| Team | Yesterday | Today | Pitching Probables |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rochester | Lost, 7-1 | @ Buffalo, 1:05pm | Z. Kent (5-0, 4.78) vs. Rogers (4-12, 6.77) |
Buffalo 7 Rochester 1
• Susana (L, 0-1) 2⅔ IP, 4H, 4R, 4ER, 4BB, 3K
• P. Schultz 1⅓ IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 3K, 2-2 IR-S
• Lipscomb 1-3, BB, RBI
• Lawson 1-3, 2B
With four in the 3rd and three in the 8th, the Bisons trampled the Red Wings, 7-1 to stop a two-game winning streak. Jarlin Susana put the lead runner on in two of three innings and had eight baserunners total. He left two out and two and down 2-0 when Paxton Schultz handed over his beer and gave up a two-run double. While he ended up striking out three of the next four batters, that wasn’t the assignment.
Not that it really mattered as Buffalo’s C.J. Van Eyk pwned the Rochester lineup with two hits in seven innings – a one-out single by Trey Lipscomb in the 4th and a Cortland Lawson double to lead off the 7th. Lipscomb ended the shutout two batters later with a soft grounder to second base. Lipscomb also drew a walk, as did Leandro Pineda to extend his on-base streak to 35 games.
The I.L. Second Half Playoff Race Update
The Red Wings caught a break when the Stripers ended the Indians’ six-game win streak with an 8-7 win in 10 innings. The Mets, the (ugh) WooSox and the RailRiders all won as well to make things interesting:
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
| Rochester | 43 | 30 | .589 | — |
| Indianapolis | 43 | 30 | .589 | — |
| Syracuse | 42 | 30 | .583 | ½ |
| Scranton/Wilkes-Barre | 40 | 31 | .563 | 2 |
| Worcester | 40 | 31 | .563 | 2 |
What’s keeping Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and Worcester in this is the two fewer games played. If either wins out and all three 30-loss teams loses out, a 42-31 record would be .002 better than a 43-32 record (.575 vs. .573). In the older system, which I know is a moot point because I.L. went from three divisions to two in 2022 and took on five teams in 2021, it would be the Red Wings and Mets in the East ILDS and the RedBirds and Saints in the West ILDS. Instead, as pointed out in the comments, a team that’s .500 for the year (Indianapolis) could make the playoffs while an 89- or 90-win team (Rochester) is shut out.
