Memphis Answers Nashville, Springfield Holds On, Peoria Swept in Twinbill

The Cardinal Chronicle
Daily Farm Report
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur

Farm Report: Memphis Answers Nashville, Springfield Holds On, Peoria Swept in Twinbill

The Cardinals’ full-season minor league affiliates went 2-3 on Thursday, with Memphis and Springfield picking up wins while Peoria dropped both ends of a doubleheader and Palm Beach lost a back-and-forth game to Jupiter.

Memphis beat Nashville 7-3 at AutoZone Park, keeping the Redbirds in control of the International League West and on top of the overall International League race by winning percentage. Springfield jumped out early and held on for an 8-6 win at Wichita. Peoria was swept by Dayton, losing 3-1 in game one and 18-1 in game two as the Dragons clinched the Midwest League East first-half title. Palm Beach rallied late but came up short in a 9-8 loss to Jupiter.

It was a mixed night across the system.

Memphis did what a first-place club needed to do.

Springfield finally closed one out.

Peoria took it on the chin.

Palm Beach kept fighting, but Jupiter had the final answer.

Memphis Redbirds
Record: 45-27, International League West
Standings: 1st place, International League West
Result: Memphis 7, Nashville 3

Memphis got back on track Thursday night.

One night after falling short in a 10-8 comeback attempt against Nashville, the Redbirds beat the Sounds 7-3 at AutoZone Park and tightened their grip on the International League West race.

Memphis did most of its early damage in the first inning.

The Redbirds jumped in front with a run, then Bligh Madris delivered the big swing of the inning with a three-run home run to put Memphis ahead 4-0. That early cushion mattered, especially against a Nashville club still trying to stay alive in the first-half race.

The Sounds answered in the second inning. Ethan Murray hit a three-run homer after a Memphis error helped extend the inning, cutting the Redbirds’ lead to 4-3.

That was as close as Nashville would get.

Memphis added on in the fifth when Joshua Báez hit another home run, continuing his remarkable power surge after Tuesday’s four-homer night. Báez did not need to do the impossible again. He just needed to keep producing, and he did.

The Redbirds added another run later in the fifth and another solo home run in the sixth, stretching the lead to 7-3.

From there, Memphis pitching finished the job. Nashville was held scoreless over the final seven innings, and the final seven Sounds hitters were retired in order.

That is how a first-place club answers.

It was not as historic as Tuesday night and not as dramatic as Wednesday’s rally attempt, but Thursday’s win may have been just as important. Memphis did not let the previous loss turn into a slide. The Redbirds got the early lead, took the punch when Nashville came back, then pulled away.

With the win, Memphis improved to 45-27 and remained in first place in the International League West. The Redbirds also stayed ahead of Rochester by winning percentage in the overall first-half race.

There are still games left to finish.

But Memphis is where it wants to be.

Springfield Cardinals
Record: 28-37, Texas League North
Standings: 4th place, Texas League North
Result: Springfield 8, Wichita 6

Springfield needed to finish one.

On Thursday night, the Cardinals did.

Springfield jumped out to a six-run lead and held on for an 8-6 win over Wichita at Equity Bank Park, snapping back after back-to-back one-run frustration earlier in the series.

The Cardinals broke the game open in the third inning. Graysen Tarlow started the scoring with a two-run home run, his fourth of the season. Later in the inning, Miguel Ugueto added a two-run double as Springfield put together a six-run frame and grabbed control.

That was the kind of inning Springfield had been looking for.

Wichita did not go quietly. The Wind Surge answered with five runs in the fourth inning, turning what looked like a comfortable Springfield lead into another tense finish.

But this time, the Cardinals did not let it get away.

Springfield’s bullpen held on, and Matt Svanson Carpenter closed it out for his second save. Ian Bedell Hayes picked up the win.

Tre Richardson III had one of the most interesting individual lines of the night. He reached base three times and stole four bases, giving Springfield a speed-and-pressure element that helped change the game.

That is not something you see every night.

The Cardinals also got an important note from Tarlow, whose two-run homer started the six-run third. Ugueto’s two-run double gave the inning real weight, and Springfield had enough offense to survive Wichita’s push.

It was not clean.

It was not easy.

But it was a win, and after the way the series had gone, Springfield will take it.

Peoria Chiefs
Record: 32-34, Midwest League West
Standings: 3rd place, Midwest League West
Results: Dayton 3, Peoria 1 — Game 1
Dayton 18, Peoria 1 — Game 2

Peoria closed the first half with a rough doubleheader.

The Chiefs lost both games to Dayton on Thursday night at Dozer Park, falling 3-1 in the opener and 18-1 in game two. The sweep dropped Peoria to 32-34 and under .500 for the first time since June 3.

It was a hard finish to the first half.

Game one was competitive, but Dayton struck early and never gave the lead back. The Dragons scored three runs in the first inning, with Carter Graham driving in the first run and Peyton Stovall following with a two-run home run.

Peoria answered in the bottom of the first when Jalin Flores hit his third home run in as many games, cutting the deficit to 3-1.

That was the Chiefs’ only run.

Ty Van Dyke started and went three innings, allowing three runs on five hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Nate Dohm followed and gave Peoria three scoreless innings, keeping the Chiefs within reach and giving the offense a chance to make a run.

The bats never found the hit they needed.

Game two got away quickly.

Dayton jumped out to another early lead, scoring three runs in the first inning again. Kien Vu hit a two-run homer, and Carter Graham followed with a solo shot on the next pitch.

Peoria got its lone run on a Christian Martin RBI single, but Dayton kept adding on.

The Dragons scored five runs in the third, one in the fourth and seven more in the sixth. Dayton finished with 11 hits and six home runs, including two from Jacob Friend, one of them a grand slam.

That is a long night.

Peoria has had some strong individual development stories in the first half, but the finish was rough. The Chiefs lost their final five games before the halfway point and now have to turn the page quickly as the second half begins Friday.

There is no carrying this one around.

Flush it and start again.

Palm Beach Cardinals
Record: 33-33, Florida State League East
Standings: 2nd place, Florida State League East
Result: Jupiter 9, Palm Beach 8

Palm Beach kept coming Thursday night.

Jupiter kept answering.

The Cardinals lost 9-8 to the Hammerheads at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in a back-and-forth game that had momentum swings almost every inning.

Palm Beach jumped ahead in the first inning. Ryan Weingartner doubled, Jupiter starter Noble Meyer walked two straight hitters, and Matthew Miura put the ball back to the mound. A high throw home allowed the first run to score, giving the Cardinals an early lead.

Jupiter answered immediately with three runs in the bottom of the first, including a two-run home run from Echedry Vargas.

Palm Beach kept fighting.

The Cardinals cut the deficit to 3-2 in the third, then took the lead in the fifth. Ryan Mitchell tied the game with a solo home run to left-center, his seventh of the season. Later in the inning, Jonathan Mejia delivered an RBI single to put Palm Beach ahead 4-3.

The lead did not last.

Jupiter scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth to go back ahead 6-4, then added two more in the sixth. Palm Beach answered again in the sixth on a Michael Dattalo RBI single and again in the seventh when Miura hit his first home run of the season.

In the eighth, the Cardinals made one final push. Weingartner drove in a run with an infield single and advanced on an error. Mitchell then brought in another run with a sacrifice fly, cutting Jupiter’s lead to 9-8.

That was as close as Palm Beach got.

The Cardinals were retired in order in the ninth.

There were offensive positives. Mitchell homered and drove in another run with a sacrifice fly. Miura hit his first home run of the season. Weingartner continued to swing the bat well and helped set the tone early.

But the pitching could not hold the lead, and Jupiter answered almost every time Palm Beach scored.

That is a hard way to lose.

Player of the Day
Tre Richardson III, Springfield Cardinals

Tre Richardson III is The Cardinal Chronicle’s Player of the Day after reaching base three times and stealing four bases in Springfield’s 8-6 win over Wichita.

There were louder swings in the system.

Bligh Madris hit a three-run homer for Memphis. Joshua Báez homered again for the Redbirds. Ryan Mitchell and Matthew Miura both went deep for Palm Beach. Jalin Flores homered for the third straight game for Peoria.

But Richardson brought a different kind of impact.

Four stolen bases in one game changes the way the defense plays. It puts pressure on the pitcher. It forces quicker throws, rushed decisions and extra attention. That kind of speed can tilt an inning without needing the big swing.

Richardson reached base three times and made Wichita deal with him every time he got there.

On a night when Springfield had to hold on late, that mattered.

A two-run homer can carry a box score.

Four stolen bases can carry a game in a different way.

Richardson gets the honor.

Pitcher of the Day
Nate Dohm, Peoria Chiefs

Nate Dohm is The Cardinal Chronicle’s Pitcher of the Day after throwing three scoreless innings in Peoria’s 3-1 loss to Dayton in game one of Thursday’s doubleheader.

Dohm entered after Dayton had scored three early runs and gave the Chiefs exactly what they needed.

Stability.

He held the Dragons scoreless for three innings, keeping Peoria in the game and giving the offense time to search for an answer.

The answer never came, but Dohm did his part.

There were other pitching notes worth mentioning. Memphis held Nashville scoreless over the final seven innings of its 7-3 win, and Springfield’s bullpen held on in a tight 8-6 victory at Wichita.

But Dohm had the cleanest individual pitching line of the night.

Three scoreless innings.

That earns the nod.

Old School Take

This was a split-personality night across the system.

Memphis looked like a first-place club. The Redbirds took an early lead, absorbed Nashville’s push, then shut the Sounds down the rest of the night.

Springfield finally finished one. After a couple of frustrating losses, the Cardinals built a lead and held it.

Peoria had a night to forget. Two losses, one blowout, and a rough finish to the first half.

Palm Beach kept answering but could not get the last stop.

That is baseball in the minors.

Some nights are about winning.

Some nights are about development.

Some nights are about surviving the schedule and turning the page.

Memphis stayed on top.

Springfield held on.

Peoria resets.

Palm Beach fought but fell short.

That is the Farm Report.

The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports & MiLB Today
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Photo Credit: Bligh Madris, Memphis Redbirds | MiLB