The Lehigh Valley IronPigs (84-57, 38-29) played game five on Saturday night against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (83-57, 45-23) from PNC Field. Mitch Neunborn (0-3, 7.54 ERA) was on the mound for Lehigh Valley against Erick Leal (8-10, 5.66 ERA) of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
At the top of the first inning, Lehigh Valley designated hitter Gabriel Rincones Jr. hit an RBI single to center field. Johan Rojas scored for a 1-0 lead. It was Rincones Jr.’s 71st RBI of the season.
Moving to the top of the fourth inning, Lehigh Valley right fielder Brewer Hicklen hit Leal’s sinker for a two-run home run at 391 feet to left-center field for a 3-0 lead. It was Hicklen’s 16th home run of the season. Then, third baseman Rodolfo Castro hit an RBI double to left field. Payton Henry scored for a 4-0 lead. It was Castro’s 23rd double of the season.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre second baseman Jose Rojas hit Neunborn’s changeup for a three-run home run at 354 feet to right field. The IronPigs led the RailRiders 4-3. It was Rojas’s 31st home run of the season.
Next, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre right fielder Bryan De La Cruz hit Neunborn’s slider for a solo home run at 347 feet to right field, and the game was tied 4-4. It was Cruz’s 14th home run of the season.
Lehigh Valley starter Mitch Neunborn pitched four innings. He allowed five hits, five runs, two walks, and three strikeouts, throwing 71 pitches, of which 42 were strikes.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre designated hitter J.C. Escarra hit a sacrifice fly to center field. Andrew Velazquez scored, and the IronPigs trailed the RailRiders 5-4. Later, right fielder Bryan De La Cruz hit into a double play, but Spencer Jones scored for a 6-4 lead.
At the top of the sixth inning, Lehigh Valley center fielder Johan Rojas grounded out to third baseman Jeimer Candelario. Christian Arroyo scored, and the IronPigs trailed the RailRiders 6-5.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre first baseman T.J. Rumfield hit an RBI single to left field. Andrew Velazquez scored, and the IronPigs trailed the RailRiders 7-5. Next, designated hitter J.C. Escarra hit an RBI single to right field. Spencer Jones scored for an 8-5 lead.
Lehigh Valley struggled to get back into the game, as they lost to the RailRiders 8-5. They finished the day with eight hits, went 2 for 9 with runners in scoring position, and left nine men on base. Brewer Hicklen went 1 for 5 with a home run and two RBIs. Rodolfo Castro went 2 for 3 with a double, was hit by a pitch, and had one RBI.
The bullpen pitched four innings. They allowed four hits, three runs, two walks, and six strikeouts. The loss went to Lehigh Valley starter Mitch Neunborn. It was his fourth loss of the season, and the win went to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre relief pitcher Joel Kuhnel.
The IronPigs and RailRiders conclude the series on Sunday at 1:05 pm.
