The Wilmington Blue Rocks had a rough night on Wednesday, August 3, as they dropped the second game of their home-and-home series against the Aberdeen IronBirds 7-4.
Aberdeen scored all seven of their runs within the first two innings off of Wilmington’s starter Mitchell Parker.
Right off the bat, Parker gave up three hits in a row to the IronBird's first three batters, the last being a two-RBI double to center field from Coby Mayo. A sac fly from Ryan Higgins brought Mayo in and put the Blue Rocks down 3-0 in the first inning.
The top of the second inning was very similar to the first, as a walk, two singles, and a double led to two more runs being scored for the IronBirds. Mayo hit a sac fly of his own to score Aberdeen’s sixth run of the night, and after T.T. Bowens hit an RBI single, it was 7-0 in favor of the Blue Rocks’ opponents and the end of Parker’s night.
Wilmington’s starter’s final stat line was seven runs off eight hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Throughout the night, Gilberto Chu, Carlos Romero, and Gerardo Carrillo were sent to the mound to maintain the IronBirds’ bats, but the damage was already done.
The Blue Rocks did have some offense sparks despite the loss, the first being in the fifth inning when Drew Mendoza blasted the ball over the right field wall for a two-run homer, his sixth home run of the season.
It was a 7-2 game up until the bottom of the ninth, when Wilmington’s offense got one last jolt of energy. Jeremy De La Rosa started off the inning with a double to center field, followed by Drew Millas being walked. So when Jose Sanchez hit his first triple of the year, it scored two more runs in favor of the Blue Rocks.
That would be all their offense had in them, though, as the IronBirds would record the final out of the game when Mendoza grounded out the next at-bat.
The series is now all tied up at one apiece, and the Blue Rocks are now looking to take their last home game before heading to Aberdeen. That matchup is set for Thursday, August 4, at 6:35 p.m.