Oklahoma City Comets (Triple-A)

We got a tight one in OKC. Jackson Ferris was dominant through seven innings—8 strikeouts on 3 earned runs and 3 walks. That’s the kind of outing that tells you what a pitcher is about. He gave our guys a chance, and they took it. Down the stretch, though, things got messy. Jerming Rosario came in for the eighth and couldn’t hold it together: 2 earned runs in an inning of work, which actually cost us a save. But Nick Robertson cleaned up the ninth with 2 strikeouts and a walk, and we walked out with the W. 5-4 over El Paso.

Offensively, Zach Ehrhard was the spark—1 for 5, sure, but he had 2 strikeouts, stole a base, and scored twice. That’s the kind of at-bat efficiency you want from a center fielder. James Tibbs III was the real difference maker in left: 2 for 3 with 2 walks and an RBI. He also scored and stole a base. That’s a complete night. Ryan Fitzgerald added 2 hits, an RBI, and a run in right field. Nothing flashy, but solid contributions across the board.

Tulsa Drillers (Double-A)

Chris Newell went deep. One swing, 3 RBIs—that’s a home run in a tight game, and that home run held up. Newell took 2 strikeouts and went 1 for 4, but that’s all you need sometimes. The real quiet star was on the mound: Christian Zazueta picked up the win with 5 innings, 5 strikeouts, 1 earned run, and just 1 walk. That’s control. That’s a starter doing his job. Carson Hobbs came in with runners on in the ninth and shut the door for his second save of the season.

Griffin Lockwood-Powell had a solid night at first—2 for 4 with a double and a run. Elijah Hainline at short drew 2 walks despite going 0 for 2 with strikeouts, and he scored and stole a base. That’s getting on base and staying active, which matters in a 5-3 game. We beat Midland and stayed in the hunt.

Great Lakes Loons (High-A)

Quick and clean. Emil Morales took care of business at short—1 for 3 with a home run and 2 RBIs. In a 3-2 game, that’s your whole offense right there. On the bump, Matt Lanzendorfer was nearly untouchable for 2.2 innings: 4 strikeouts, no walks, no runs allowed. He picked up the win (and somehow a save too, which tells you how tight this one was). Davis Chastain slammed the door in the ninth for his ninth save of the season—1 inning, 2 strikeouts, clean. We beat Lansing 3-2. That’s playoff-caliber pitching.

Ontario Tower Buzzers (Single-A)

This one didn’t go our way. Stockton shut us out 6-0, and we couldn’t get much going offensively. Francisco Espinoza behind the plate went 2 for 4, which was one of the few bright spots, but it wasn’t nearly enough. When you can’t scratch out a run against a team like that, the pitching has to be lights-out, and it wasn’t. Sometimes a night like this is what it is—move on and reset tomorrow.