Rochester Secures Winning Record En Route to 4-3 Victory

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 Rochester Red Wings

Rochester Secures Winning Record En Route to 4-3 Victory

September 18, 2024 - International League (IL)
Rochester Red Wings News Release


The Rochester Red Wings secured a winning record for the first time since 2017 as they narrowly defeated the Iowa Cubs, 4-3, on Wednesday evening in front of their home crowd at Innovative Field. C C.J. Stubbs picked up two hits in his Innovative Field debut, and SS Jackson Cluff homered for the eighth time with Rochester to help propel the Red Wings over the Cubs.

Iowa got things rolling early thanks to a pair of walks from RF Owen Caissie and CF Kevin Alcántara to open the ballgame. With two men on, DH Matt Shaw roped in a line drive double to right, allowing Caissie to score to give the Cubs an early 1-0 lead.

Looking to get on the board in the third, Jackson Cluff stepped up to the plate and launched a fly ball over the right field wall. Cluff's lead-off solo shot was his eighth homer of the year and leveled the score to 1-1.

Looking to break the tie in the fourth, Iowa 1B Matt Mervis singled to put a runner on and successfully stole second. After an unsuccessful challenge, 2B Hayden Cantrelle walked. Seizing the opportunity, 3B Reivaj Garcia sent a ground ball to center for a single that saw Mervis turn on the jets to score from second. Iowa now held a 2-1 lead.

In what proved to be a back-and-forth game, the Red Wings came right back in the bottom half of the fourth inning. CF Robert Hassell III singled to left, getting on base for the second time in the outing. In just his third game with Rochester, C.J. Stubbs powered a line-drive double to left. Hassell III wheeled it all the way around from first to score, evening the game at 2-2. The hits would not stop there, as 2B Trey Lipscomb singled to right. The Red Wings' fourth straight hit allowed Stubbs to score, giving them their first lead of the night, 3-2.

Following a few scoreless innings, Iowa opened the eighth looking to make some noise. A single from DH Matt Shaw put a runner on. With two outs, Shaw stole second before LF Darius Hill launched a double that fell between the left-center gap. This saw Shaw sprint it home to tie the game at three apiece.

Looking to break the tie, Rochester did some damage with two outs in the bottom half of the eighth. After a Stubbs walk, Andrew Pinckney came in as a pinch runner and successfully stole second. With a runner in scoring position, Cluff singled to right. His third hit of the evening allowed Pinckney to come around and score, giving the Red Wings a late 4-3 lead.

With the exciting finish, Rochester was able to hold off the Cubs 4-3 for their 75th win of the year, securing a winning record for the first time since the 2017 season, where the team finished 80-62.

RHP Spenser Watkins logged his 23rd start of the year for the Red Wings Wednesday evening. In 5.0 innings, the righty allowed only two runs across five hits, while walking three and striking out five in the process. Entering in relief came RHP Michael Rucker, who in his fourth outing for the Red Wings threw for 1.1 scoreless innings, allowing just one hit, now walks, and one strikeout. In the middle of the seventh, Southpaw Tim Cate entered and tossed just seven pitches to finish out the inning scoreless. He did not allow any hits or walks but had one strikeout. Freshly coming out for the eighth, RHP Amos Willingham logged a full inning of work, giving up one run across two hits, no walks, with two strikeouts in the process. RHP Rico Garciacame on to shut the door, finishing out the ninth with a scoreless inning, allowing just one hit to earn his International League-leading 20th save of the season.

The Diamond Pro Player of the Game goes to SS Jackson Cluff, who finished the night 3-5, with a pair of RBIs and a run. Cluff's first hit of the night, his solo-shot in the third, first put Rochester on the board. He then came up clutch in the eighth with an RBI-single to secure the win for the Red Wings. This is his first three-hit game with Rochester since May 30 against St. Paul.

The Red Wings continue their series against Iowa on Thursday evening for a scheduled 6:05 p.m. first pitch. RHP Thaddeus Ward will get the nod for Rochester for his 28th start of the season. The Cubs will look to counter with RHP Trey Supak slated to start.


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