2025 St. Louis River Walkers -- Here we go again

[rink23]

Record: 33-16, 1st, 4.5 GA Springfield
It was a big day for St. Louis' Tanner Kohlhepp who went 4 for 5 with three doubles, a home run, two runs scored and five RBIs, to help power the River Walkers to an 11-4 win over Milwaukee at Busch Stadium (1997).
Tied 2-2, St. Louis took the lead for good in the bottom of the fourth.
Jean Carmona and Andrew Benintendi led off with back-to-back doubles off Keg Lifters starting pitcher Justin Wrobleski.
A sacrifice bunt from Johan Camargo moved Benintendi to third. He scored when Alek Thomas grounded out.
It's lead trimmed to 4-3, the Walkers tallied three times in the fifth.
Kohlhepp drove in Bo Bichette, who had drawn a lead-off walk, with a double.
Carmona and Benintendi later had RBI singles off reliever Daniel Espino.
The Walkers piled on four more runs in the eighth.
A wild pitch scored Luis Palomo with the first run.
Kohlhepp did the rest with his seventh home run of the season.
Walkers starter Steven Brault (5-1) lasted just five innings, allowing three runs on eight hits, but still emerged with the win.
Palomo worked through the eighth and got the first out of the ninth.
Tim Hill finished off the game by retiring the only two batters he faced.

[rink23]

Record: 33-17, 1st, 4.5 GA Springfield
In a wild game, almost too wild to describe, Milwaukee scored seven runs in the top of the 17th inning to down St. Louis 10-5 at Busch Stadium (1997).
With their bullpen already running on fumes, the River Walkers were forced to put in their next day's scheduled starter Alex Faedo into the game in the 14th inning and when he ran out of gas in the 17th they were in big trouble.
Putting their only remaining position player on the mound, Jean Carmona, the results were not good.
He did get a batter out, but also walked in two runs and allowed a sacrifice fly which scored another.
Luis Palomo, who was under strict order not to pitch, was forced to enter the game.
The results were predictable.
He allowed a two-run single to Xander Bogaerts and run-scoring singles to Landon Gray and Jusitn Wrobleski as the Keg Lifters came out of the inning with a 10-3 lead.
St. Louis did manage a pair of runs in the bottom of the 17th, but it didn't really matter.
The game went to extra innings tied at 3-3.
Milwaukee had gone up 3-2 in the top of the ninth on an RBI single from Gray off reliever Jake Brentz.
St. Louis tied it in the bottom half.

Carlos Vidal led off with a single off reliever Josiah Gray and scored on a Johan Camargo double.
Milwaukee used nine pitchers in the game, while St. Louis put 11 on the mound.
Michael Byrne (3-0) came out of it with the win after holding St. Louis scoreless in innings 14 through 16.
Daniel Espino handled the ninth.
Lifters starting pitcher Brendan McKay gave up two runs on four hits over the opening six innings.

[rink23]

The St. Louis River Walkers have announced that first baseman Rhys Hoskins will rejoin the ballclub after spending the last 10 days on the injured list with an hyperextended ankle.
In 38 games this season, the 32-year-old Hoskins has hit .218 with eight homers and 20 RBIs.
Heading to Memphis will be 1B/3B Romy Gonzalez.
During his time with the big club, Gonzalez batted .147 with no homers and two RBIs in 10 games.
Also, St. Louis will call up right-hander starting pitcher Tanner Bibee from AAA to make an emergency start against Milwaukee after today's scheduled starter Alex Faedo was forced to pitch in relief during a 10-5 17-inning loss to Milwaukee the previous day.
Bibee, 26, is 4-4 this season with the Redbirds with a 5.09 ERA in 10 games.

He pitched in one regular season game with the River Walkers in 2023, working 3.1 innings during which he allowed one run on three hits.
Derek Gordon, who has gone 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA in two starts for St. Louis, will make a quick trip to Memphis to allow Bibee to be added to the MLB roster.

[rink23]

Record: 34-17, 1st,4.5 GA Springfield
Tanner Bibee was impressive in just his second major league start, allowing two runs on seven hits over 5.1 innings in St. Louis' 5-2 win over Milwaukee at Busch Stadium (1997).
Called up from AAA Memphis to fill in for Alex Faedo, who had to pitch in relief during a 17-inning game the day before, the 26-year-old Bibee allowed single runs to the Keg Lifters in the top of the third and fourth innings.
The fourth inning run, which came on a solo homer by Kyle Seager, tied the game at 2-2.
The River Walkers answered with three runs in the bottom of the fourth off Lifters starter Luis Gohara.
A double from Jared Thomas chased home the first two runs.
Alan Dondero scored Thomas with a two-out single.
In his time on the mound, Bibee struck out eight and walked just one.
Bibee, who struck out eight and walked just one, was replaced by Dan Jennings who walked the only batter he faced.
Danny Grigg stepped in to get out of the sixth inning.
Nick Lodolo and John Curtiss combined on a scoreless seventh.
The eighth belonged to Edwin Diaz and the ninth was handled by Jake Brentz, who posted his ninth save.

[rink23]

Record: 35-17, 1st, 5.5 GA Springfield
Argenis Batista got it done on the mound and at the plate to lead St. Louis to a 7-1 win over Milwaukee at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win gave the River Walkers wins in three of the series' four games.
On the mound, Batista (6-2) worked 6.1 innings allowing just one run on two hits. He struck out 10 and walked four.
At the plate, he had two hits, scored two runs and had an RBI.
Down 1-0, St. Louis rallied and took control of the game with six runs in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Rhys Hoskins drove in the first run with a one-out homer off Keg Lifters starting pitcher Patrick Weigel.
Batista drove in the second run with a single.
Bo Bichette then made it 5-0 with a homer, chasing Weigel from the mound.
Michael Byrne took over and was greeted by a Carlos Vidal triple.
Tanner Kohlhepp sent Vidal across the plate with a single.
Batista later scored St. Louis' seventh run after he singled with one out in the seventh.
A Bichette double sent him to third, and he scored when Dovydas Neverauskas uncorked a wild pitch.
A pitch count of 117 forced Batista to exit in the seventh, but the Walkers' 'pen did its job.
Nick Lodolo finished the seventh and worked a scoreless eighth.
Dan Jennings struck out two of three batters he faced in the ninth to finish it.

[rink23]

Record: 36-17, 1st, 6.5 GA Cedar Rapids
Bo Bichette, Andrew Benintendi and Jean Carmona all hit solo home runs in the bottom of the first inning off Detroit starting pitcher Luca Dalatri to fuel St. Louis 7-2 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
Detroit would pull back to within 4-2, but the River Walkers added three insurance runs (one in the fifth and two in the seventh) to cruise to the win.
Back in the rotation after a rotten first two months, Jimmy Lambert was again just good enough.
Lambert (4-5) worked six innings, allowing two runs on four hits. He struck out three and walked four.
Tim Hill notched a scoreless seventh inning.
Nick Lodolo held the Wheelmen scoreless in the eighth and ninth.

[rink23]

Record: 36-17, 1st, 6.5 GA Springfield
Andrew Benintendi wiped out a 1-0 deficit with a two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning and Steven Brault allowed one run on two hits over eight as St. Louis downed Detroit 2-1 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The Wheelmen broke open a scoreless game in the top of that seventh inning when Shinya Mori hit a one-out homer off Brault.
It didn't take long for the River Walkers to answer back in the bottom of the inning.
Tanner Kohlhepp led off with a single off Detroit starter Hunter Greene and Andrew Benintendi followed with a 402-foot shot over the wall in right-center to put the Walkers in front.
Brault (6-1) allowed just the one run on two hits. He struck out four and walked one.

Edwin Diaz was perfect in the bottom of the ninth to earn his 12th save.

[rink23]

MBL news: June 8 -- Updated fan voting for All-Star game

[rink23]

Record: 38-17, 1st, 6.5 GA Springfield
St. Louis greeted former River Walkers ace Aaron Nola with three runs in the bottom of the first inning and rode that outburst to a 5-2 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
The victory gave St. Louis a sweep of its three-game series against the Wheelmen.
St. Louis wasted little time getting to Nola.
Bo Bichette and Carlos Vidal led off the bottom of the first with consecutive doubles to put the Walkers up 1-0.
Tanner Kohlhepp then drew a walk and Andrew Benintendi followed with St. Louis' third double in four batters to make it 2-0.
Kohlhepp later made it 3-0 when he scored on a Jean Carmona sacrifice fly.
The Wheelmen did get to Walkers starter Derek Gordon for a pair of runs in the top of the sixth -- CJ Abrams driving in both with a single.
However with runners at second and third with two outs, Jake Brentz reliever Gordon and got Zack Collins to strikeout keeping the Walkers in the lead.
St. Louis gained its 5-2 lead when Rhys Hoskins hit a two-run homer off reliever Miguel Vinicio in the eighth.
In his 5.2 innings, Gordon (2-0) allowed two runs on five hits. He struck out four and walked two.
Brentz retired the only batter he faced to end the sixth.
Four relievers -- Dan Jennings (0.1), John Curtiss (0.2), Nick Lodolo (0.2) and Luis Palomo (0.1) -- combined to keep Detroit from scoring in the seventh and eighth.
The ninth belonged to Danny Grigg, who retired the Wheelmen in order for his second save.

[rink23]

MBL news: Week 9 Awards and standings

[rink23]

Record: 39-17, 1st, 6.5 GA Springfield
Andrew Benintendi led off the bottom of the 13th homer with a 408-foot home run off Fort Wayne relief pitcher Corey Knebel to give St. Louis a 2-1 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
Bentendi's solo shot came off Mad Men receiver Corey Knebel on a 1-1 count in the top of the eighth
St. Louis starter Alex Faedo allowed just the one run in the top of the sixth inning to tie it.
In that sixth, Darlin Guzman and Josh Friedman led off with singles putting runners at first and second before Faedo walked Jin-hwan Chung to load the bases.
Another walk, this one to Ian Happ, tied it.

Faedo got J.D. Davis to fly out for the first out and Willson Contreras to fly out for the second.
A strike out of Daylen Lite by Faedo ended the top of the seventh with it still tied at 1-1.
It stayed that way until Benintendi hit his eighth homer of the season on a 1-1 pitch from reliever Corey Knebel.
After Faedo exited, five relievers -- John Curtiss (0.1 IP), Dan Jennings (0.1), Danny Grigg (1.1), Luis Palomo (0.2) and Jake Brentz (1.1) combined to shutout the Mad Men over the next four innings.
Edwin Diaz (1-0) allowed only a walk in the 12th and 13th to earn his first win.
St. Louis posted its first run in the bottom of the fifth after Rhys Hoskins drew a lead-off walk from Fort Wayne starter Chandler Champlaign.
A one-out ground out moved him to second.
Faedo singled to load the bases.
A bases-loaded walk to Carmona plated Hoskins with what proved to be the game-winning score.

[rink23]

Record: 40-17, 1st, 6.5 GA Springfield
St. Louis broke open a scoreless game with two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning and starting pitcher Argenis Batista and three relievers would combine on a three-hit shutout as the River Walkers downed Fort Wayne 2-0 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win extended the River Walkers win streak to seven games.
It was Batista himself who got the St. Louis offense going with a lead-off single off Mad Men starting pitcher Arodys Vizcaino in the bottom of the sixth.
Edmond Americaan followed with another single, putting runners at first and second, and driving Vizcaino from the game.
Michael Feliz relieved and allowed a third straight single, this one to Carlos Vidal, to load the bases.
Andrew Benintendi then drove in what would be the game's only two runs with the fifth straight single of the inning.
Batista (7-2) allowed just two hits over his seven innings. He struck out nine and walked one.
John Curtiss took care of a scoreless eighth and got the first two outs of the ninth before issuing a two-out walk to Darlin Guzman.
Dan Jennings replaced Curtiss only to allow a single to Desmond Lindsay.
With a right-hander at the plate, Luis Palomo was summoned and he did his job by ending with by getting Jin-hwan Chang to hit into a fielder's choice.

[rink23]

Record: 40-18, 1st, 5.5 GA Springfield
Down 3-1, Fort Wayne got homers from Josh Friedman and Ian Happ off St. Louis starter Jimmy Lambert in the top of the fourth inning and rode the blasts to a 6-3 win over the River Walkers at Busch Stadium (1997).
With the win, the Mad Men salvaged the finale of their three-game series against the River Walkers. It also ended an eight-game St. Louis win streak.
A two-run homer from Rhys Hoskins off Fort Wayne starter Jamie Barria in the bottom of the third had staked St. Louis to a 3-1 lead.
Friedman got things rolling against Lambert in the fourth hitting an 0-1 pitch 400 feet over the wall in right field.
Jin-hwan Chung followed with a single.
Ian Happen then made it 3-1 with a two-run homer which traveled 413 feet over the center-field wall.
Darlin Guzman added an insurance run via solo homer with a lead-off blast in the eighth off reliever Nick Lodolo.
Barria (3-0) allowed three runs on three hits in six innings. He struck out two and walked none.
Elian Acosta, Corey Knebel and Eric Warren all pitched a scoreless inning apiece to close the victory.

[rink23]

Record: 41-18, 1st, 6.5 GA Springfield
It was quite a day on the mound and at the plate for St. Louis starting pitcher Steven Brault in the River Walkers 12-1 rout of Cedar Rapids in the opening game of a doubleheader at Busch Stadium.
On the mound, Brault took a no-hitter into the top of the sixth inning -- when Sam Cohen led off with a homer -- and ended up allowing just the one run on one hit before retiring after eight innings.
Tim Hill maintained the one-hitter by sending the Golden Grapplers down in order in the ninth.
At the plate, Brault was four-for-four with three triples, a run scored and four RBIs.
A two-run double from Brault in the second inning off Cedar Rapids starting pitcher Carlos Martinez provided the game's first two runs.
Rhys Hoskins belted a two-run homer off C-Mart in the third, extending that lead to 4-0.
Brault's second double of the game, in the fourth, made it 5-0.
Hoskins had an RBI single off reliever Zach Schellenger in the fifth to make it 6-0.
After Cohen's homer got the Grapplers on the board, the Walkers would add six more runs in the sixth through eighth innings.
Brault's third double scored a run in the sixth.
Hoskins second homer of the game, this one off reliever Mychel Givens, led off the seventh.
Hoskins finished the game 3 for 5 with two homers, two runs scored and four RBIs.

Alek Thomas hit a two-run shot off Givens later in that frame.
Brault also doubled and scored on a Tanner Kohlhepp two-run double.

[rink23]

Record: 41-19, 1st, 6 GA Springfield
Tied 2-2, Dominic Smith delivered a one-out single off St. Louis starting pitcher Derek Gordon to snap the tie and send Cedar Rapids on its way to a 9-2 win over the River Walkers in the second game of a doubleheader at Busch Stadium.
Enrique Bradfield scored on Teijeiro's hit after being hit by a pitch with one out.
He stole second and scored on Smith's single to right-center on an 0-2 offering from Gordon.
The Golden Grapplers would pile on the runs against the Walkers bullpens plating three apiece in the seventh and eighth.
Cedar Rapids put five consecutive batters on against reliever Dan Jennings to begin the seventh.
Domingo Santana and RJ Teijeiro drove in the inning's first two runs with singles.
A Joc Pederson sacrifice fly against Tim Hill made it 6-2.
The eighth inning featured a quartet of doubles from the Grapplers -- including three in a row from Matt McLain, Bradfield and Smith.
Bradfield and Smith both earned RBIs with their hits off Nick Lodolo.
Domingo Santana later knocked a two-bagger against John Curtiss to plate the game's final run.
Sean Harp (4-3) earned the win by going the first six innings, allowing two runs on five hits.
Five relievers -- Thomas Burrows (0.1 IP), Zach Schellenger (0.2), Mychal Givens (0.1), Kyle Barraclough (1.0) and Felipe Vazquez (0.2) -- combined to shutout St. Louis over the final three innings.

[rink23]

Record: 41-20, 1st, 6 GA Springfield
Noah Naylor hit a one-out solo homer off St. Louis reliever Luis Palomo in the top of the eighth inning to give Cedar Rapids the lead and eventually a 2-1 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
Rhys Hoskins fourth homer in three games in the bottom of the second off Cedar Rapids starting pitcher Rick Atkinson had given the River Walkers an early 1-0 lead.
The Golden Grapplers evened it against St. Louis starter Alex Faedo in the sixth when he hit Terrin Vavra with a pitch with the bases loaded.
Domingo Santana scored the run, as Faedo hit two batters and walked one in the inning.
Cedar Rapids starter Rick Atkinson allowed just one run on four hits over five innings.
Seven relievers -- Thomas Burrows (0.0 IP), Felipe Vazquez (1.0), Zach Schellenger (0.1), Mychal Givens (0.2), Kyle Barraclough (0.1), Jose Alvarado (0.2) and Jose Leclerc (1.0) -- combined to finish the game.
Givens (5-1) came away with the win. Leclerc notched his 18th save.

[rink23]

MBL news: All-Star game fan voting update for June 15

[rink23]

Record: 42-20, 1st, 7 GA Springfield
Edmond Americaan connected on a two-run double with one out in the bottom of the second inning off Cedar Rapids starting pitcher Trevor Bauer and St. Louis rolled on to a 5-3 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win allowed the River Walkers to achieve a split of their four-game series with the Golden Grapplers.
Bauer issued three straight one-out walks to get himself in trouble in that second inning.
That brought Americaan to the plate and he laced a 2-2 pitch into the gap in left-center to score the game's first two runs.
The Walkers made it 3-0 in the third when Tanner Kohlhepp tripled with one out off Bauer and scored on an Andrew Benintendi sacrifice fly.
Leading 3-1, St. Louis got its final two runs in the fifth.
A Bauer balk brought Jean Carmona home with the first run.
Johan Camargo connected on a sacrifice fly off reliever Zach Schellenger to bring home Carlos Vidal with the second.
Walkers starter Argenis Batista (8-2) allowed three runson five hits over the first 6.2 innings.
Danny Grigg finished the seventh and took care of the eighth.
Jake Brentz struck out two of three batters he faced in the ninth for his 10th save.

[rink23]

MBL news: Week 10 awards and standings

[rink23]

The game between the St. Louis River Walkers and Quad City Thunder scheduled for June 16 at Fenway Park (1970) has been postponed because of rain.
It will be made up as part of a doubleheader on June 17.