WILMINGTON, DE (6/4/26) — The Wilmington Blue Rocks lost the third game of a six-game series, 6-4, Thursday night against the Bowling Green Hot Rods.
The Blue Rocks fell to 26-27 on the season and remain in third place in the South Atlantic League North Division. Wilmington has now lost six consecutive games. Bowling Green improved to 39-14 and remains alone atop the SAL South Division.
The Rocks made things interesting in the ninth inning, scoring twice. T.J. White drove in a run with a single before Randal Diaz brought home two more with an RBI double.
The top offensive performer for Wilmington was Kevin Bazzell, who went 2-for-4 and ripped a 100 mph double in the second inning. The catcher has been swinging a hot bat recently, raising his average to .378. His approach at the plate is simple.
"The biggest thing is having confidence," Bazzell said. "We can try to mess with our swing and mechanics all we want, but if you don't have confidence, you can't hit."
Manager Ted Tom has experience helping teams navigate losing streaks, though this is his first season managing at the professional level.
"Our guys continue to battle. The last two nights we've battled in the ninth inning," Tom said. "The benefit of pro ball is we're preparing our guys for something more than wins and losses. We have to stick to the process."
Blue Rocks starter Yoel Tejeda Jr. looked sharp through the first two innings, striking out three while allowing no runs. The right-hander ran into trouble in the third and fourth innings, however, surrendering three runs. It nearly became four if not for a highlight-reel throw from Teo Banks in right field. Banks entered the game after Yeremy Cabrera exited with an injury in the first inning.
Despite the rough stretch, Tejeda's strikeout pitch was effective. He struck out five batters over five innings, marking his fifth start since May 1 with at least five strikeouts. His final line was five innings, three runs (two earned), nine hits, three walks and five strikeouts.
"I think he really grinded through those five innings," Tom said. "If you said before the game he would give you five innings and three runs, you're going to take that every day of the week."
A bright spot for Wilmington was recent addition Baron Stuart out of the bullpen. The former Hudson Valley Renegades pitcher tossed 1 1/3 innings and struck out two batters, including one to escape a bases-loaded jam.
Bowling Green's offense did much of its damage by putting the ball in play. While Tejeda allowed a few hard-hit balls, the Hot Rods consistently found holes and capitalized on scoring opportunities. Bowling Green also swiped seven bases in the victory.
The Blue Rocks struggled to generate offense against Hot Rods starter Jack Kartsonas. The right-hander was dominant and would have posted a scoreless outing if not for a balk that allowed Angel Feliz to score in the fourth inning. Kartsonas worked six innings and struck out a career-high eight batters.
While the offense has struggled throughout the series, Wilmington is facing one of the strongest pitching staffs in the South Atlantic League.
"They have a really good pitching staff, and their starter had a good game," Bazzell said. "They command their fastball really well. Last week we saw a lot of off-speed pitches, so it's definitely different."
The Blue Rocks can still salvage a split of the series, but they will need to win each of the final three games. Wilmington returns to action Friday at 6:35 p.m., when highly touted prospect Miguel Sime Jr. is scheduled to make his long-awaited professional debut.