COLUMBUS, OH - It was a magical evening at Huntington Park as the Columbus Clippers knocked off the Toledo Mud Hens, 9-4. On "Harry Potter Night", the Clippers donned Hogwarts-themed jerseys while casting a spell on their in-state rivals.
With a man on and two outs in the bottom of the 1st, Kahlil Watson got a juicy 88 mph fastball from Toledo's Lael Lockhart and deposited it into the bleachers in left field for his 13th home run of the season.
Then in the 3rd, Daniel Schneemann crushed a no-doubt three-run blast that landed on Nationwide Blvd., nearly hitting a passing Columbus Police cruiser.
Schneemann scored the next Clippers run in the 5th inning on a sacrifice fly by Ralphy Velazquez, using some wizardry to sneak past the Toledo catcher and make it 6-1.
The Mud Hens crept to within two by the 8th inning, but in their last at-bat, the Clippers got back-to-back jacks from Kody Huff (his career-best 16th homer) and Alfonsin Rosario (his first career Triple-A homer).
Right-hander Yorman Gomez (1-2) picked up his first career Triple-A win, allowing just one run over 5.1 innings with four strikeouts.
With four straight wins over the Hens, Columbus now has an overall record of 56-49, while Toledo drops to 50-55.
The Clippers and Mud Hens continue the series on Saturday night at Huntington Park, with a special game that includes a fireworks show immediately following the game. First pitch is set for 7:05pm. Get Clippers tickets with lower online fees than ever at ClippersBaseball.com.
