Red Wings Hold on For First Win of Second Half in Charlotte

In their 14th series opener and first game of the Triple-A second half, the Rochester Red Wings (1-0, 46-28) held off a furious comeback against the Charlotte Knights (0-1, 42-34), winning by a score of 10-9. The Red Wings jumped out to a 10-2 lead, which included a seven-run seventh inning. RF Andrew Pinckney launched a three-run homer to get the scoring started in the second, and both SS Seaver King and 1B Yohandy Morales drove in a pair of runs in the win.

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Rochester scored the first three runs of the series with a sequence of events that began with 3B Brady House sending a single to left field, followed by a C Harry Ford hit-by-pitch. Shortly after, Andrew Pinckney smashed his fifth home run in seven career games in Charlotte to put the Red Wings up 3-0.

The Knights responded two innings later as DH Nate Jones blasted a 315-foot homer to right field, making it 3-1 Red Wings. Charlotte cut the lead to one after an eventful sixth inning, beginning with a single to right field by RF Dustin Harris. Harris would go on to steal second, followed by DH Nolan Jones walking. Immediately after, the Red Wings defense was in a chase-down sequence that led to a throwing error, allowing Nolan Jones to advance closer to home. C Korey Lee sent a double to left field, allowing Jones to scamper home, making it 3-2 Rochester.

The Red Wings extended their lead in the seventh beginning with several shots to the outfield, the first being a single to center field by PR-C Riley Adams. Shortly after, LF Joey Wiemer had a single to center field of his own, sending Adams to second. CF Robert Hassell III followed this up with an RBI single to right field, allowing Adams to reach the plate and Wiemer to find third. After making it 4-2, Rochester was not done with its response after threatening with bases loaded via an Andrew Pinckney walk, sending Hassell III to second. An RBI groundout was all it took to make it 5-2 after 2B Trey Lipscomb sent a soft roller to third, allowing Wiemer to score in the process.

The Wings poured it on in the seventh after SS Seaver King smashed a line drive to right field, sending Hassell III and Pinckney home and Franklin to third. 1B Yohandy Morales joined the fun for Rochester after an RBI double to center field, sending Franklin and King home. Brady House added the exclamation point on the inning after an RBI single to left field, sending Morales home, making it 10-2 Red Wings in a dominant seventh inning.

Charlotte did not flinch in the ensuing half-inning and responded with four runs on four hits. SS Andy Webber kicked it off with an infield single, followed by 3B Jason Matthews walking. 2B Rikuu Nishida drove in an RBI single to center field, sending Webber home and Matthews to second. Dustin Harris offered an RBI single of his own to right field, allowing Matthews to reach home and Nishida to find third. Shortly after a pitching change, Nolan Jones continued his productive evening with an RBI double to center field, sending Nishida and Harris home to make it 10-6 Red Wings.

After a scoreless eighth inning, the Red Wings closed out their 46th win of the season despite a late scare from the Knights. After Jason Matthews walked, Dustin Harris logged an infield single, sending Matthews to second. Following a pitching change and an offensive substitution, PH Michael Turner sent a line drive to center field, setting up bases loaded for Charlotte. Rochester gained its 2nd out of the inning at the cost of another run as Nolan Jones popped out on a sacrifice fly to center field, sending Matthews home. Shortly after, Korey Lee would walk, creating another bases-loaded opportunity for the Knights. Following a mound visit, LF Caden Connor shot an RBI single to right field, allowing both Harris and Turner to score, making it 10-9 Red Wings. Rochester got out of trouble at last following a ground-out, and secured their first win of the second half of the season.

Southpaw Zach Penrod started the series for Rochester in Charlotte. The former Los Angeles Dodger allowed no runs and one hit while logging one strikeout in 1.0 inning of work. RHP Luis Perales replaced Penrod in the second inning. In 5.1 innings, he allowed four runs on seven hits while logging three strikeouts and two walks on 24 batters faced. RHP Andre Granillo came in to pitch late in the seventh. The former St. Louis Cardinal allowed no runs, one hit, and threw one strikeout in 0.2 of an inning. RHP Zak Kent replaced Granillo in the eighth. The former Texas Ranger allowed one hit and threw one strikeout on six batters faced. RHP Luke Young replaced Kent to save and seal the win for Rochester in the ninth. The former Salt River Rafter produced the first Triple-A save of his career while logging the final two outs of the ballgame.

The Rochester Red Wings Player of the Game is RF Andrew Pinckney. The 102nd pick in the 2023 draft created the spark that lit the fire that was the Red Wings' offensive field day with his 10th homer of the season in the second inning. The 25-year-old from Alabama now has 38 RBI on the season.

Rochester will continue their road series in Charlotte tomorrow, with the first pitch set at 7:04 P.M. RHP Chandler Champlain will take the ball for the Red Wings against Knights RHP Mason Adams.

Find the box score attached HERE.

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