Late Home Run Proves Costly For Saints In 5-4 Loss To Sounds
ST. PAUL, MN (April 2, 2024) - The St. Paul Saints were feeling good for most of the game on Tuesday night at First Horizon Park. Starter Simeon Woods Richardson was magnificent in his 5.0 innings of work, the Saints built a 4-0 lead, but a three-run homer in the
ST. PAUL, MN (April 2, 2024) - The St. Paul Saints were feeling good for most of the game on Tuesday night at First Horizon Park. Starter Simeon Woods Richardson was magnificent in his 5.0 innings of work, the Saints built a 4-0 lead, but a three-run homer in the eighth inning to a guy that had nine in 626 games was the difference in a 5-4 loss to the Nashville Sounds. The loss drops the Saints to 2-1 on the season.
After pitching a scoreless seventh inning, reliever Hobie Harris ran into trouble in the eighth. With the Saints leading 4-2 the Sounds took their first lead of the game courtesy of a long ball. Hicklen led off with a single to center. With one out, Patrick Dorrian walked. On a 3-0 pitch to Hernández, he golfed one just inside the pole in right for a three-run homer, his first of the season and just the 10th of his career in 2107 Minor League at bats, giving the Sounds a 5-4 lead.
In his first start of the season, Simeon Woods Richardson was on his game. After getting out of a first and second, two out jam in the first, he retired seven straight batters from the end of the first through third.
In the fourth, Woods Richardson allowed a leadoff single, but quickly erased that with a double play ground out off the bat of Owen Miller.
The biggest trouble Woods Richardson had, came in the fifth. After back-to-back strikeouts to start the inning, he hit Hernández, gave up a single to right to Nick Kahle, and walked Vinny Capra to load the bases. Woods Richardson, however finished his night by getting Joey Weimer to ground out to end the inning. Woods Richardson went 5.0 scoreless innings allowing three hits while walking two and striking out four. He threw 73 pitches, 46 for strikes and his fastball averaged 93.0 mph.
With the game scoreless in the sixth, the Saints struck first. Will Holland led off with a walk. He stole second and scored on a single to left from Michael Helman making it 1-0. Jose Miranda followed with a single to left, putting runners at first and second. After an hour and 24-minute rain delay, the Saints came out swinging. Jair Camargo made it 2-0 with an RBI single into left. With one out, Anthony Prato was hit by a pitch to load the bases. DaShawn Keirsey Jr. gave the Saints a 3-0 lead with an RBI single to left. That was followed by a sacrifice fly from Alex Isola, increasing the lead to 4-0.
The Sounds cut the lead in half in the bottom of the inning off reliever Jordan Balazovic. Tyler Black led off the inning with a walk. With one out Brewer Hicklen doubled down the third base line putting runners at second and third. Chris Roller followed with a two-run single to center making it 4-2.
After scoring four runs in the sixth inning, the final 11 Saints were retired.
The same two teams meet in game two of a six-game series on Wednesday evening at 6:35 p.m. at First Horizon Park. The Saints send RHP Caleb Boushley (NR) to the mound against Sounds RHP Jason Junk (NR). The game game can be heard on KFAN Plus, 96.7 FM.