Autumn Dreamin

Veras played more games than anyone else in the league this season. He's back in the lineup after an injury in the division series, and gets the Barons on the board early with an RBI triple. Schultz puts up a 0, and the Barons are up 1-0 after the first.

The boys are happy: Especially Rikuu:

Barons win 6-3 for the division title and advance to the Championship series! Best of 3, starting Sunday. A Schultz playoff start perhaps...? Gowens was great today even though he ran into a little trouble in the 6th. Pallette with another solid 2 innings in relief (he gave up a tough luck unearned run) and the W. The bats left a small village on the bases (14 LOB, 3-10 with RISP), but having runners on base in every inning gave them enough chances to break through eventually. The Barons were the only team with a winning record vs. the Smokies in the regular season, and it mattered here. They edged them out by half a game in the first half, which is why they got two at home despite the Smokies having a much better second half and overall record.

After stranding the bases loaded twice earlier in the game, the Barons finally come through in the 8th to break a 3-3 tie. The rally was a team effort, but Nishida's speed was a big factor. He got on with a leadoff IF single: And then got Gonzo an RBI IF single when the pitcher thought he maybe had a shot to get Rikuu at home (lol no) and then overthrew first trying to compensate: They score 3 in total, and lead 6-3 with 3 outs to go. Eric Adler on the bump for the save chance.

Gowens had a great start, with 7K and no hits through 5. He gave up a solo shot to leadoff the 6th and it seemed to throw him off a bit, leading to loading the bases with 2 walks and a single. Still a solid final line: 5.2IP, 2ER, 2H, 3BB, 7K. The second run was walked in after he left the game. Barons up 3-2 in the 6th.

No Veras, but Gladney is in.

Barons cruise to a Game 2 win, 12-5. Solid 5IP/2ER start from Schweitzer. 2 IP Schoenle, and 1IP for Freeman, both hitless. Luna gave up a 3R shot in garbage time. Gonzo 2-5 with a HR and SB in his return. Not sure if the back is still nagging him, but he looked fine at the plate and in the field. Nishida 2-5 with a BB and RBI. I love him. The IF also connected on a nice DP early to get out of a jam: Tatum went 3-5 with 2 RBI, and 3 SB. Matt Hogan went 2-3 with 2 RBI, a BB, and an SB filling in for DJ Gladney who left after a HBP. Veras was 1-3 with a SB before his exit. His replacement Goosenberg nailed a 3 RBI triple to help put the game away: Game 3 to decide it tomorrow. Riley Gowens gets the ball. 14H, 10BB, 6SB as a team, but there will be extra pressure on the bats tomorrow with no Gladney/Veras.

Veras out of the game after a big single to load the bases during a rally. He seemed shaken up after a slide to steal 3rd, and labored getting home on a sac fly. DJ Gladney had previously left the game after a ball off his wrist. Barons still up 6-2 in the sixth...

Gonzo missed the last week of the regular season and it was unclear if he'd be active for the playoffs. After a PH appearance in game 1, he gets his first start post-injury to try to help his team in the playoffs. This go ahead HR certainly helps:

He's back!

He was 19 when drafted in 2021, so he would need to be added by next offseason (4 years). But he'll be on the roster long before then anyway.

Pretty in depth breakdown of Schultz' arsenal. I love nerdy pitching stuff, so it's cool to hear him talking about seam shifted wake and spin efficiency. I hope Bannister stays with the org for a long, long time.

Kanny falls short in an anticlimactic final. They were shutout on 1 hit and lost 3-0 in a reverse of Game 2. The pitching hung in there, but one bad pitch from Mason Moore went over the fence for 2 runs and nerves got to the defense late for an unearned third run. Maybe would have had better luck without the rainout forcing a DH, but a division title is still cool. Was especially nice to see them advance despite all of the roster turnover, and they got a lot of solid contributions from the new faces down the stretch.

Knights win 9-8 in extras after being down as much as 6-2. Colson's 3 run HR was big, as were bases loaded walks from him and Elko to tie the game in the 9th. He finished 2-5 with a BB, HR, and 4 RBI. His other hit was a 104mph single. Elko was 2-5 with 3 RBI. Julks 2-4 with 2 BB and a SB. Adams sat down his first 6 in order before getting burned on a pair of doubles and a HR. He finished with 4IP, 4H, 3ER 1BB, 3K. Scoreless 2K innings for Peralta and Coffey.

Montgomery goes 109 mph 414 to CF off a LHP. Scored Julks (walk) and Elko (single). Knights trail 6-5. Kanny batters are having a very tough time vs. the recently named Carolina League pitcher of the year Travis Sykora. They're down 2-0 after 3.

Kanny lives on! McDougal was fantastic with 5 hitless. Aaron Combs closed it out with 2IP, 1H, 1BB). 7 innings left to crown a champion.

Kanny finally breaks through in what had been a pitcher's duel. 8K, 1H, 1BB, in the first three innings, but they rallied for 3 runs in the 4th. Doubles for Arxy and Burrowes, a single for Jeral Perez, and a huge 2 out 2 RBI triple for Asigen. McDougal has been pitching very well despite getting squeezed at times. 7K, 1 "BB" for him through 4. Kanny leads 3-0 after 4 in this must win game. Weird situation where the game is scheduled for 7 innings so they can fit in the decider if it's (hopefully) needed.

Barons finish the regular season with a 5-0 win over the Smokies. 14 hits as a team including multi-hit games from Turner, Gladney, Tatum, Goosenberg, and Matthews. Good sign, since they'll be facing off against the same staff in the first round of the playoffs starting Tuesday. In the meantime, 3U/3D with 2K for Sinibaldi in the first for Kanny.

Schoenle is shoving and DJ Gladney is slugging. Barons up 3-0 after 3, behind 8Ks(!!) from the former and 2 HR from the latter.

Free runner scored on a single top 11, putting Kanny down 1-0. Wolkow made a productive out to move their free runner to 3rd in the bottom half. AMak tapped one back to the pitcher, who made a bad throw to give up the tying run on an E1. 1-1 with 1 out, and AMak on 2nd after the error. McCants smacks a liner over the head of the LF to walk it off. Such a gutsy performance from the team to beat the reigning champs and head to the championship series! The pitching was actually insane, 17K combined for Peppers (5IP/5K), Hartzog (2IP/2K), Combs (2IP, 6K!!!), and McLaughlin (2IP, 4K). Intense energy all game and it was getting a little chippy toward the end (including the opposing manager getting ejected).

Kanny pitching has really showed up to keep the dream alive, but the bats just can't get over the hump. They strand runners on 2nd and 3rd, and it's still scoreless after 10.

Wild. Apparently he just wanted the season to be over.