Martin's Clutch Homer Lifts Patriots to 2-1 Win Over Baysox
EL Somerset Patriots

Martin's Clutch Homer Lifts Patriots to 2-1 Win Over Baysox

Published on May 21, 2026 under Eastern League (EL)
Somerset Patriots News Release


Somerset Patriots celebrate in the infield
Somerset Patriots celebrate in the infield
(Somerset Patriots)

The Somerset Patriots snuck past the Chesapeake Baysox 2-1 at Prince George's Stadium in Bowie, MD on Thursday night.

Somerset moved to 6-9 in its 15th one-run contest of the season. The Patriots' 15 one-run games are the second-most in the Eastern League and tied for second in Double-A at the time of the game ending.

With Garrett Martin's homer in the seventh inning, Somerset has homered in seven straight games and 21 of its last 24. The Patriots' 75 home runs this season lead Double-A and rank third in MiLB. Somerset's 75 home runs in the first 42 games of the season are a Double-A record in the Research Tool Era (since 2005).

Somerset's 246 home run pace through 42 games is on track to beat Somerset's Double-A Research Tool Era-record 205 home runs in 2021. The 246 home run pace would rank third-most in MiLB in the Research Tool Era (ELP 2019: 258, LV 2019: 250).

With one extra base hit in the game, Somerset has an extra base hit in all 42 games this season. At the time of the game ending, Somerset's 42-game XBH streak is the longest in the Eastern League, longest in Double-A and second-longest in MiLB. The 42 consecutive games with an XBH ties a franchise record last achieved 5/28/24 - 7/14/24.

Somerset's pitching staff registered 12 strikeouts, notching double-digit punchouts for the fourth consecutive game and 12th time in the last 13 games. Somerset's 11.3 K/9 leads Double-A and ranks sixth in Minor League Baseball (Full Season).

LHP Xavier Rivas (3.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K) recorded seven-plus strikeouts for his third consecutive outing. His 74 pitches marked a season-high and were the first time he surpassed the 70-pitch threshold this year.

Of Rivas' seven strikeouts, three came on the slider while two came on the fastball and splitter each. Across his last three outings, Rivas has 24 K to five walks in 13.1 IP. He's compiled a 2.03 ERA, 0.68 WHIP and .091 BAA, striking out 49.0% of hitters in that span.

LHP Tanner Bauman (2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K) retired five of the last six batters he faced in a season-high 2.1 IP. He earned the win in his Double-A debut.

CF Jace Avina (0-for-3, 2 BB) extended his on-base streak to 20 games with a pair of walks in his first two plate appearances. His active 20-game on-base streak ranks second in the Eastern League and is the second-longest by a Patriot this season. During the streak, Avina is slashing .321/.406/.702 with eight HR, 19 RBI and 16 XBH. He's raised his OPS from .629 to .894 in that span.

DH Garrett Martin (2-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, BB) smashed his Eastern League-leading 14th HR of the season. Martin's 14 HR lead the Yankees minor league system, rank second in Double-A and are tied for fifth in MiLB. Martin's 14 HR are the most ever by a Somerset Patriot thru the season's first 42 games.

After a career-high 14 HR in 102 games with Somerset in 2025, Martin reached the same home run total with 304 fewer plate appearances in just 38 games this year. In his last eight games, Martin is 11-for-34 with three HR, 11 RBI, six XBH and four multi-hit games.

3B Tyler Hardman (1-for-4) extended his hit streak to five games and on-base streak to seven games with a single in the sixth inning.

Across the last five games, Hardman is 6-for-20 with three HR and seven RBI. In 14 career games at Prince George's Stadium dating back to 2023, Hardman is hitting .288/.387/.788 with 15 hits, eight HR and 16 RBI.

Check out the Somerset Patriots Statistics

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Somerset Patriots celebrate in the infield
Somerset Patriots celebrate in the infield
   



Eastern League Stories from May 21, 2026


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