run to put Erie on top 5-4.

Mound Presence

Josh Hartle was excellent again. The left-hander allowed just one run on two hits (all in the first inning) over six innings while striking out five. Carter Rustad allowed three runs over two-thirds of an inning. Jay Driver allowed a run over an inning and a third.

Duck Tales

Akron scored again in the first inning. Jaison Chourio doubled with one out before scoring two batters later on a single by Nolan Schubart. After Erie tied the game in the bottom of the first, Akron would retake the lead in the seventh. Mooney opened the inning with an opposite field solo home run. Maick Collado followed with a single before coming around to score on Nick Mitchell’s RBI double. The SeaWolves answered with three in the bottom of the seventh, but Akron answered in the eighth. Dean Curley singled to start the inning, but after back-to-back strikeouts remained on first. Mooney tripled off the wall in center to score Curley with two outs to tie the game 4-4.

Notebook

Schubart’s first inning RBI single extended his 52 game on-base streak…Hartle has struck out five or more in each of the last four starts while allowing a combined three runs (24 strikeouts over 21.2 innings)..Mooney’s two-hit, two-RBI night gives him 14 hits and six RBI since the All-Star break…Game Time: 2:18…Attendance: 2,470.

On the Pond

The RubberDucks will continue their series at UPMC Park against the Erie SeaWolves on Thursday, July 30 at 6:05 p.m. Akron left-hander Rafe Schlesinger (1-3, 6.06 ERA) will face Erie right-hander Hayden Minton (0-0, 2.28 ERA). The game broadcast is on 640 WHLO, the 640 WHLO iHeartRadio channel, and akronrubberducks.com, and available on Bally Live. Tickets for RubberDucks home games are available at akronrubberducks.com/tickets.