Ralphy Shines in Battle of Top Prospects

COLUMBUS, OH - On a gorgeous Tuesday evening in the Arena District, the Columbus Clippers knocked off the visiting Toledo Mud Hens, 6-4. The Clippers scored four times in the first two innings on the way to taking the opening game of this week's series against their in-state rivals from Toledo.

Over 10,000 fans packed Huntington Park for Tansky Tuesday Dime-A-Dog Night to see Cleveland's number one prospect Ralphy Velazquez square off against Detroit's number one prospect, outfielder Max Clark.

It was Velazquez's night to shine, starting when the first baseman demolished a 1st inning fastball off of the light tower above the videoboard to give Columbus a quick 3-0 advantage. It was Ralphy's fifth homer since being promoted to Columbus from Double-A earlier this season.

Wrecked by Ralphy #ClipShow pic.twitter.com/ra30ShxQOz

— Columbus Clippers (@CLBClippers) July 28, 2026

Velazquez added a double later to finish the night 2-for-4 with 3 RBI. Fittingly, he would make the game's final out with a diving stop on a ground ball to seal the victory and queue the Clipp Clap.

Toledo got one back in the top of the 2nd, but in the bottom of the frame Kody Huff reestablished the three-run lead with a solo jack, his career-best 15th home run this season.

Kahlil Watson drove one in with a sacrifice fly in the 7th, and Alfonsin Rosario singled in another in the 8th for his first career RBI at the Triple-A level.

Lefty Steven Perez was the winning pitcher for the Clippers, after allowing one run with one strikeout over 1.2 innings of relief work. Righty Codi Heuer finished things off in the 9th for his 6th save of the year.

Columbus now has an overall record of 53-49, while Toledo drops to 50-52.

The Clippers and Mud Hens continue the series on $5 Wednesday! You can be there to see two of the game's top prospects battle for just five bucks! Get Clippers tickets with lower online fees than ever at ClippersBaseball.com.