Orioles minor league recap 8/6: Aberdeen wastes a strong start, Delmarva falls in a barn burner

Charleston RiverDogs (Yankees) 11, Delmarva Shorebirds 7

Delmarva briefly held a three-run lead in the second inning, but starter Hector Guance gave all three runs back in the bottom half of the frame. After the Shorebirds failed to score in the third and fourth innings, Guance imploded in the bottom of the fourth.

Guance walked three of the four hitters he faced before being relieved by Matt Hammonds. Hammonds sandwiched a bases loaded walk around running-scoring singles and doubles. Charleston scored six times in the inning, and provided themselves plenty of distance.

Delmarva scored three runs in the fifth inning and added another in the sixth but could not battle all the way back. Charleston scored two more in the sixth and held on for an 11-7 victory.

Leadoff hitter JC Encarnacion picked up hits in his first four at bats. Encarnacion finished 4-5 with an RBI, and Johnny Rizer posted a 2-5 with two RBIs from the two-hole. Five other Delmarva hitters recorded one hit.

Interestingly enough, a game that featured 18 runs did not include a single home run. Encarnacion’s double was Delmarva’s only extra base hit. Delmarva went 5-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

Connecticut Tigers (Tigers) 2, Aberdeen IronBirds 0

The IronBirds received a quality start from starting pitcher Ryan Conroy, but the Aberdeen offense failed to offer any run support in a 2-0 loss. Conroy, an eighth round pick in 2018, held the Tigers to two runs in six innings. He allowed six hits, but struck out seven while walking just one.

Both of Connecticut’s runs came in the fifth inning. Conroy ran into some trouble after a leadoff walk, and eventually allowed both runs to score on a two-out single. He bounced back with a strong sixth inning to keep the IronBirds in the game.

Aberdeen managed only five hits in the ball game, and all five were by different players. Top pick Adley Rutschman picked up one of those knocks in a 1-4 effort. Clay Fisher reached on a walk and stole a base. The IronBirds did walk three times, but were held in check by Connecticut starter Xavier Javier through six innings. IronBird relievers Connor Gillispie and Kade Strowd each pitched a scoreless inning.

Complete box scores from Monday’s games can be found here

Today’s scheduled games:

Norfolk vs Indianapolis, 7:05. Starter: Jay Flaa (2-3, 4.78)

Bowie at Trenton, 7:00. Starter: Zac Lowther (11-5, 2.62)

Frederick vs. Potomac, 7:00. Starter: Cameron Bishop (0-8, 4.64)

Delmarva at Charleston, 7:05. Starter: TBD

Aberdeen at Connecticut, 7:05. Starter: TBD