Red Wings Slug Their Way To Series Opening Win Against Buffalo

The Rochester Red Wings beat the Buffalo Bisons in their series finale Tuesday night, 7-5, after a one-hour and 40-minute rain delay. LF James Wood connected on three hits to extend his on-base streak to 20 games and hit streak to 10, while 2B Darren Baker turned in three hits of his own for his 10th multi-hit performance of the season. RHP Adonis Medina turned in his fourth consecutive scoreless outing in relief, and RHP Nash Walters made his Red Wing debut.

After two scoreless innings, the Red Wings kicked off the scoring in the bottom of the third. SS Jack Dunn cranked a 360-foot home run into the visitor's bullpen in left field to give Rochester an early 1-0 lead. This was his fourth homer of the season, just two off his career-high set in 2023 with Rochester and Double-A Harrisburg.

Buffalo responded in the top of the fourth, led off by a walk to DH Addison Barger. He advanced to second on a C Brian Servan single, and 3B Damiano Palmegiani followed with a single of his own to load the bases. Two batters later, SS Leo Jimenez ripped a hit to right field that scored Barger and tied the game at one. With bases still loaded, 1B Spencer Horwitz notched a hit of his own that scored both Servan and Palmegiano, giving Buffalo a 3-1 lead.

The Wings answered immediately with a James Wood single to center field in the following half-inning. 1B Joey Gallo then worked a walk to put two runners on with no outs. Two batters later, C Drew Millas loaded the bases with a ground ball single to left field. 3B Carter Kieboom reached on a fielding error that allowed Wood and Gallo to score and tie the contest at three.

Rochester reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the fifth, led off by a line drive double to center field from Darren Baker, his second hit of the game. After CF Alex Call worked a walk, Wood drove a single to left field, which scored Baker from second base to give the Wings a 4-3 after five innings of play.

The Wings added to their lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. A double from DH Juan Yepez and a walk from Jack Dunn set up Rochester with runners on first and second with two outs. A 365-foot triple off the bat of Alex Call in the next at-bat scored both Yepez and Dunn to extend the Wings’ lead to 6-3.

The Bisons cut into the lead in the top of the seventh when Addison Barger connected on his fourth home run of the season, a solo shot into right-center field. Wings pitching escaped the remainder of the inning unscathed, keeping the score at 6-4 heading to the bottom of the seventh.

With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, Darren Baker roped a single into left field and followed it up with his second stolen base of the night. The next at-bat, Alex Call, worked a walk to put two runners on for James Wood. The Nationals No. 1 Prospect laced his third single of the night to score Baker, adding to their lead 7-4.

The Bisons made an effort in the top of the ninth, trying to cut into their three-run deficit led off by a single to right field off the bat of Spencer Horwitz. Two batters later, 2B Orevlis Martinez worked a walk, putting runners on first and second. Brian Servan then roped a two-out single to right field that scored Horwitz and cut their deficit to two runs. The rally ended there, and Rochester secured a 7-5 series-opening victory.

RHP Robert Gsellman took the mound for his third start (10th appearance) of the season and turned in 3.0-plus innings, allowing three earned runs on four hits while striking out three and walking two. Adonis Medina inherited a bases-loaded no-out situation in the fourth and turned in a scoreless 2.0 innings, allowing three hits while striking out two. This is his fourth consecutive scoreless outing, the longest active streak on the team. Nash Walters entered to begin the sixth, making his Red Wings debut. The Milwaukee Brewers' 2015 third-round pick allowed one hit across 0.2 innings and gave the ball to LHP Joe La Sorsa to finish the inning. The southpaw completed 1.0 full inning and allowed one earned on one hit while striking out two. RHP Amos Willingham entered next and turned in 1.1 hitless innings of his own with a pair of strikeouts. RHP Rico Garcia entered for the ninth and allowed one earned on two hits with a walk and a strikeout en route to his team-leading fourth save of the season.

Tuesday night’s Diamond Pro Player of the Game goes to LF James Wood. The IMG Academy product turned in a three-hit game, going 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored. He now carries a 20-game on-base streak and a 10-game hitting streak, both of which are the longest respective streaks by a Red Wing this season. Additionally, his 50 total hits this season are the most in the International League.

Rochester looks to jump out to a 2-0 series lead Wednesday night at Innovative Field. RHP Thaddeus Ward takes the ball for the Red Wings against Bisons RHP Chad Dallas. First pitch is slated for 6:05 p.m.

Find the box score attached here.