Squirrels Rally Falls Short in 10-9 Loss
EL Richmond Flying Squirrels

Squirrels Rally Falls Short in 10-9 Loss

Published on April 28, 2026 under Eastern League (EL)
Richmond Flying Squirrels News Release


RICHMOND, Va. - The Richmond Flying Squirrels rallied but fell a run short in a 10-9 loss to the Altoona Curve on Tuesday night at Peoples Natural Gas Field.

The Flying Squirrels (17-4) were handed their fourth one-run loss of the season and were defeated by the Curve (6-15) for the first time in seven head-to-head matchups.

Trailing by as many as eight runs in the game, the Flying Squirrels entered the eighth down, 10-6. Jonah Cox brought in a run with a triple and scored on a single by Scott Bandura to close the score to 10-9.

In the ninth, pinch-hitter Jack Payton doubled in a run with two outs to pull the Flying Squirrels within a run, but Cy Nielson (Save, 1) struck out pinch-hitter Aeverson Arteaga to end the game.

Altoona jumped ahead with a three-run homer by Jack Brannigan in the third against Greg Farone (Loss, 0-1). Later in the inning, Will Taylor hit an RBI single to open a 4-0 lead.

In the bottom of the fourth, Brannigan hit a solo homer to extend the lead to 5-0.

Cox grounded into a force out to bring home Richmond's first run in the fifth. The Curve answered in the bottom of the inning with a three-run homer by Jared Triolo, working a rehab assignment from the Pirates, and a solo homer by Duce Gourson to extend their lead to 9-1.

Altoona starter Connor Wietgrefe (Win, 1-1) held Richmond to one run over five innings with six strikeouts.

Sabin Ceballos started the Richmond rally with a two-run homer in the top of the sixth, his fifth of the season. Later in the frame, Cox was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Scott Bandura hit a two-run single to close the score to 9-6.

Will Taylor padded the Curve lead to 10-6 with an RBI double in the bottom of the sixth.

Will Bednar pitched two scoreless innings out of the Richmond bullpen and struck out three, lowering his ERA to 1.69.

Cox extended went 1-for-3 with three RBIs, extending his on-base streak to 19 games. He has at least one hit in 18-of-19 games played this season and ranks second in MiLB with a .413 batting average.

Drew Cavanaugh went 1-for-2 with two walks. He has a .525 on-base percentage this year, which is second-highest in MiLB.

The series continues on Wednesday night. Left-hander Joe Whitman (2-1, 5.68) will start for Richmond opposed by Altoona right-hander Peyton Stumbo (0-2, 6.19). First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Peoples Natural Gas Field in Altoona.

Following the road trip, the Flying Squirrels return to CarMax Park for a six-game series against the Akron RubberDucks, Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians from May 5-10. Tickets are available online at SquirrelsBaseball.com/Tickets, by phone at 804-359-FUNN (3866) or in person at the CarMax Park ticket office.

Check out the Richmond Flying Squirrels Statistics

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Eastern League Stories from April 28, 2026


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