Sun. 4/6 - Afternoon Delights (Hopefully)

[Joseph Zarr]

Meanwhile, LHP Bjorn Johnson is facing the 3,4, and 5 hitters here in the 7th. He continues to throw a massively impactful swooping breaker. He gets a K with it. He gets a weak comebacker after the hard line out to CF. He has retired 7 consecutive. Extremely impressive Low-A full-season debut for the young man. 

[Joseph Zarr]

A Burke ground out to 1B moves Yophery to 3B. An Areinamo ground out to deep 2B scores him. 4-4 game as the back-and-forth affair continues. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Special shout out to RHP Stiven Cruz. Hunt was pulled after 2/3 IP and having accumulated 34 pitches (talk about an oddity!). Cruz has now gone 2 1/3 scoreless IP with 4 K. That deserves special mention. Well done, young man!

[Joseph Zarr]

Beautiful Mudcats baseball here in the bottom of the 7th. Walther walks on four pitches. Payne hits a hard chopper over the leaping 1B. Runners on corner. Nobody down. Pena hits a gorgeous sac fly deep down the RF line. That's 5-4 Muddies. Meanwhile, Payne is flexing on the basepaths with two quick SB. Adamczewski didn't particularly appreciate the second one 😅. 1-2 count on Josh. Man on 3B. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Josh is like: "Have you not seen my OPS?!"😅

 

[Joseph Zarr]

Adamczewski called out on a breaking ball a good 3" above the zone. He motioned to his helmet for the replay assist 😅. That was a ball. Edwards confirmed it. No such luck. Payne is stranded at 3B after Bitonti pops out left of the mound. On to the 8th. 

Meanwhile, Figueroa works around a relief lead-off walk with classic Figueroa stuff. I continue to love his tools and believe he can harness said tools to even greater impacts in the seasons ahead. 4-4 tie game in Wisconsin.

[Joseph Zarr]

LHP Jesus Broca on to relieve Bjorn Johsnon. MuDcats clinging to a 5-4 lead. Meanwhile, the Shuckers have taken a 4-3 lead! Their first lead of their season! LET'S GO!!!!!

[Joseph Zarr]

AN EBJ RBI double no less. Let's go, young man! Show us the impacts of that new approach!

[Joseph Zarr]

Oooooof. Broca gave up an 0-1 golf shot line drive homer over the LF wall. Doh! Nice piece of hitting not a bad pitch by any stretch. Outside swooping off-speed reached and muscled over the LF wall. 6-5 Fred Nats.

[Joseph Zarr]

He then gets the shallow fly out to Adamczewski on the shallow CF grass. This game is very much back-and-forth!

[duewizard]

4 minutes ago, Joseph Zarr said:

AN EBJ RBI double no less. Let's go, young man! Show us the impacts of that new approach!

I would love for EBJ to show that first round talent

[Joseph Zarr]

I see the Mudcats have no shame: they are still using Greg Young's vocal talents in their between inning adverts. Hilarious.

[Joseph Zarr]

Just now, duewizard said:

I would love for EBJ to show that first round talent

Even though he didn't get the results with the runners on earlier he had a very very good approach. I like what I'm seeing early. AND, he's still using that simplified batting set up and approach.

[Joseph Zarr]

New season. Same Brock Wilken early. 

Meanwhile, beautiful AB by Di Turi top open the 8th. Love what I'm seeing in Di Turi's approach today. More of this, please. In a 6-5 deficit he works a walk to lead off the 8th frame.

[Joseph Zarr]

With the 1B at the bag, Walling rips an absolute rope...right to the 1B glove. Di Turi beats the attempted DP to 2B however. Nicasia with a chance to tie it with Di Turi in scoring position at 3B. Two down.

[Joseph Zarr]

Nicasia rips a bomb high off the RF wall. 1-2 count. High corner of the zone. JUST misses a HR. Gets the game-tying double instead. We are knotted at 6-6. This game!

[Joseph Zarr]

6-6 we head to the 9th. Walther popped out to 1B in the swirling winds. 

Meanwhile, RHP Tyler Bryant walked a batter and errantly threw a pick-off throw to 1B. That batter ultimately got to 3B. A two out single knocked him aboard. Bryant gives up a 3-1, two out, two-run jack to the next batter. Woof! 6-4 Blue Wahoos. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Bryant gives up a single to the next batter. Welcome to Double-A, Tyler. The transition has not been kind. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Called a strike 1 on Blake Burke...Yeah. Right. Come on, Blue. 

[Joseph Zarr]

No matter. Blake Burke. 434 foot BOMB!!!! 107 mph. Dyaaaaang they don't hit them there often in Fox Cities. Crushed. More importantly, 5-4 T-Rats.

[Joseph Zarr]

Payne on again! A 9 pitch opening free pass. 2nd walk.

Man. Payne is absolutely TROUBLE. 

[Joseph Zarr]

@Jim Goulart: Luke Adams just tied Mr. Miller. HBP in the 5th (to no avail). 

[Joseph Zarr]

Two AB. Two free passes. 3 SB by Payne. I mean, fellas (and gals), he is just absolute trouble . Pena then works a 3-1 count for a walk as well. Adamczewski gets to face a RHP for the first time in his last three AB. Naturally, we get the mound visit. Let's go, young man!

[Joseph Zarr]

Boy, I thought Adamczewski had the walk off. Well hit line drive to RF got caught in the winds and died into the charging (to his right) RF'er. Payne tags to 3B. Men on the corners. One down. Bitonti to the dish. 

[wiguy94]

So even though Made had an instagram story that looked like he was maybe in the DR yesterday, he's definitely in Carolina. Saw him in the dugout after Nicasia's game tying double. Maybe just a minor injury?