MOOSIC, PA (July 7, 2019) - Using a furious comeback in the bottom of the fifth inning of game two, The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders split a Sunday twin-bill against the Rochester Red Wings winning the pair of games 6-3 and 7-4.
MOOSIC, PA (July 7, 2019) - Using a furious comeback in the bottom of the fifth inning of game two, The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders split a Sunday twin-bill against the Rochester Red Wings winning the pair of games 6-3 and 7-4.
In the bottom of the fourth inning of the second game, the RailRiders were trailing 4-0. Billy Burns walked and Tyler Wade was hit by a pitch to put runners at first and second base with one out. The next batter up was Kyle Higashioka, who doubled to left-centerfield, plating Burns from second and pushing Wade to third base. Ryan McBroom followed with a sac fly to drive in Wade and halve the deficit to 4-2.
Still trailing 4-2 entering the bottom of the fifth, Erik Kratz and Zack Zehner reached on singles and Wendell Rijo was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. Following a pop out, Estrada doubled to left-center off the glove of a diving Jimmy Kerrigan, Rochester's centerfielder, bringing home a pair of runs to tie the game. On the play, Rijo- who began the play at first base- was thrown out at the plate so Estrada stood alone on the bases as Wade followed with a double for a 5-4 RailRiders lead. Higashioka hit Scranton/Wilkes-Barre's third-straight two-base hit to plate Wade and extend that advantage.
The scoring in game two was capped by a Trey Amburgey home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to make it 7-4. The homer was No. 15 on the season for him, leaving him one homer shy of his career-high which he set last year with the Trenton Thunder.
In game one, Thairo Estrada homered in the bottom half of the first, giving Scranton/Wilkes-Barre a 1-0 lead.
Rochester answered in a hurry when Jaylin Davis plated a two-run homer for Rochester in the top of the second to temporarily the Red Wings on top 2-1. McBroom countered with a home run for the RailRiders to lead off the home half of the inning, knotting the game 2-2. Later in the frame, Rijo delivered an RBI single up the middle, pushing Scranton/Wilkes-Barre back in front for good 3-2.
The RailRiders kept the momentum going in the bottom of the third with a three-run homer by Zehner to extend the advantage to 6-2. It was Zehner's third home run of the year for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and second since coming back from Trenton last week.
In the top of the fifth, former RailRider and New York Yankee Ronald Torreyes tripled and scored to cut the deficit by one.
Raynel Espinal (5-7) made the start for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and pitched five innings with five strikeouts for the win. David Sosebee worked the final two innings and recorded five strikeouts over nine batters faced for his fifth save of the year. Former RailRider Drew Hutchison (6-5) took the loss after allowing all six runs over five innings.
The Red Wings got to Stephen Tarpley in the second game of the doubleheader with four early runs. Rochester plated a run in the top of the first inning for the early lead. Brent Rooker, a Triple-A All-Star for the Wings, hit a 2-1 pitch off Tarpley over the right-center field wall for a 1-0 lead. The Red Wings extended their lead in the second when Jimmy Kerrigan nailed a three-run home run off of the right field foul pole to extend the visitor's lead to 4-0.
The bullpen was strong the rest of the game in back of Tarpley, with Will Carter earning the win with three dazzling innings in his Triple-A debut. Jonathan Holder and Joe Harvey each tossed scoreless innings to secure the win after the late flurry of runs. Ryan Eades (3-3) took the loss for the Red Wings in game two.
The RailRiders are idle for the Triple-A All-Star break until resuming play in Syracuse on Thursday. They return home Monday, July 15, to face off against the Columbus Clippers. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
