Wilin Rosario and Brandon Barnes both hit grand slams in lowobut win.
By Rochester Red Wings
LOUISVILLE, KY. — Wilin Rosario and Brandon Barnes both hit grand slams and four Rochester pitchers combined to surrender just three hits as the Rochester Red Wings beat the Louisville Bats, 12-1, Sunday afternoon at Louisville Slugger Field.
Randy Dobnak, pitching for the first time in 10 days after a stint with the Minnesota Twins, ran into trouble in the 1st inning. Narciso Crook singled to open the frame and scored on a Nick Longhi double. The Bats (53-72) loaded the bases after a pair of walks with one out but Dobnak got Alex Blandino to ground into a double play to end the threat.
The 3rd inning for the Red Wings (63-62) started harmlessly after a pair of groundouts. Ian Miller bunted for a hit, Drew Maggi singled up the middle, and Ramon Flores walked on a close pitch in an 11-pitch battle to load the bases. Rosario hammered an 0-1 pitch to make it 4-1.
Dobnak settled in, retiring the final 13 of the outing. He got nine groundouts while allowing two hits and two walks, all in the 1st inning, with three strikeouts over 5.0 innings. Dobnak threw just 73 pitches, 48 for strikes.
Maggi added to the lead in the 7th with a slow infield single with two outs that foiled the shift to make it 5-1. Rosario hit his second homer of the day and Ivan De Jesus Jr added an RBI single in the 8th to expand the lead to 7-1.
Rosario drove in his sixth run of the day with a single in the 9th and Barnes followed with Rochester’s second grand slam of the day to cap the scoring at 12-1.
Cody Stashak also made his return to the Wings and allowed a two-out infield single in a scoreless 6th inning. That was the only baserunner Louisville had after the opening inning as Stashak (1 IP), Ryan O’Rourke (2 IP), and Jake Reed (1 IP) combined to work scoreless relief.
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre leads Buffalo and Syracuse by 2.0 games and Rochester by 3.0 games with 15 games to play. The Wings play all their remaining games against the Bisons and Chiefs, starting Monday with a 4-game set against Buffalo at Frontier Field. On top of meaningful baseball, it is the first Food Week at Frontier.