SWB RailRiders Game Notes- September 20, 2025
IL Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders

SWB RailRiders Game Notes- September 20, 2025

Published on September 20, 2025 under International League (IL)
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders News Release


Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (48-25, 86-59) at Buffalo Bisons (30-41, 60-84)

September 20, 2025 | Game 146 | Road Game 73 | Sahlen Field | First Pitch 1:05 P.M.

RH Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz (Triple-A Debut) vs. RH CJ Van Eyk (3-6, 5.12)

Rodriguez-Cruz: 11-7, 2.42 ERA and 173 strikeouts between Hudson Valley and Somerset in 2025

Van Eyk: Surrendered 5 R (4 ER) on 8 H over 4.0 IP in 9/14 Loss @ ROC with 0 K (5-4 Red Wings)

LAST TIME OUT- BUFFALO, NY (September 19, 2025) - The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders beat the Buffalo Bisons 10-2 at Sahlen Field on Friday night. The victory clinched the second-half crown and sends the RailRiders to the International League Championship Series in Jacksonville next week.

The RailRiders took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. With two in scoring position, Spencer Jones doubled in Jorbit Vivas and J.C. Escarra to stake Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to the early edge. The Bisons quickly responded in the bottom of the first with an inside-the-park home run by Jonatan Clase. The outfielder lined a 1-1 pitch just beyond the reach of right fielder Ismael Munguia and off the wall and rounded the bases to cut the RailRiders' lead to one.

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre sent all nine batters to the plate in the top of the fifth. With two down, Escarra singled to start the rally. Jose Rojas lined his 32nd home run of the year to right, tying the single-season franchise record in the process. Jones doubled and scored on a T.J. Rumfield single for a 5-1 lead. Bryan De La Cruz followed Rumfield with his 15th home run of the year to build a 7-1 edge. Escarra doubled in Vivas in the sixth for an 8-1 lead. Buffalo countered with a run on a hit, two walks and a sac fly in the bottom of the inning, cutting their deficit to six. In the top of the eighth, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre added a pair of runs on three hits to take a 10-2 lead and cap the scoring.

Sean Boyle (9-9) earned the win with five innings of work and Adam Kloffenstein (2-8) took the loss. Jake Bird, Yerry De Los Santos, Kervin Castro and Wilking Rodriguez held the Bisons to one run over the final four innings to lock down the win.

#CLINCHED- With two games remaining in the 2025 regular season, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre has locked down the second-half title in the International League. Friday's win kept the RailRiders' lead at three games with two to go, eliminating Syracuse and pushing Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to the postseason for the first time since the 2019 campaign.

WE'RE IN THE ENDGAME NOW- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre will travel to Jacksonville next week for a best-of-three series starting on September 23. The Triple-A National Championship Game is slated for 10:00 P.M. ET on September 27 in Las Vegas when the IL winner squares off against the Pacific Coast League champions. The RailRiders and Jumbo Shrimp did not meet in 2025. The clubs split a set at PNC Field in 2023, and SWB swept a six-game series last season in Florida.

FRESH FACE- New York has promoted #5 prospect Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The 22-year-old right-hander began the season with Hudson Valley and was promoted to Somerset on July 11. Rodriguez-Cruz, who was acquired from Boston along with International Bonus Pool money on December 11, 2024, combined for 26 appearances, 25 of which were starts, between the Renegades and the Patriots this season, going 11-7 with a 2.98 ERA. His 173 total strikeouts trail only Jonah Tong of the New York Mets for the most by a Minor League pitcher this season.

KING OF SWING- Jose Rojas matched Jorge Vasquez's club record of 32 home runs with a two-run shot on Friday night. Rojas enters play today with a .606 slugging percentage, which would smash Manager Shelley Duncan's 2008 franchise record of .577. Rojas is one RBI off of tying the franchise record of 106, set by Torey Lovullo in 1999.

TOP NOTCH- Eighty-six SWB wins this year are tied for fifth-most in a single season in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre franchise history, matching Al Pedrique's 2017 RailRiders squad. Dave Miley's 2010 playoff club captured 87 wins. With two games left, the RailRiders could finish the year matching the third-most victories in franchise history.

BEST IN CLASS- As play begins today, Jacksonville has an 88-60 record, best overall in the IL by a half game over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The Jumbo Shrimp's .595 winning percentage barely surpasses the RailRiders' .593. Lehigh Valley is a game back with two to play at .589, though the IronPigs will miss the postseason regardless, even if they finished with the top overall record due to the split-schedule playoff structure.

BACK ON THE CHASE- LA Dodgers Minor Leaguer Ryan Ward homered twice at Tacoma on Thursday, so Spencer Jones' 35 total home runs this season stand as the second-most in Minor League Baseball, one off Ward's pace. Jones hit 16 for Somerset in 49 games and has 19 with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre over 65 games played. The 24-year-old has five multi-homer games this season, including three with the RailRiders.

ROAD WARRIORS- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is 42-30 on the road this season, the tenth 40-plus road win season in franchise history.

FAREWELL FOR NOW- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre finished their 2025 home slate with 44 wins, 29 losses and two cancellations. The RailRiders hit .266 in 73 games with 84 home runs while sporting a staff ERA of 4.16 at PNC Field. Forty-four victories are tied for the eighth-most in a single season in 36 years of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre baseball.

CLUTCH- Nearly half of Jose Rojas' 32 home runs have come in key situations this season. Four have tied games and 10 have been go-ahead home runs by the 31-year-old. Thirteen of 32 have been hit in the seventh inning or later.

AROUND THE ORGANIZATION- New York fell 4-2 at Baltimore. Jazz Chisholm, Jr. hit his 30th home run of the year in the loss.

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International League Stories from September 20, 2025


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