Columbus allows six runs in the bottom of the 11th and still wins

Columbus Clippers 13, Durham Bulls 9

Box Score · Clippers improve to 13-18

A slow-moving 3-3 game turned into a barn-burner with a combined 16 runs being scored in the 11th inning of the Columbus Clippers’ win Wednesday evening.

Travis Banwart had a quiet afternoon, leaving after allowing two earned runs in 4.2 innings. He exited with the lead, thanks to a three-run fifth from the Clippers offense, but the wild finish would lead to him getting a no-decision.

Bradley Zimmer, maybe smelling an opportunity in the majors with Abraham Almonte’s injury (probably not), was 2-for-5 on the day, with a walk and two strikeouts. Over his last three games, he has five hits, including a home run.

The craziness of the 11th inning play log reads like a Lord of the Rings anthology.

Akron RubberDucks 4, Trenton Thunder 2

Box Score · RubberDucks improve to 13-17

Perhaps jealous of the late-inning fun of the Clippers, the Akron RubberDucks almost blew a lead in the ninth-inning, but David Speer held on to give the ‘Ducks a win, and Nick Pasquale his second win of the season.

Pasquale walked four batters in seven innings, but he also only allowed one hit and struck out four. His ERA is still eschewed by one bad outing, but over his last starts he’s allowed two runs off five hits in 13 innings.

Tyler Krieger is slowly building himself a hitting streak. Yesterday’s home run — his second of the season — gave the 23-year-old second baseman his fourth-straight game with a hit. He also struck out just four times in his last 10 games; 16 percent of the time over the full season.

Lynchburg Hillcats 0, Carolina Mudcats 2 (Game 1)

Lynchburg Hillcats 1, Carolina Mudcats 3 (Game 2)

Game 1 Box Score · Game 2 Box Score · Hillcats fall to 16-15

It is nearly impossible to follow-up Triston McKenzie’s 14-strikeout performance Tuesday, but Lynchburg Hillcats pitchers did their best yesterday. Brock Hartson allowed just four hits over 6.1 innings in game one of the doubleheader, while the combined bullpen of the Hillcats allowed three over 6.2 innings in game two.

Despite the solid pitching performances, Lynchburg dropped both games and fell back in the competitive Carolina League Northern division.

The Hillcats were 1-for-19 with runners in scoring position between the two games, despite only striking out a handful of times. Conor Marabell’s two-hit game two performance was the only multi-hit game of the day for Lynchburg. It was Marabell’s fourth two-hit game of the season.

Lake County Captains 1, Beloit Snappers 9

Box Score · Captains fall to 13-19

There’s not much good to report from the Lake County Captains’ loss to the Beloit Snappers. The offense was held to one hit, the defense committed two errors, and Brady Aiken still looks like he’s recovering.

Aiken walked four batters and struck out a season-high five in 4.1 innings. He also allowed three runs off five hits. Aiken’s 25 walks on the season leads the Midwest League by a large margin — the next closest is Dakota Chalmers with 18 free bases. He also has the second-highest WHIP at 1.83.