Charlotte Knights 7, Round Rock Express 4 (Statcast Box)
Charlotte went with an opener for Sunday’s series finale, and it paid off in defeating the Express, 7-4. Chris Rodriguez had the first two innings and wasn’t too bad, with two hits and two walks, but Wikelman González was the most efficient of the day, with two no-hit innings and four strikeouts.

The Knights offense was also on its game, and put up nine hits while going 5-for-11 with runners in scoring position, even while leaving seven on base as a team. Corey Julks and Jacob Amaya each put up two-hit games, but it was Zach DeLoach, Andrew Vaughn, and Colson Montgomery with extra-base hits. Vaughn doubled in the fourth for two RBIs, and Corey Julks was the only other Knight with two runs driven in.

Adisyn Coffey had a rough time in the ninth, but overall the pitching made it work by only giving up six hits (including one homer) and struck out 10 — but still walked way too many batters (nine). In the end, James Karinchak saved the day for Charlotte, escaping a bases-loaded jam to end the game.

Birmingham Barons 6, Pensacola Blue Wahoos 2
The Barons (25-18) closed out the series strong against the Blue Wahoos (23-22) and completed a six-game sweep with their 6-2 win. Riley Gowens made his ninth start of the year and gave up two earned runs in five innings, with three walks and five strikeouts while earning his fifth win (5-0).

Birmingham in the top of the third on a Jacob Burke solo bomb, but Pensacola fought back to take a one-run lead in the fourth. The Barons offense took over and provided run support for the bullpen — who only gave up three more hits the rest of the game — with a five-run rally over the next four innings. Burke, Jacob Gonzalez, and Adam Hackenberg each put up two hits, including one homer apiece, and bolstered the offense to take the victory.

Hudson Valley Renegades 5, Winston-Salem Dash 4
Two teams heading in opposite directions, the Dash (15-30) and Renegades (29-15), were nonetheless tied at two heading into the eighth. But Jake Peppers took the L after giving up three runs on three hits. Winston-Salem fought back, but fell short and lost the game, 5-4, surviving a superior opponent with a series split.

Tanner McDougal made his 10th start of the season, and gave up just two runs on four hits across his five innings. McDougal also only walked one (Winston-Salem as a whole only had four on the night) and struck out six — 60% of the team’s strikeouts. The bullpen was also solid until the eighth, but although the offense put up 11 hits, it went just 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position and couldn’t capitalize on its opportunities.

The offense was supported by two hits by two hits from Wes Kath and three from Luis Pineda, who also had two RBIs for the Dash. Jeral Pérez also ripped a double in the third and accounted for one of the four runs for Winston-Salem, but there wasn’t enough offense to overcome the pitching fiasco.

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 3, Columbia Fireflies 2
Lefthander Kaleb Sophy gave up a two-run blast in the top of the first inning, but he bounced back and the Cannon Ballers (25-20) didn’t allow another run for the rest of the game. Sophy made his second start of the season and had a weird line score where he didn’t strike out any batters but walked three; thankfully the defense was working well behind him to limit any further damage.

The Ballers posted seven hits as a team and finally woke up in the bottom of the sixth inning to capitalized on a hit-by-pitch and two walks, as Ronny Hernandez doubled to tie the game at two.

The bullpen was excellent the rest of the game and did not give up another hit. They also combined for five strikeouts, and their only three baserunners came from two walks and a hit batter. Kevin Davis (2 IP, 0 H, BB, K) earned the win, however, as Kanny loaded the bases in the eighth and scored the go-ahead run on a base hit from Mikey Kane.