Zach Plesac and Jean Carlos Mejia both record double digit strikeouts in sensational starts for Lynchburg and Lake County

Columbus Clippers 3, Pawtucket Red Sox 1

Box Score · Clippers improve to 53-48

Yandy Diaz accounted for all of Columbus’ offense, going 2-4 with a double, two runs scored and a run batted in. Drew Maggi also went 2-4 while Brandon Barnes went 1-3 with a double and a walk.

That would be all the offense the Columbus pitching staff needed as Mitch Talbot was impressive, giving up just one run on seven hits in 5.2 innings while striking out four and walking none.

The bullpen kept Pawtucket’s bats in check, tossing 3.1 shutout innings to preserve the victory.

Akron RubberDucks 2, Altoona Curve 10 Game 1
Akron RubberDucks 5, Altoona Curve 1 Game 2

Game 1 Box Score · Game 2 Box Score · RubberDucks move to 61-42

In game one, Sean Brady was cruising along, allowing one run through the first six innings before running into trouble in the seventh. Brady left the game with one out in the seventh inning after allowing the tying run to score and had a runner still on base, with Andrew Miller relieving him.

Miller did not have his best stuff, allowing the inherited runner to score along with four more runs in just 0.1 innings on two hits, a walk and a hit by pitch. Miller’s line looks worse than it was because Argenis Angulo relieved him with the bases loaded and allowed all three runs to score.

Ka’ai Tom went 1-3 with a home run and a walk as one of the lone decent offensive performers in game one.

In game two, Tom, Sam Haggerty and Tyler Krieger all had multi-hit games while Bobby Bradley went 1-3 with a two-run double and a walk to pace Akron offensively.

Starting pitcher Triston McKenzie had a strong outing, giving up one run on three hits in 5.1 innings while striking out five and walking three to earn the win.

Lynchburg Hillcats 3, Down East Wood Ducks 1

Box Score · Hillcats improve to 47-53

Zach Plesac was tremendous for Lynchburg, striking out a career high 10 batters in 7.0 dominant innings. Plesac gave up one run on six hits and did not walk a batter. Jared Robinson and James Karinchak combined to throw two scoreless innings to preserve the win.

Offensively, Ernie Clement and Mitch Longo both had multi-hit games and Jodd Carter blasted a two run home run for the Hillcats.

Lake County Captains 1, West Michigan Whitecaps 0

Box Score · Captains improve to 44-57

Jean Carlos Mejia pitched the game of his life with 7.0 shutout innings on just three hits. Mejia struck out a career high 10 batters while walking just one. A 21-year old right-hander out of the Dominican Republic, Mejia missed all of May on the disabled list but he has impressed since returning, with Wednesday’s outing dropping his season ERA to 2.98 through 11 games this season for Lake County.

Nick Sandlin added a scoreless inning of relief and Kyle Nelson earned his sixth save, dropping his ERA to 0.52 on the season.

Elvis Perez had a strong game offensively, going 2-3 with a double, a walk and the lone run scored of the game. Oscar Gonzales also went 2-5 while Nolan Jones went 1-2 with a pair of walks.

Mahoning Valley Scrappers 2, Brooklyn Cyclones 1

Box Score · Scrappers improve to 24-12

Hosea Nelson and Gianpaul Gonzalez both had a pair of hits while Jose Fermin and Tyler Freeman both went 1-3 with a walk for one and the other being hit by a pitch to pace Mahoning Valley offensively.

The Scrappers didn’t need much offense because Juan Mota was tremendous, giving up just one run in 5.0 innings while striking out five and walking none. Four relievers combined to toss four scoreless frames to keep Brooklyn in check and preserve the victory for Mota.

DSL Indians 6, DSL Pirates1 7

Box Score · Indians fall to 19-23

Jose Tena went 3-4 with a walk while Roger Marmol went 2-3 with a walk and Alexfri Planez went 2-5 but that wasn’t enough for the DSL Indians to beat the DSL Pirates1.

Starting pitcher Sergio Morillo was decent, allowing two runs (one earned) in 3.0 innings, but reliever Logan Franco gave up three runs in 2.0 innings and bullpen arms Steven Perez and Erick Heredia allowed runs in the seventh and ninth innings to let the Pirates1 tie the game then take the lead late.

The AZL Indians 1 and 2 both had scheduled days off.