The Rochester Red Wings (90-58, 45-30) punched their ticket to the postseason in emphatic fashion Sunday afternoon, erasing an early four-run deficit and launching eight home runs and 19 total hits en route to a 15-8 victory over the Buffalo Bisons (33-39, 68-79) in the regular-season finale. The win clinched Rochester’s first postseason berth since 2013 and gave the Red Wings 90 victories in a season for the first time since 1953. After falling behind 5-1 through four innings, Rochester exploded for 11 runs over the next three frames, including five-run outbursts in both the fifth and seventh. The Red Wings’ eight home runs marked their most in a single game since at least 2002, led by RF Leandro Pineda and CF Andrew Pinckney, who each went deep twice, while 1B Liover Peguero, SS Seaver King, DH Maxwell Romero Jr., and C Riley Adams also homered in the historic win.
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Buffalo broke through in the bottom of the second after SS Jay Harry worked a leadoff walk. Following a strikeout, 1B Peyton Williams reached on a throwing error to put two aboard, and LF Anthony Santander drew a two-out walk to load the bases. DH Rhylan Thomas then lined a two-run single into right-center field to give the Bisons a 2-0 lead. After Thomas stole second and CF Daz Cameron walked to reload the bases, RF Yohendrick Piñango worked a bases-loaded walk to bring home Santander and extend Buffalo’s advantage to 3-0.
After the first batter of the fourth inning was retired, Leandro Pineda jumped on a 1-2 offering and launched a solo home run to right-center field, putting Rochester on the board and trimming Buffalo’s lead to 3-1. The long ball extended his on-base streak to 37 games to finish the season and brought the Red Wings within two.
Buffalo quickly responded in the bottom half of the fourth. Santander opened the frame with a walk, and after the next two hitters were retired, Yohendrick Piñango stepped to the plate with two outs. The Bisons right fielder connected on a 2-1 pitch and sent a two-run home run over the wall in right field, restoring Buffalo’s four-run advantage at 5-1.
Rochester chipped away again in the top of the fifth when Liover Peguero led off the inning and connected on a 2-0 pitch, sending a solo home run over the left-field wall to cut the deficit to 5-2. Seaver King followed the homer with a single through the left side, and 2B Trey Lipscomb doubled to left field to put a pair of runners in scoring position with nobody out. With that two-bagger, he became the first Red Wing with 30 homers and 30 doubles in a season since 1949.
Rochester’s offense erupted for five runs in the top of the fifth to erase a four-run deficit and take its first lead of the afternoon. Peguero started the rally by launching a solo home run to left field on a 2-0 pitch, cutting the deficit to 5-2. King followed with a single, and Lipscomb doubled to left to put a pair of runners in scoring position. Wallace brought King home on a groundout to make it 5-3 before Pineda stepped in with two outs and launched his second home run of the afternoon, a two-run shot to right field that scored Lipscomb and tied the game at 5-5. Andrew Pinckney then went back-to-back with Pineda, driving a 0-1 pitch over the wall in right-center field to complete the comeback and give Rochester a 6-5 lead.
Rochester added to its lead in unusual fashion in the top of the sixth. With one out, Seaver King drove an 0-2 pitch into shallow center field and raced all the way around the bases for an inside-the-park home run, extending the Red Wings’ advantage to 7-5. He is the first Red Wing to log an inside-the-park homer since Ryan McGuire on August 2, 2003 at Ottawa.
The Red Wings broke the game open with another five-run outburst in the top of the seventh. C Riley Adams led off with a double to left-center field before Pineda singled to put runners on the corners. Pinckney followed by launching his second home run of the afternoon, a three-run shot to left field that stretched Rochester’s lead to 10-5. LF Sam Petersen kept the inning alive with a single before DH Maxwell Romero Jr. connected on a 1-2 pitch for a two-run homer to right field, giving the Red Wings a 12-5 advantage.
Buffalo got one run back in the ensuing half inning when Piñango connected on a 3-2 pitch for his second home run of the afternoon, a solo shot to right field that cut Rochester’s lead to 12-6.
With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, DH Rhylan Thomas and CF Daz Cameron recorded back-to-back singles before RF Yohendrick Piñango worked a walk to load the bases. 2B Josh Kasevich followed with another free pass, forcing home Thomas and cutting Rochester’s lead to 12-7.
Rochester came to the plate one final time in the ninth with a five-run lead intact. Trey Lipscomb started the two-out rally with a double to center field before Wallace reached on a throwing error, allowing Lipscomb to score and extending the lead to 13-7. After Wallace stole second base, Riley Adams put an exclamation point on the afternoon by launching a two-run home run to left field on a 2-2 pitch, the Red Wings’ eighth homer of the game, to push the lead to 15-7.
Buffalo plated the final run of the afternoon in the bottom of the ninth when 3B Josh Rivera led off the inning with a solo home run to left-center field. Rochester pitching responded by retiring the next three batters in order, including a strikeout to end the game and secure Rochester’s 15-8 victory and its first postseason berth since 2013.
LHP Connelly Early made his second rehab start with Rochester and worked 1.2 innings, allowing two unearned runs on no hits and two walks while striking out two. RHP Paxton Schultz followed and allowed one run on one hit and three walks without recording an out. RHP Jack Cebert came on to escape the second-inning jam and worked 2.1 scoreless innings, allowing one hit while striking out three. RHP Erick Mejia tossed a scoreless fifth with a pair of strikeouts, before RHP Eddy Yean followed with a perfect sixth inning that included one strikeout. RHP Clayton Beeter worked the seventh, allowing one run on one hit and one walk while striking out two. RHP Justin Lawrence followed and recorded two outs, allowing one run on two hits and two walks while striking out one before giving way to RHP Kyle Nicolas. He came on with the bases loaded in the eighth and struck out the only batter he faced to escape the jam and earn his eighth hold of the season. RHP Gus Varland handled the ninth, allowing one run on one hit while striking out one to close out Rochester’s 15-8 victory.
The Red Wings Player of the Game in the finale is RF Leandro Pineda, who helped power Rochester’s historic offensive performance with a multi-homer afternoon. Pineda launched a solo home run in the fourth inning to put the Red Wings on the board, then delivered a game-tying two-run shot as part of Rochester’s five-run fifth-inning comeback. He added a single and a double later in the contest, finishing 4-for-5 with two home runs, a double, three RBI, and three runs scored. It marks his fourth career multi-homer game, all in 2026, and third with Rochester.
With the win, Rochester advances to the International League Championship Series against the Memphis Redbirds. The best-of-three series will begin Tuesday night at AutoZone Park in Memphis, Tennessee, with the winner advancing to the Triple-A National Championship Game. The first pitch of game one is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. ET.
Find the box score attached HERE.
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