photo: Bryan Torres (Springfield Cardinals)
The St. Louis Cardinals system was 3-1 on Friday. The Cardinal Nation’s Player of the Day, Springfield CF Bryan Torres, was 5-for-5 with three RBI, a stolen base and three runs scored. Other standouts include Nolan Gorman, Gavin Collins, R.J. Yeager, Darlin Moquete, Joshua Baez and Gerardo Salas.
Results for games played Friday, September 6.
The Triple-A Redbirds beat the Storm Chasers by the score of 8-3 at AutoZone Park on Friday. Quinn Matthews was on the bump for Memphis. The left hander pitched four innings, gave up two runs on four hits, fanned six and walked five.
Connor Thomas relieved Mathews and threw two scoreless innings to earn the win. Wilking Rodriguez hurled a scoreless seventh. Ryan Loutos surrendered one run in the eighth. Andre Granillo tossed a scoreless ninth.
Omaha went up 1-0 in the top of the second inning. Memphis tied the game in the home half on a solo home run by Matt Koperniak.
The Redbirds put up three runs in the fourth to lead 4-1. Nolan Gorman singled. Koperniak singled. Gavin Collins followed with a three-run home run.
GAVIN GOT IT!
THREE-RUN @HueysRestaurant HOMER FOR THE LEAD pic.twitter.com/WJKG77Q0O4
— Memphis Redbirds (@memphisredbirds) September 7, 2024
Omaha cut the lead to 4-2 in the top of the fifth. Memphis added two runs in the home fifth to extend the lead to 6-2. Chandler Redmond doubled and later scored on a sac fly by Thomas Saggese. Nolan Gorman thumped a solo home run.
GORMAN AGAIN!@HueysRestaurant HOMER ON BACK-TO-BACK NIGHTS! pic.twitter.com/jHL6xchdEF
— Memphis Redbirds (@memphisredbirds) September 7, 2024
In the seventh, the Redbirds increased the lead to 8-2. Mike Antico singled. Saggese singled. Antico scored on a ground out by Gorman. Koperniak reached on an error and Saggese scored.
The Storm Chasers put up one run in the ninth to shrink the final score to 8-3.
Memphis scored eight runs on 11 hits. Gorman was 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored. Koperniak was 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Collins had three RBI.
Ramon Mendoza was picked off and caught stealing.
Memphis is 67-69 on the season, 29-32 in the second half. They are tied for sixth place in the International League West with Toledo.
Saturday’s game: vs. Omaha, Gordon Graceffo RHP (9-7, 4.91) vs. TBD 6:05 CT.
The Double-A Cardinals mounted a comeback from being down 5-0 and prevailed in a 11-7 slugfest with the Naturals at Hammons Field on Friday.
Wilfredo Pereira started for Springfield. The right-hander pitched three innings, gave up four runs, one earned, on seven hits, struck out three and walked one.
Benito Garcia relieved Pereira and surrendered two runs in three innings. Nathanael Heredia threw a scoreless seventh to earn the win. Jack Ralston hurled a scoreless eighth. Andrew Marrero yielded one run in the ninth.
NW Arkansas scored one run in the second inning, added three in the third and one in the top of the fourth to widen the lead to 5-0.
Springfield began a comeback in the home fourth to cut the lead to 5-2. R.J. Yeager and Matt Lloyd hit back-to-back solo home runs.
The Naturals scored one run in the top of the fifth to increase the lead to 6-2. The Cardinals brought the gap to within one run with three runs in the bottom of the fifth. Dakota Harris and Bryan Torres singled. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Nathan Church walked. Yeager doubled to plate Harris and Torres. Church came home on a ground out by Lloyd.
RJ Yeager is having a huge night. A solo shot and now this two-run double to continue to cut the deficit down. pic.twitter.com/pC0oOCG3Zq
— Springfield Cardinals (@Sgf_Cardinals) September 7, 2024
Springfield took the lead in the seventh with a two-run tally. Harris walked. Torres singled. Torres stole second and Harris scored on a throwing error. Yeager walked. Lloyd drove in Torres on a single.
The Cardinals blew up the score with a four-run effort in the eighth to lead 11-6. Jacob Buchberger and Chris Rotondo walked. Harris singled. Torres tripled to clear the bases. Church drove in Torres on a single.
TAKE A BOW BRYAN TORRES! A bases clearing triple and the Cardiac Cards just won't stop. pic.twitter.com/qnsgd26Zrg
— Springfield Cardinals (@Sgf_Cardinals) September 7, 2024
The Naturals added one run in the ninth for the final score of 11-7.
Springfield scored 11 runs on 13 hits. Torres, the August Texas League Player of the Month, was 5-for-5 with three RBI and three runs scored. Yeager was 2-for-4 with three RBI. Lloyd was 2-for-5 with three RBI. Harris was 2-for-3 with three runs scored.
Torres stole his 33rd base of the season. He was also caught stealing for the 10th time.
Torres made a fielding error. Church had an outfield assist at home plate. Leonardo Bernal had a passed ball.
Springfield is 75-55 on the season, 38-23 in the second half. They are back in first place in the Texas League North, a half game ahead of Arkansas.
Saturday’s game: vs. NW Arkansas, Max Rajcic RHP (10-10, 4.36) vs. Cruz Noriega RHP (6-4, 6.18) 6:35 CT.
Peoria 3, Lake County 4 (11 innings)
The High-A Chiefs fell to the Captains in an extra innings loss at Dozer Park on Friday. Starter Pete Hansen pitched five innings, gave up three runs on seven hits, struck out five and walked four.
Roy Garcia relieved Hansen and threw two scoreless innings. Dionys Rodriguez hurled a scoreless eighth. Tanner Jacobson surrendered one run in the final three innings and took the loss.
Lake County took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second inning. In the home second, Peoria cut the lead to 2-1. Brayden Jobert and Michael Curialle singled. Brody Moore drove in Jobert on a single.
The Captains widened the lead to 3-1 in the fifth. The Chiefs tied the game with two runs in the seventh on a two-run home run by Darlin Moquete.
Darlin Moquete 2-run HR in the bottom of the 7th!
PEO 3 | LC 3 pic.twitter.com/XHnEniYSGo— Peoria Chiefs (@peoriachiefs) September 7, 2024
The game went into extra innings. Peoria had a runner at third with one out in the 10th, but could not cash in. In the top of the 11th, Lake County scratched a run across to take the lead, 4-3. The Chiefs could not answer.
Peoria scored three runs on 10 hits. Moquete was 2-for-5 with two RBI. Moore was 3-for-5 with an RBI. Trey Paige was 2-for-4. Jobert was 2-for-5.
Moore was caught stealing. Hansen made an error on a pickoff.
Peoria is 58-71 on the season, 32-32 in the second half. Peoria is in third place in the Midwest League West, four games back of Quad Cities and has been eliminated from playoff contention.
Saturday’s game: vs. Lake County, Ixan Henderson LHP (2-1, 2.77) vs. Carter Spivey RHP (7-1, 3.43) 7:05 CT.
The Class-A Cardinals defeated the Hammerheads by a 9-3 score in Jupiter on Friday. Gerardo Salas took the mound for Palm Beach. The right-hander pitched five scoreless innings, allowed two hits and fanned five to earn his ninth win of the season.
Randle Clemente relieved Salas and surrendered two runs without recording an out. Angel Cuenca replaced Clemente and allowed one unearned run in 2 2/3 innings of relief. Luis Gastelum tossed the final 1 1/3 scoreless innings to earn his eighth save.
The Beach Birds took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Christian Martin singled and stole second base. Ian Petrutz singled to score Martin.
Palm Beach increased their lead to 2-0 in the third. J.J. Wetherholt doubled. Ryan Campos plated Wetherholt on a double.
In the top of the sixth, the Cardinals extended their lead to 4-0. Anyelo Encarnacion singled. Lizandro Espinoza singled. Joshua Baez drove in both runners on a double.
Jupiter got on the board in the home sixth to cut the lead to 4-2. Palm Beach widened the lead to 5-2 in the top of the eighth. Espinoza walked and stole second base. Espinoza later scored on a single by Wetherholt.
The Hammerheads cut the lead to 5-3 in the bottom of the eighth. The Cardinals responded with a four-run burst in the ninth to pull away, 9-3. Jon Jon Gazdar and Encarnacion walked. Espinoza plated Gazdar and Encarnacion on a single with a throwing error. Espinoza came home on a ground-rule double by Baez. Martin drove in Baez on a single.
The Cardinals scored nine runs on 16 hits. Baez was 2-for-4 with three RBI. Espinoza was 2-for-3 with an RBI and three runs scored. Campos was 2-for-5 with an RBI. Martin and Wetherholt were both 2-for-6 with an RBI. Encarnacion was 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Gazdar was 2-for-4.
Martin stole his fifth base of the season. Baez swiped his eighth bag. Espinoza stole his 16th base. Bryce Madron was caught stealing.
Campos made a fielding error.
Palm Beach is 81-47 on the season, 44-18 in the second half. They have clinched first place in the FSL East.
Saturday’s game: at Jupiter, RH Leonel Sequera (1-0, 2.32) vs. TBD 5:00 CT.
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