Buffalo made quick work of Rochester on Saturday, rolling to a 7-1 win that snapped the Red Wings’ two-game winning streak.
The game turned in the third inning, when the Bisons put up four runs, then added three more in the eighth to put it out of reach. Jarlin Susana took the loss after lasting 2⅔ innings.
He allowed four hits, four runs, four earned runs and four walks while striking out three. Susana put the leadoff man on in two of his three innings and had eight baserunners against him overall.
He was lifted after two outs in the third and with Rochester down 2-0, and Paxton Schultz came on and immediately gave up a two-run double. Schultz finished with 1⅓ scoreless innings, allowing one hit, no walks and striking out three, while stranding both inherited runners.
Buffalo starter C.J. Van Eyk shut the door from there.
Rochester managed only two hits off him in seven innings: a one-out single by Trey Lipscomb in the fourth and a Cortland Lawson double to start the seventh. Lipscomb later ended the shutout with a soft grounder to second.
He finished 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI, while Lawson went 1-for-3 with a double. Leandro Pineda also walked, extending his on-base streak to 35 games.
Saturday’s results also tightened the International League second-half playoff picture. Rochester got a break when the Stripers stopped Indianapolis’ six-game winning streak with an 8-7, 10-inning win. The Mets, the (ugh) WooSox and the RailRiders also won, keeping the race crowded.
Team W L PCT GB
Rochester 43 30 .589 -
Indianapolis 43 30 .589 -
Syracuse 42 30 .583 ½
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 40 31 .563 2
Worcester 40 31 .563 2
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and Worcester remain in the mix because they’ve played two fewer games. If either of them wins out and all three 30-loss teams lose out, a 42-31 finish would edge a 43-32 record, .575 to .573.
Under the older system, the Red Wings and Mets would be in the East ILDS, with the RedBirds and Saints in the West ILDS. Instead, as noted in the comments, a team that’s .500 for the year, Indianapolis, could get in while an 89- or 90-win Rochester team is left out.
In Other News...
Nationals Just Got A Reminder Of How Far This Core Has Come
A night that started with another meaningful win for the Nationals ended up doubling as a snapshot of how much this young core has changed. Washington reached 72 victories for its best total since 2019, and the run of progress came with Cade Cavalli handling the kind of workload that once would have been a future talking point rather than an immediate one, while CJ Abrams kept adding to a season that now includes power, speed and extra-base pop in equal measure.
There was also a notable return in the late innings, as Josiah Gray took the mound in the ninth for his first major league appearance since April 2024, a development that carried more weight than the score of the game itself. With Andrew Alvarez slated to start next, the Nationals are still sorting out the rest of the season one turn at a time, but nights like this offered a reminder that the talent base here is no longer just promising. It is starting to look established. [Read more 🡒]
Cade Cavalli Gives Nationals Fans One More Reason To Watch This Finish
The Nationals still have nine games left to sort through a season that has been defined by a strong offense and too many problems everywhere else. Washington ranks third in MLB in runs scored with 778 and sits at a modest plus-3 run differential, but pitching lapses and defensive mistakes have kept the club from turning that production into a better record. A closing stretch against the Cardinals, Detroit and then the Mets gives the team one last chance to make the final week feel meaningful.
Cade Cavallis next turn adds another layer to that finish, giving fans a reason to pay attention beyond the standings. For a team trying to salvage something from the last series of the year, each start matters more now, and Cavallis presence gives Washington at least one more angle to watch as the season winds down. The question is how much traction the Nationals can build in these final games, and whether the rotation can finally match the lineups output enough to change the tone of the ending. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals Are Making A Quiet Front Office Push Fans Should Notice
The Nationals are making a subtle but meaningful move behind the scenes as president of baseball operations Paul Toboni and general manager Ani Kilambi prepare to expand the clubs analytics department. It is the kind of front-office investment that does not grab headlines the way a signing or trade does, but it speaks to where Washington wants to go, with the organization looking to sharpen everything from player projections and acquisitions to development and biomechanics.
The department already has 19 staffers, and the push is expected to widen its reach across baseball operations in a way that should touch both the majors and the pipeline underneath it. Washington is aiming for more efficiency and better support across the board, and the next step will be watching how many new roles get filled and where those hires fit within the clubs larger strategy. [Read more 🡒]