Orioles minor league recap 4/19: Holliday and Basallo lead Delmarva to 11-run outburst

Triple-A: Norfolk Tides 5, Rochester Red Wings (Nationals) 3

The Tides wasted no time getting on the board in their win Tuesday over Rochester. Colton Cowser led off the bottom of the 1st with his first home run of the season—a shot to dead center that set the tone for Norfolk’s win. Cowser was the offensive star of the day for Norfolk, going 4-5 with an RBI and three runs scored.

Rochester scored two runs in the top of the 3rd to take a 2-1 lead. That lead would be short lived, though, as Kyle Stowers doubled in Cowser and Connor Norby. The Tides added another two runs in the bottom of the 4th, as a Cowser single allowed Maverick Handley to score after an error by the Red Wings' right fielder. Norby then singled to left to plate Cowser. The Tides’ second baseman also joined in on the hit parade, going 3-4 with an RBI and a run. Not to be outdone by his double-play partner, shortstop Joey Ortiz also went 3-4, raising his average to .364 on the young season.

The win also saw Cole Irvin make his first start for Norfolk. The recently-demoted lefty pitched six innings, allowing seven hits and two runs, while striking out two. The Tides bullpen also had a solid night, only allowing two hits over three innings—though one of the hits was a solo homer off Nick Vespi in the 8th. The win continued the Tides’ hot start to the season, as they sit atop the International League with an 11-4 record.

Box Score

Double-A: Altoona Curve (Pirates) 6, Bowie Baysox 1

Things between Bowie and Altoona were all-square halfway through the game. Then the bottom of the 5th inning hit. Bowie starter Chayce McDermott had guided the Baysox through 4.1 scoreless innings before exiting with two on and one out in the 5th. Reliever Xavier Moore could not get out of the jam, allowing back-to-back singles to give the Curve a 2-0 lead. Things quickly went from bad to worse, as Moore would go on to walk the bases loaded and give up a grand slam to Altoona outfielder Matt Gorski. When the inning mercifully came to an end, the Baysox found themselves down 6-0 and they never climbed out of the hole.

There were some positives to take away from the one-sided loss. McDermott only allowed two hits while striking out five. The centerpiece of the Orioles' return for Trey Mancini, McDermott now has a minuscule 0.68 ERA in 13.1 innings for Bowie—while also striking out 17. Reliever Kade Strowd also worked a nearly flawless three innings to close out the game, only allowing one walk while also picking up a strikeout.

Offensively, there wasn’t much to be excited about. Coby Mayo, Cesar Prieto and Zach Watson were the only players to collect a hit. Mayo’s lone hit was one of the loudest of the season, as he launched his second home run of the season for Bowie’s only run.

Box Score

High-A: Aberdeen IronBirds 9, JerseyShore BlueClaws (Phillies) 8

Aberdeen jumped out to a big early lead but managed to turn into a close game in their win over the BlueClaws. Catcher Silas Ardoin got the scoring started in the 3rd with a three-run home run, his first big fly of the season. After giving up a run in the top of the 3rd, Jud Fabian restored the IronBirds three-run lead with a sac fly in the bottom of the inning.

The 4th inning saw Aberdeen grow their lead even more, as Ardoin walked and then scored on a Ryan Higgins two-run homer. Luis Valdez then singled and moved to third on an error, before Frederick Benscome drove him in on a sac fly.

That 7-1 lead would grow even more in the 5th inning. The first two batters reached ahead of Isaac De Leon, who doubled to right field to score Dylan Beavers. Ardoin then collected his fourth RBI of the day, hitting a sac fly to right field to bring in Fabian. Things seemed all said and done at the end of the 5th, as the IronBirds held a 9-1 lead.

However, Aberdeen would end up needing every single one of those runs thanks to a nightmare 6th inning. The BlueClaws sent 10 batters to the plate in the top of the 6th, scoring seven runs—including driving in five runs with two outs. Relievers Graham Firoved, Nick Richmond and Ryan Hennen would rebound in the final three innings of the game. The trio worked three scoreless innings to close out the game and secure an IronBirds win.

Box Score

Low-A: Delmarva Shorebirds 11, Fredericksburg Nationals 6

The Shorebirds had their own offensive explosion Tuesday, scoring early and often in their win over Fredericksburg. First baseman Creed Willems continued his hot start to the season, as he singled home Jackson Holliday in the top of the 1st for the game's first run. While that was Willems’ only hit of the day, it was enough to keep his season average above .400 at .406.

Delmarva gave up two runs in the 2nd, falling behind 2-1. That was apparently all the motivation the Shorebirds’ batter needed, as the offense really took off in the 3rd. Catcher Samuel Basallo doubled home Holliday to start the inning, tying the game at two. The Shorebirds would later score again on a fielder's choice to take the lead 3-2.

Then in the fourth inning, Carter Young hit a sac fly to give Delmarva a 4-2 lead. After a Holliday single, Basallo came to the plate again, this time with two on and two out. On the seventh pitch of his at-bat, Basallo launched a three-run homer to left to balloon Delmarva’s lead to 7-2.

The Shorebirds would score two more runs in the 5th and another two runs in the 9th to cruise to victory. Delmarva’s 2-3-4 hitters of Holliday, Basallo and Anderson De Los Santos combined to go 7-13 with six runs scored. The outburst sees Holliday raise his season average to .371 while Basallo currently sits at .326.

Box Score

Wednesday’s Games

• Norfolk Tides vs. Rochester Red Wings, 6:35pm ET. Spenser Watkins vs. TBD
• Bowie Baysox at Altoona Curve, 11am ET. Carlos Tavera vs. Justin Meis
• Aberdeen IronBirds vs. Jersey Shore BlueCrabs. 7:05pm ET. Jean Pinto vs. TBD
• Delmarva Shorebirds at Fredericksburg Nationals, 12:05 ET. Juan Nunez vs. TBD