Jogly Garcia impresses for Lynchburg, C.J. Kayfus hits his fourth triple in Akron win

Cleveland Guardians minor league recap for Friday, April 18, 2025

Columbus Clippers 4, Louisville Bats 9

Box Score · Clippers fall to 11-5

The Clippers outhit Louisville 12-9, had fewer errors (1-2) and almost the same amount of walks (5-6), and also had more extra base hits (5-2).

So what went wrong?

It was all about sequencing. Columbus went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position while Louisville went a ridiculous 5-for-9. Also, both of the Clippers home runs were solo shots.

Johnathan Rodriguez led the way offensively, going 3-for-5 with a home run and a double. He’s beginning to settle in nicely after returning to Triple-A and with struggles from Johnkensy Noel and Nolan Jones at the MLB level, he might get another crack soon.

Will Wilson also continued his torrid stretch, going 2-for-5 with a home run, his fourth of the season.

Will Brennan went 3-for-5 with a double while Juan Brito walked three times.

Starting pitcher Doug Nikhazy was effective, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits with four strikeouts and three walks in 4.2 innings.

The bullpen struggled, however, as Zak Kent gave up two runs in his 1.1 innings and then Andrew Misiaszek got hammered for four runs in one inning to put the game out of reach.

Akron RubberDucks 6, Erie SeaWolves 3

Box Score · RubberDucks improve to 8-4

One of the hottest hitters in all of minor league baseball, C.J. Kayfus kept up appearances with his fourth triple of the season already, knocking in three runs on the day.

Travis Bazzana also had a strong game, picking up the only multi-hit effort by going 2-for-5 at the dish with a pair of RBIs and a run scored.

Tyresse Turner reached base safely three times, going 1-for-2 with a double, two walks and a stolen base.

Starting pitcher Austin Peterson was rock solid, allowing two runs on three hits with one walk and four strikeouts in 5.0 innings of work.

Ross Carver followed with two scoreless innings of relief and Magnus Ellerts racked up five strikeouts in his 1.2 frames. Carter Spivey collected a one-out save in the ninth inning after Ellerts ran out of gas.

Lake County Captains 1, Fort Wayne TinCaps 9

Box Score · Captains fall to 7-5

It was not a great day for Lake County pitching. Dylan DeLucia was hammered for five runs on five hits (two home runs) while striking out five and walking none in 3.0 innings.

Then Michael Kennedy was rocked for four more runs on five hits (two home runs) with six strikeouts and no walks in 4.0 innings of long relief.

The good news was they didn’t walk anyone, but the bad news was they got way too much of the plate.

Offensively, Jose Devers had a great game, going 3-for-5 with two doubles, raising his season OPS to an impressive .978.

Christian Knapczyk went 2-for-4 while the team’s only run came courtesy of a solo shot from Alfonsin Rosario.

Lynchburg Hillcats 4, Salem Red Sox 1

Box Score · Hillcats improve to 6-6

Lynchburg scored four runs despite collecting just three hits in the game. They did this with the help of five walks, two hit by pitches and six stolen bases.

Ryan Cesarini walked, was hit by a pitch, stole two bases and scored two of the team’s runs to lead the Hillcats.

Pitching was the real story for Lynchburg on Thursday. Cam Walty got things started with 3.0 scoreless frames on three hits, no walks and two strikeouts.

He was followed by Jogly Garcia, who has been a revelation to begin the 2025 season. Garcia pitched 4.0 scoreless innings of no-hit ball, striking out eight and walking two. He has a 0.82 ERA on the season.

Donovan Zsak closed out the game with four strikeouts in the final two innings to earn his first save.