Rochester, NY- The Toledo Mud Hens (33-38) defeated the Rochester Red Wings (43-27) 10-6, on Thursday, June 18, at ESL Ballpark. The wind was whipping in New York all afternoon, forcing both teams to battle 20mph gusts through nine.
Following a game two loss, the Hens had to come out swinging if they wanted to reclaim the series advantage. It took Toledo two innings to get its offense going but starter on the mound, Sawyer Gipson-Long, wasted no time on defense. The righty pitched a leadoff strikeout to set the tone and another to close the first.
Two-out batter, Jace Jung, sent a long shot over the fences for his 12th home run of the year, putting Toledo on the board (1-0). Gipson-Long walked two consecutive as the door cracked open for Rochester, but the Hens infield closed it before the Redwings could capitalize.
Max Clark scorched a base hit to center field then advanced to second on a balk. Clark gets to third on Max Anderson’s high fly ball. With two men gone, Ben Malgeri shot a single to the right that dropped in for the second run of the game (2-0).
Two pitches were enough to land Red Wings on the corners at the bottom of three. A hint of luck for Toledo appeared when Rochester gave themselves an out, as a batted ball hit a runner as he was heading to second. Their first run came in from a ground ball soon after. (2-1)
Tides turned in the fourth when Rochester’s infield held Toledo at scoreless for the first time since the opening inning. The Red Wings took the lead on a sharp ground ball double that slipped past the glove of Malgeri. (2-3)
The opponent stayed ahead as both teams were sent away hitless through the next two. Gipson-Long retired after 5.2-innings and 7 strikeouts; Ricky Vanasco stepped in to relieve him.
The Hens regained control in the seventh following Jung’s popped double. A series of pitching mistakes loaded the bases and walked in a pair of runs (4-3). Anderson and Workman both sacrificed for two more with one out still to go (6-3). A third bases-loaded walk of the inning added run seven (7-3) before the third man got put away.
Base runners, Clark and Navigato, each went for a steal in the eighth, two throwing errors in one play advanced both runners home, pulling further ahead late in the game (9-3). Rochester added a solo homer in the bottom. (9-4)
The Hens had the bases loaded in the ninth, allowing run 10 to come in off the sacrifice of Andrew Navigato. (10-4)
Three straight singles began a late game rally, adding a run with no outs. (10-5) Relief pitcher, Nick Sandlin, punched two out on six pitches, then got swapped out for Konnor Pilkington for the last. The Red Wings added a sixth run before the game ended but couldn’t catch the Hens
Game four at Rochester is set for Friday, June 19, at 6:45p.m. where Toledo looks to add another win to its record.
Notables
J. Jung – 2/3, 3R, HR, 2RBI, 2BB
M. Clark – 2/5, 3R, RBI, BB
A. Navigato – 1/3, 2R, 2RBI, BB