Omaha Storm Chasers 9, Toledo Mud Hens 8 (box)

The Toledo Mud Hens blew an early 5-run lead against the Omaha Storm Chasers on Tuesday night to drop the opening game of the weeklong series, 9-8. Omaha scored seven in the third to shift the momentum of the game, but both teams continued to trade blows until the final frames.

Toledo scored four in the first inning. Gage Workman walked, stole second and scored on an Andy Ibanez single before the first out was made. Jusyn-Henry Malloy walked, and Jace Jung singled to load the bases. Hao Yu-Lee had a chance to blow things wide open, but he grounded into a double play. It was great to see him already back in the lineup after getting drilled in the face with a pitch last Wednesday, but a base hit there would have really altered the complexion of this one towards a Mud Hens win.

Brewer Hicklen was the next batter up and he proceeded to crack his first homer of the day. Had Lee singled, it’s a 6-0 game in the first and Omaha starter Kyle Wright is likely knocked out of the game. The SeaWolves had a chance to put another crooked number up in the second with the bases loaded twice, but Jung’s sacrifice fly was the only at-bat to bring in a run. It was one of those games where they had an opponent on the ropes and couldn’t put them away.

Leaving the door open proved to be fatal as Lael Lockhart Jr. took a beating in this one. Omaha plated seven in the third. MJ Melendez and Joey Wiemer singled in runs, and then the extra-base hits came. Brian O’Keefe tied the game up with a two-run double, and Nick Pratto gave the Chasers the lead with a two-run homer.

Toledo finally pulled Lockhart after the homer, but the damage was done. Ryan Miller pitched through the fourth without much trouble, but Matt Manning and Dylan Smith gave up runs in each of the next two frames. Wiemer homered off Miller, and a leadoff walk came back to bite Smith.

Those two insurance proved to be the difference in the game. Toledo got the offense going again in the seventh. Hicklen hit his second homer of the day, a three-run shot, to bring the Mud Hens within one, but that’s where things ended.

Hicklen: 2-4, 2 HR (4), 2 R, 5 RBI

Jung: 1-4, RBI, 3 K

Lee: 1-4, R, BB, K

Malloy: 2-4, 2 R, BB, K

Lockhart (L, 2-5): 2.2 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 3 BB, 5 K; 69 pitches (42 strikes)

Coming Up Next: Toledo gets a chance to even the series on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. with Troy Melton (0-1, 3.86) on the mound.

Erie Seawolves 3, Altoona Curve 0 (box)

After taking the May series against Altoona, 4-2, the Erie Seawolves are off to a strong start once again against the Curve. Max Anderson’s 10th homer of the season and a pair of Jake Holton at-bats decided the 3-0 win on Tuesday night.

Neither team hit the ball particularly well, combining for just 10 hits over 63 at-bats (.158). Two of Erie’s six hits came in the opening frame. Trei Cruz walked, Anderson singled and Holton doubled in a run to take an early lead. Anderson’s homer came in the third, a no-doubter to left-center.

Holton singled in the third with two outs, but nothing came of it. The only other two SeaWolves hits on the day came from Trei Cruz, who singled to open the fifth and doubled in the seventh.

Cruz’s double moved Jim Jarvis, who was hit by a pitch, to third, and an intentional walk to Anderson loaded the bases. Altoona got Thayron Liranzo to strike out, but Holton walked to bring in the insurance run.

All Erie needed was one, though, as the pitching staff shut out Altoona and allowed just five baserunners — four singles and a walk. Two of those baserunners reached scoring position, Termarr Johnson in the first and Maikol Escotto in the second.

Escotto and Imanol Vargas hit back-to-back singles, putting men on the corners. A spiked breaking ball sent Vargas racing toward second, but Liranzo made a nice block behind the plate and caught him for a big out.

Erie’s starter, Austin Bergner, cruised after that. He gave up just one more hit and struck out three with no walks through the fifth inning. Jordan Marks delivered two perfect innings in relief, and Andrew Magno went 1-2-3 in the eighth. Richard Guasch closed things out for his first save of the year.

The SeaWolves’ pitching staff combined for just four strikeouts, so there was some solid defense played behind them.

Anderson: 2-4, HR (10), R, BB, K

Cruz: 2-4, 2B (17), R, BB, K

Liranzo: 0-4, 2 K

Holton: 2-4, 2B (13), 2 RBI, BB, K

Bergner (W, 4-2): 5.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K; 60 pitches (42 strikes)

Coming Up Next: Kenny Serwa (1-0, 6.00) makes his second start for Erie since his promotion from West Michigan at 6 p.m. ET tomorrow

West Michigan Whitecaps 6, Lansing Lugnuts 2 (box)

The West Michigan Whitecaps’ magic number is down to three following a 6-2 win over the second place Lansing Lugnuts Tuesday night.

The bottom of the order carried the Whitecaps’ offense. Andrew Jenkins, Bennett Lee and Seth Stephenson went a combined 5-for-12, scored three runs and drove in two more. Lee was the loudest contributor with a go-ahead, solo homer in the top of the fifth.

The Detroit Tigers’ bigger-name prospects didn’t do much for West Michigan in the win. Max Clark singled in Stephenson during a four-run seventh inning that put the game away. Josue Briceno didn’t play, and Kevin McGonigle went 0-for-4 despite not striking out on the day.

Peyton Graham had a three-hit game. He hit his second double of the game to drive in Clark and Lee in that big seventh inning.

3rd hit of the night for Peyton Graham on an impressive piece of hitting, going opposite field on a 95MPH double, scoring two. pic.twitter.com/v7ZSFJEZem

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 11, 2025

The trio of Colin Fields, Preston Howey and Hayden Minton held Lansing’s typically strong offense to just two runs on six hits and no walks. Minton got the start and struck out four over five innings. Nate Nankil (Athletics, No. 28) got to him for a solo shot in the second, but that’s the only extra-base hit Minton surrendered.

Howey recorded a hold with two perfect innings of work, and Fields closed things out. Fields struggled a bit, allowing a run in the ninth. A pair of singles helped score the leadoff man, who Fields hit, so it’s a self-inflicted wound from a guy who has a 2.01 ERA on the year.

Clark: 1-5, R, RBI, 3 K

McGonigle: 0-4

Lee: 2-3, HR (2), 2 R, RBI, BB, K

Graham: 3-5, 2 2B (10), R, 2 RBI, K

Minton: 5.0 IP, 3 H, R, ER, 0 BB, 4 K; 66 pitches (45 strikes)

Coming Up Next: West Michigan wants to lock up a playoff spot as quickly as possible, and winning the series does the trick. Max Alba (1-2, 4.08) goes for the Whitecaps tomorrow at 7:05 p.m. ET.

Palm Beach Cardinals 3, Lakeland Flying Tigers 0 (box)

Lakeland started the week off with a dud, losing 3-0 to the Palm Beach Cardinals. The Flying Tigers saw just five baserunners reach — three hits and two walks — against a quartet of typically hittable arms.

Garrett Pennington provided most of the offense for the Flygers, with singles in the fourth and ninth. He’s been swinging it well, going 14-for-38 with three homers and 11 RBIs over his last 11 games. Pennington didn’t have anyone on base to drive in tonight, but he still had two-thirds of the team’s hits.

The only other Lakeland hit of the game came off the bat of Ricardo Hurtado to open the sixth. Back-to-back strikeouts killed any hope of scoring the run, though. Palm Beach struck out 15 batters, with starter Brandt Thompson and relief arm Yordy Herrera finishing the game with six apiece.

Lakeland’s pitching staff wasn’t bad either. Bailey Horn made his first rehab start in Single-A and needed just 12 pitches to get through the first. His velocity was down overall, but give him a bit to ramp up.

Zack Lee threw the next 5.2 innings for the Flying Tigers. Lee allowed a baserunner to reach in every inning he pitched but the seventh. Palm Beach got to him for a pair of runs (one earned) on five hits and two walks; however, Lee struck out six along the way.

Blair Calvo is back with Lakeland after rehabbing from an injury with the FCL rookie ball team. Daniel Ortiz took him deep on a fastball left inside the zone. Calvo’s velocity was down a bit, too, but we’ll give him the same ramp-up courtesy that Horn got. Still, losing nearly 3 mph on a sinker isn’t ideal.

Strong: 0-4, 3 K

Pennington: 2-4, 1 K

Lee (L, 2-3): 5.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K; 91 pitches (58 strikes)

Coming Up Next: Game 2 of the series is at 6:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Neither team has a probable starter listed.