Memphis wasted no time putting Rochester in a hole and never let up, rolling to a 15-4 win to force a winner-takes-all Game Three.
The Redbirds did all of their damage in just three innings, with the big blow coming in a nine-run third that blew the game open. Rochester’s pitching never found a way to stop the surge, and Isaac Lyon took the worst of it. He was charged with eight runs, five earned, on six hits, including a home run, plus a walk over 2 1/3 innings in the loss.
Jared Simpson didn’t provide much relief. He retired only one of the six batters he faced and allowed both inherited runners to score, then Paxton Schultz also let two more cross in the fourth. After Ben Grable worked a needed inning, Andry Lara cleaned things up by finishing with three scoreless innings.
Rochester didn’t get on the board until the eighth, when Cayden Wallace drew a bases-loaded walk to break up the shutout. Two batters later, Leandro Pineda drove in two runs with his second single of the night. Cortland Lawson added the final run with a two-out single in the ninth while serving as Seaver King’s defensive replacement, as the Red Wings emptied the bench for the final three innings.
On the Memphis side, Pineda went 2-for-4 with two RBI, and Lawson finished 1-for-2 with an RBI.
Neither club has officially announced tonight’s starter, though both have stuck to the same patterns they’ve used all along: Memphis with its regular-season rotation, Rochester with its usual usage. The roster shuffle also included Jackson Kent being optioned from Washington, Gus Varland being recalled to Washington, and Kyle Hayes being activated from the Development List.
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Ortiz still has the kind of upside that can keep him in the conversation, but his hold on a regular role is not secure. Chaparro has pushed his way forward with a strong second half, while Morales has kept himself in the discussion after showing real pop in the minors and flashing it in a brief big league look, even if the consistency has yet to match the tools. [Read more 🡒]