Cruz Walks It off in Game One of Homestand
IL Toledo Mud Hens

Cruz Walks It off in Game One of Homestand

July 29, 2025 - International League (IL)
Toledo Mud Hens News Release


Toledo, OH - The Toledo Mud Hens staged a thrilling comeback to walk it off against the St. Paul Saints, 6-5, on Tuesday, July 29, in the series opener at Fifth Third Field.

The Saints came out swinging in the top of the first, stringing together five straight hits to jump out to a 3-0 lead. Austin Martin and Luke Keaschall led off with back-to-back singles, followed by an RBI single from Edouard Julien. Carson McCusker then roped an RBI double to left, and Payton Eeles added another run with an RBI single. A fielding error by Jace Jung allowed McCusker to score, capping off the inning ahead 4-0.

Toledo responded right away in the home half. Justyn-Henry Malloy singled, and Akil Baddoo drove in Hao-Yu Lee with an RBI base knock to cut the deficit to 4-1.

Starter Devin Smeltzer exited the game in the second after a comebacker from McCusker deflected off him, forcing an early call to the bullpen. In the bottom half of the frame, Lee collected a base hit for the Mud Hens, but Eduardo Valencia was injured while running the bases and was replaced by Andrew Navigato.

Julien doubled in the fourth for St. Paul.

Toledo kept chipping away. In the fifth, Trey Sweeney doubled and then swiped third base, scoring on a groundout by Jung. Ryan Kreidler came up clutch with a two-run double, plating Malloy and Baddoo to even the score at 4-4.

Sweeney doubled again in the sixth, and Cruz added a base hit in the seventh as Toledo's offense stayed active.

The Saints regained the lead in the eighth off a sacrifice fly from Keaschall after a Fitzgerald double and a walk loaded the bases.

Down 5-4 in the bottom of the ninth, Jung sparked the rally with a leadoff single. Baddoo drew a walk, and although Kreidler's grounder forced out Baddoo, Navigato delivered a game-tying RBI double. Moments later, Trei Cruz laced a walk-off single to right field to seal the 6-5 comeback victory.

Smeltzer got the start for Toledo, with Tanner Rainey, Alex Lange, Jordan Balazovic, Matt Seelinger, and Bailey Horn combining for solid work out of the bullpen. Horn earned the win.

The Toledo Mud Hens will look to keep the momentum rolling in game two of the series on Wednesday, July 30, at Fifth Third Field. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

Notables:

Trei Cruz (2-4, RBI, BB)

Trey Sweeney (2-5, 2 2B, R)

Check out the Toledo Mud Hens Statistics



International League Stories from July 29, 2025


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