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White Sox Minor League Update: May 26, 2021

A walk-off wild pitch for the Dash highlights a 1-3 day on the farm

By Joe Resis
Getting it done on both sides: Gavin Sheets reached base twice, drove in a run, and he made an excellent defensive play.
@laurawolffphoto/Twitter

The Knights kept it close for a while, but the Tides pulled away late, as Charlotte lost by a score of 9-2.

The game got off to a promising start, as quite a few notable names contributed to the first run of the game. In the top of the first, Adam Engel led off with a single, and Jake Burger walked to put runners on first and second. After Engel stole third, Gavin Sheets singled him home to put the Knights ahead. The Knights lead did not last long, however, as Tides first baseman Tyler Nevin homered in the bottom of the first to tie it. Fortunately, that was the only run that Knights starter Jimmy Lambert allowed in three innings.

The score remained 1-1 until the fourth, when Marco Hernández drove in Brian Goodwin with a single. That was as good as the situation would get for the Knights, though. The Tides scored eight unanswered, as it was a rough day for Charlotte’s bullpen. Lefthander Tanner Banks got the loss, allowing four runs (all earned) in two innings. A two-run triple by Mason McCoy in the bottom of the fourth turned out to be the decisive hit.

Will Carter also struggled out of the bullpen, as he allowed four earned runs to put the game out of reach. On the bright side, Kodi Medeiros and Zack Burdi pitched well. In addition, the Knights got multi-hit games from Hernández, Engel, and Goodwin. Also, the Knights benefited from this web gem from Sheets.

Poll

Who was the Knights MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 37%
    Adam Engel: 2-for-4, R, fielding error
    (35 votes)
  • 1%
    Brian Goodwin: 2-for-4, R
    (1 vote)
  • 32%
    Marco Hernández: 3-for-4, RBI
    (30 votes)
  • 22%
    Gavin Sheets: 1-for-2, BB, RBI
    (21 votes)
  • 6%
    Zack Burdi: 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K
    (6 votes)
93 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Knights Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 8%
    Tanner Banks: 2 IP, 4 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 1 K
    (7 votes)
  • 52%
    Will Carter: 2⁄3 IP, 4 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 0 K
    (45 votes)
  • 38%
    Blake Rutherford: 0-for-5, 3 K
    (33 votes)
85 votes total Vote Now

Scoring was hard to come by in this matchup, and one run was enough for the Trash Pandas to come out with the victory.

After a scoreless top of the first inning, Rocket City wasted no time getting on the board in the bottom half, as left fielder Orlando Martinez launched a solo home run to lead things off.

Fortunately, Barons starter Kade McClure recovered quickly after the leadoff home run, striking out the next three he faced. McClure only allowed four hits in five innings, and he struck out nine while only issuing one walk. However, the offense just did not have it tonight.

As strong as McClure was, the Trash Pandas’ Kyle Tyler was even better, pitching six shutout innings. The Barons only managed two hits throughout this game; Zack Granite had one, Ti’Quan Forbes the other. The Barons also struck out 14 times and only drew two walks. Things will get better for the offense, but it is a shame to see such a great pitching performance go for waste. Much credit to Rocket City’s pitching staff for protecting a one-run lead nearly the entire game.

Poll

Who was the Barons MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 96%
    Kade McClure: 5 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 9 K, throwing error
    (64 votes)
  • 0%
    J.B. Olson: 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 BB, 3 K
    (0 votes)
  • 0%
    Ti’Quan Forbes: 1-for-4, 2B
    (0 votes)
  • 3%
    Zack Granite: 1-for-4
    (2 votes)
66 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Barons Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 79%
    Romy González: 0-for-4, 3 K
    (50 votes)
  • 19%
    Micker Adolfo: 0-for-4, 2 K
    (12 votes)
  • 1%
    Jameson Fisher: 0-for-3, 2 K
    (1 vote)
63 votes total Vote Now

This was another game where it looked like an excellent start might go to waste. However, due to some ninth-inning heroics, that was not the case, as the Dash won a thriller.

After a brilliant first three innings on the mound, Dash starter Davis Martin finally hit a speed bump in the top of the fourth. After a leadoff single, Kellen Strahm hit a two-run homer to give the Crawdads an early 2-0 lead. At that point, the Dash had gone nine up, nine down, so a comeback seemed like a tall order.

Fortunately, the offense came alive in the fifth. Luis Mieses doubled, and with two outs, Duke Ellis drove him in with a single to cut the deficit in half.

Strahm and the Crawdads went right back to business in the sixth, as they added an insurance run. Strahm drove in his third run of the game with an RBI single to score José Acosta. Then, after a hit by pitch and a walk, the bases were loaded with only one out. But reliever Declan Cronin got out of the jam without allowing any more insurance runs to score. After a strikeout, Cronin ended the inning with a grounder to first.

The score remained 3-1 until the bottom of the ninth, when the Dash roared back into the game. Harvin Mendoza led off with a single, and Henri Lartigue walked, as the Dash set themselves up for a big inning. Yolbert Sánchez followed with a bunt that surprisingly worked out extraordinarily well. Everyone was safe on the play, and the bases were loaded with no outs. Then, Lenyn Sosa tied it with a two-run single to left. Sosa’s single also allowed Sánchez to advance to third as the potential winning run.

Alex Destino drew an intentional walk to load the bases. The Dash had to wait a bit before celebrating, as Luis Curbelo struck out, but a wild pitch allowed Sánchez to score. As a result of the thrilling bottom of the ninth, the Dash got back up to .500 (10-10).

Poll

Who was the Dash MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 75%
    Davis Martin: 5 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 0 BB, 10 K
    (41 votes)
  • 5%
    Sal Biasi: 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 4 K
    (3 votes)
  • 12%
    Lenyn Sosa: 1-for-4, 2 RBI
    (7 votes)
  • 3%
    Luis Mieses: 1-for-3, 2B
    (2 votes)
  • 1%
    Duke Ellis: 1-for-3, RBI
    (1 vote)
54 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Dash Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 8%
    Declan Cronin: 1 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 2 K
    (4 votes)
  • 87%
    Luis Curbelo: 0-for-4, 2 K
    (43 votes)
  • 4%
    Lazaro Leal: 0-for-3, K
    (2 votes)
49 votes total Vote Now

The 2021 season has not been a walk in the park for the Cannon Ballers. Just as they appear to have momentum, something typically happens that turns things around. Tonight was no exception, and as a result, the Cannon Ballers will have to wait at least another day for their third victory.

Coming off a 23-7 loss to the Mudcats, the Cannon Ballers picked up right where they left off. Carolina jumped out to an early 2-0 lead when Ernesto Martinez homered in the bottom of the first. The teams traded solo homers in the second, with Lency Delgado tallying the Kanny homer. That was Delgado’s first of the year, and it trimmed the deficit in half, but Darrien Miller went deep in the bottom half to make it 3-1.

After the Mudcats got a couple of insurance runs against starter Angel Acevedo and reliever Dilmer Mejía, they had a commanding 6-1 lead. Kannapolis got one run back in the fifth due to a rally with two outs and nobody on base. Tyler Osik drew a walk, and José Rodriguez double him over to third. The Cannon Ballers used some #WildPitchOffense, so Osik scored, and it was a 6-2 game.

Kannapolis made the game quite interesting in the top of the seventh. James Beard got the big inning started with a leadoff triple, and Osik drove him in with a single. Brandon Bossard drew a walk, and Bryan Ramos launched a towering fly ball that cleared the center field fence. That was the first home run of the season for Ramos. He could have hardly picked a better time for it, as the homer tied the game 6-6.

Unfortunately, the good times were short-lived. Carolina went put up a big, crooked number on the board in the bottom half to put the game out of reach yet again. Daniel Castillo doubled home the go-ahead run to make it 7-6, and after that, the wheels fell off. Reliever Corey Stone threw a wild pitch, hit a batter, and his outing ended after three consecutive walks. The last walk put Carolina up by three, and they picked up a pair more on a two-run double.

Poll

Who was the Cannon Ballers MVP?

This poll is closed

  • 22%
    Tyler Osik: 2-for-3, 2 BB, RBI
    (11 votes)
  • 4%
    Bryan Ramos: 1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
    (2 votes)
  • 6%
    James Beard: 2-for-4, 3B
    (3 votes)
  • 68%
    Lency Delgado: 3-for-4, HR
    (34 votes)
  • 0%
    Brandon Jenkins: 1 1⁄3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 BB, 2 K
    (0 votes)
50 votes total Vote Now

Poll

Who was the Cannon Ballers Cold Cat?

This poll is closed

  • 57%
    Corey Stone: 0 IP, 4 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 0 K
    (27 votes)
  • 29%
    Angel Acevedo: 2 2⁄3 IP, 5 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 3 K
    (14 votes)
  • 12%
    DJ Gladney: 0-for-5, 3 K
    (6 votes)
47 votes total Vote Now

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