Oklahoma City Comets (Triple-A) — W, 6-3 vs Charlotte

This was the Zach Ehrhard game. The center fielder went 2-for-5 with a homer, a double, four RBI, and two runs scored. That’s the kind of line that jumps off the page at any level, and it’s especially encouraging from a guy who needs to show he can do damage consistently against upper-level pitching. He drove in the majority of the runs all by himself. Good night at the office.

Jack Suwinski matched him in the extra-base hit department, going 3-for-5 with a homer, a double, and two RBI of his own. When you get that kind of production from both corner outfield spots and center field, you’re going to win a lot of games. Suwinski continues to swing the bat well since coming into the system, and we’re seeing the kind of thump the front office was hoping for.

Austin Gauthier was quieter in the box — 1-for-3 — but he drew a walk and scored twice. Getting on base and coming around to score is never a wasted night, even if the hit column doesn’t pop.

On the mound, Ryder Ryan was excellent. Four innings, six strikeouts, no walks, no earned runs. That’s a clean, dominant outing. He earned the win to improve to 3-1, and when you’re punching guys out at that rate with zero free passes, you’re doing exactly what a Triple-A reliever (or stretched-out arm) needs to do. Wyatt Mills slammed the door with a scoreless ninth — two strikeouts, no baserunners — for his fifth save. The back end of the OKC bullpen looked sharp tonight.

Tulsa Drillers (Double-A) — W, 5-0 vs Wichita

A shutout win is always a good sign, and this one belonged to Chris Newell at the plate and Adam Serwinowski on the mound. Newell went 2-for-4 with a home run, four RBI, and a run scored. Four of the five runs came off his bat. That’s a statement game from a guy playing first base at Double-A. When you carry the entire offense on your back in a shutout, you earned the headline.

Serwinowski was gutsy. Five innings, four strikeouts, zero earned runs — that’s the good part. The four walks are the part he’ll want to clean up. He was clearly in and out of trouble all night but kept finding ways to strand runners. That’s a useful skill, but four walks over five innings isn’t a formula you can rely on long-term. Still, the result speaks for itself: a win and a clean zero in the run column. He improves to 5-2.

Griffin Lockwood-Powell had a nice night behind the plate, going 3-for-4 with a run scored. Getting that kind of offensive contribution from your catcher is a bonus at any level. Jake Gelof was patient at the plate — 1-for-2 with two walks and two runs scored. He only swung at strikes, drew his free passes, and came around to score both times. That’s a mature approach. Elijah Hainline went 1-for-4 with a stolen base. Not a huge night at the dish, but he made things happen on the bases.

Great Lakes Loons (High-A) — L, 9-10 vs Wisconsin

This one hurts. Nine runs should be enough to win. It wasn’t. The Loons scored nine times and still came up short in a 10-9 loss, which tells you everything you need to know about how the pitching went late in this game.

Let’s start with what went right. Jose Meza had a monster night at DH: 2-for-4, a home run, two walks, and three RBI. He showed real discipline — two walks alongside the power — and that’s the combination you want to see from a developing bat. Eduardo Quintero was a spark plug in center, going 3-for-5 with a walk, an RBI, two stolen bases, and two runs scored. He was on base constantly and made things happen every time he got there. Samuel Munoz chipped in going 2-for-5 with a double, an RBI, and two runs. Eduardo Guerrero added two hits in six at-bats with an RBI and a stolen base. Nico Perez only got one at-bat but went 1-for-1 with a walk and two steals — efficient and aggressive on the bases. Jose D. Hernandez contributed an RBI and a stolen base of his own. The Loons were running all over Wisconsin tonight.

Charles Davalan went 0-for-4 but drew two walks, so it wasn’t a total zero. Still, you’d like to see him put a ball in play in a game where the offense was rolling like this.

The pitching is where this one fell apart. Zach Root actually had a solid start — five innings, seven strikeouts, just one earned run. Three walks aren’t ideal, but the strikeouts and the run prevention were there. Things unraveled after he left. Davis Chastain blew the save with two innings of work — four strikeouts, which is impressive, but also three walks and an earned run. That walk rate continues to be concerning. Then Joseilyn Gonzalez took the loss, giving up an earned run in 1.2 innings while issuing three more walks. When your relievers combine for six walks in 3.2 innings, you’re going to hand the other team free baserunners, and eventually they cash in. That’s what happened here. The bullpen walked nine batters between Chastain and Gonzalez and the start. That’s unacceptable. Nine runs from your offense deserves a win.

Ontario Tower Buzzers (Single-A) — W, 5-4 vs Lake Elsinore

Chase Harlan was the story here. He went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a walk, and two runs scored. That’s a polished plate appearance from a Single-A third baseman — barreling the ball to the gaps and taking his free passes. Both extra-base hits were doubles, which suggests he was driving the ball line to line rather than trying to lift everything. Good approach.

Mairoshendrick Martinus came through with the clutch hit — 1-for-4, but that one hit was a triple that drove in two runs. In a one-run game, those two RBI were the difference. Sometimes one swing is all you need.

Jesus Tillero earned the win in an interesting outing. He went 5.1 innings with four strikeouts and zero walks, which is excellent command. But he also gave up three earned runs and was tagged with a blown save. So what happened? He clearly settled in as the game went on — no walks across 5.1 innings is impressive — but he was hittable early. The zero walks tell you his stuff was in the zone; the three earned runs tell you it was findable at times. Still, he kept the team in the game long enough for the bats to pull ahead. He moves to 3-5 on the season.

ACL Dodgers (Rookie) — L, 1-13 vs ACL Reds

Not much to say here. A 1-13 loss is a beatdown, and there weren’t any individual highlights worth pulling from this one. Some days at the rookie level look like this. You tip your cap, move on, and show up tomorrow. These are young players, and nights like this are part of the development process. We’ll look for a bounce-back in the next one.

DSL Dodgers (Rookie) — Split: W 9-7 vs DSL LAD Mega / L 7-9 vs DSL LAD Bautista

A split day for our DSL Dodgers, and both games were high-scoring affairs. In the win over DSL LAD Mega, Ezequiel Melburne made the most of limited at-bats — 1-for-1 with a double, a walk, and three RBI. Three RBI on one hit and a walk is about as efficient as it gets. Fran-Jean Haseth provided the power with a solo home run, going 1-for-3 with an RBI. Moises Rangel didn’t get a hit in his lone at-bat but drew two walks and scored twice. Patient at-bats at this level are worth noting.

On the mound, Shai Romero picked up his first win of the season with a scoreless-ish inning of relief — one earned run, two walks, no strikeouts in just one inning of work. It wasn’t clean, but it was a win. Alexander Pichardo was steadier in the save role, going two innings with two strikeouts and just one walk for his second save.

In the loss to DSL LAD Bautista, Erny Orellana was the offensive standout and it wasn’t close. He went 3-for-3 with a homer, a walk, four RBI, two stolen bases, and two runs scored. That’s a complete game — power, speed, discipline, all in one line. Keep an eye on this one. Moises Acacio added a nice game at shortstop, going 2-for-4 with a homer, a double, a walk, and an RBI. Helvin Mendoza contributed a walk, two stolen bases, and a run. Luis Tovar went 2-for-5 with a run scored.

The problem was Junior Pena, who took the loss and the blown save. He lasted just 1.1 innings and gave up four earned runs on two walks without recording a strikeout. That’s a rough day. At the DSL level, these outings happen — the key is how he responds next time out.