STAFF REPORTS
The Rochester Red Wings won their seventh straight game, beating the first place Lehigh Valley IronPigs 4-2 Thursday night at Frontier Field. The series continues Friday night at 7:05 p.m.and fireworks after the game.
The Red Wings got off to an early 2-0 first inning lead. Zach Granite hit a lead-off single to stretch his on-base-streak to 21 consecutive games. The next batter, Mitch Garver, hit a home run off of IronPigs starting pitcher Tom Eshelman. The home run was Garver’s seventh of the season.
Lehigh Valley got on the scoreboard in the top of the second inning. Rhys Hoskins and Nick Williams hit back-to-back doubles off Wings starter Yohan Pino to make the score 2-1.
The Wings scored two more runs in the bottom of the second inning to push their lead to 4-1. The inning was highlighted by a lead-off double by Niko Goodrum, followed by an RBI double from John Ryan Murphy.
In the top of the fifth, Pino left the game with an apparent injury. Alex Wimmers entered the game by striking out J.P. Crawford, followed by a successful pick-off attempt which caught Pedro Florimon in a rundown to end the inning.
Pino went 4.1 innings, allowing one earned run, six hits, one strikeout and one walk. He threw 82 pitches (56 strikes).
The IronPigs cut the lead to 4-2 in the seventh inning. Wimmers’ night ended after giving up a single to Jorge Flores and a double to Florimon. Drew Rucinski came into the game to force a ground ball out which scored a run.
Wimmers gave 2.0 innings of relief, giving up one earned run and two strikeouts.
Eshelman went 6.0 innings, allowing four earned runs, one strikeout, one walk and a season-high nine hits to the Wings. He threw 90 pitches (60 strikes).
Michael Tonkin worked the ninth inning for the Red Wings. Jorge Flores reached first on a single, on a play that right fielder Goodrum dove for but just missed making a diving catch on. Tonkin struck out former Red Wing Pedro Florimon, but a single by J.P. Crawford snuck through the left side to put the tying runs at first and second. Tonkin got a flyball out for the second out, and struck out clean-up hitter Dylan Cozens to end the game.