Bats Bid Farewell In Home Finale With 6-4 Victory
The Louisville Bats concluded their 2026 home campaign with a 6-4 win over the Columbus Clippers in front of 4,863 fans in attendance on Sunday afternoon at Louisville Slugger Field. Ben Wereski (W, 3-2) made his eighth start of the season since joining the Bats and his second of the
The Louisville Bats concluded their 2026 home campaign with a 6-4 win over the Columbus Clippers in front of 4,863 fans in attendance on Sunday afternoon at Louisville Slugger Field.
Ben Wereski (W, 3-2) made his eighth start of the season since joining the Bats and his second of the series. He controlled the game’s terms from the outset, allowing a lone single and walk to reach across the first two innings, before striking out the side in the third.
The Bats offense supported Wereski’s efforts with two early runs. In the second, Francisco Urbaez notched his 26th double of the season and quickly scored on P.J. Higgins’ RBI single.
An inning later, Garrett Hampson doubled for the 15th time on the campaign, scoring on Orlando Arcia’s two-out RBI single and giving Louisville a 2-0 lead.
Columbus got a run back in the fourth on Kody Huff’s solo home run, only the second hit of the game for the Clippers.
Before departing after five innings, Wereski struck out the side for the second time in the game in the fifth, reaching a new personal best in strikeouts as a member of the Bats. He exited on the winning side of the ledger with eight strikeouts, a walk, two hits, and one run allowed.
Will Benson opened the home half of the fifth with a walk, advancing to third on a Dominic Pitelli single and a deep fly out. At the plate again for a two-out run-scoring opportunity, Arcia could not deliver to extend the Louisville lead, still holding at 2-1.
Jared Lyons pitched a scoreless inning out of the bullpen in the sixth, despite allowing a leadoff walk. A 3-6-3 double play turned by the Bats defense and a strikeout quelled the threat.
In the next half-inning, Urbaez proved it’s never too late to hit your first long ball at home, striking his seventh homer of the season and first at Louisville Slugger Field.
Four batters later and after two Bats reached the hard way, getting hit by pitches, Dominic Pitelli made it a 6-1 game on a two-RBI single, capping a four-run inning.
The Clippers got two runs closer in the top of the seventh, benefiting from Huff’s second homer of the afternoon and a Blake Perkins double that later scored on Milan Tolentino’s RBI single.
Zach Maxwell entered in the eighth for his 39th Triple-A appearance of the season. A two-out hit scored an earlier double, reducing the Bats lead to 6-4.
Following a second straight 1-2-3 inning from the Louisville offense, Hunter Parks entered the game in the top of the ninth seeking his 10th save of the season. The game-tying run reached base after a fielding error by Hampson at second and a one-out single. Parks struck out the next batter, and Hampson redeemed himself with an excellent defensive play to end the game.
The Bats victory sealed their first five-win series of the season. Arcia led the team in hits with his 3-for-4 performance, while Urbaez delivered the team’s singular home run in a 2-for-4, two-RBI effort. Pitelli’s two-run single in the sixth stood as the game-winning hit.
The Bats (64-78, 25-44 2nd half) travel to Toledo for their final series of the season against the Toledo Mud Hens on Tuesday evening. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. at Fifth Third Field. Nick Curran will be on the call for Sports Talk 790AM.