[jksander]

July 1, 2025: Cam Leiter started for us in game one against West Virginia, and after getting three quick outs in the top of the first we got him a lead when leadoff man Cade Campbell hit himself a solo homer, the first of the year for our backup shortstop, playing in just his fourth game of the season! Brody Donay hit a three-run blast out of left in the bottom of the second to pile on, and Tyler Albright kept the homer train rolling moments later with a solo blast that put us up 5-0. Leiter held the shutout through the sixth inning, our bats adding a run in the bottom of the inning to keep the game well out of reach for the Black Bears. But reliever T.R. Williams gave up a two-out homer in the seventh to let West Virginia get on the board, and in the ninth A.J. Colarusso gave up another, though he followed it with three quick outs as we won easily 6-2. Leiter improved to 4-0 with a 1.73 ERA, allowing four hits with two walks and seven strikeouts, and we outhit them 9-8 behind two hits, two runs and two RBIs for Campbell, who is hitting .308 despite limited action.

July 2, 2025: We got on the board with a solo homer in the bottom of the third by Eli Lopez, and Matthew Hoskins was locked in all game, striking out eight batters in his first five innings of work as he held the 1-0 lead. He struck out another pair to get out of the sixth inning with a runner on second, but in the top of the seventh they tied it up with a homer off him as Ben Abeldt warmed up, bringing the bullpen arm out with the score now tied 1-1. Abeldt got us into the stretch without incident and then shut them down in the eighth as well, and when the store remained tied heading into the ninth, he sealed that inning as well in a spectacular performance. We would go on to win the game off a three-run walkoff homer from Vince Fattore, just his fifth of the season, beating West Virginia in the most brutal fashion 4-1. Hoskins had pitched six innings with six hits, no walks and 10 strikeouts, only allowing the one earned run, but Abeldt more than earned his win, improving to 2-0 with a four strikeout performance over three innings ... no walks, no hits, keeping his ERA perfect now through 14 innings pitched! They outhit us 6-4, but our power won out in the end ... Fattore’s three-run homer was the big finish, and he now has 12 RBIs.

July 3, 2025: Weire eight days away from the MLB Draft, and right now we’re the dominant team in the Draft League at the moment, leading Trenton by four games and West Virginia by five. This one was locked in as a duel for the first five and a half innings, but in the bottom of the sixth we blew it open with a four-run frame, taking the lead on a two-run single by Henry Godbout and adding on with a two-run double from Alex Lodise. But they loaded the bags in the top of the eighth, walking in a run to get on the board, though Evan Blanco held tough and kept them all stranded from there, sending us into the bottom of the inning with a three-run lead still. We brought out James Tallon in the ninth to close, and we held tough to shut them down 4-1, completing our sweep! Blanco finally got his first win, improving to 1-3 with a 1.82 ERA, lasting eight innings and 107 pitches, with just five hits, a walk, seven K’s and one unearned run, while Tallon saved his seventh game and improved his ERA to 0.90 through 10 innings’ work. Each team had five hits tonight, ours led by Godbout and Lodise, who each had a hit and two RBIs.

We have two series left before the draft: against last-place Mahoning Valley (6-21) here this weekend and on the road against Frederick (13-14). Our league then takes the day off on the 11th as all our players learn their fates.