Jhonkensy Noel returns to form with two bombs for Columbus, Juan Brito makes first rehab appearance

Cleveland Guardians minor league recap for Friday, June 13, 2025

Columbus Clippers 7, Buffalo Bisons 1

Box Score · Clippers improve to 28-35

Move over Will Wilson, we’ve got another recently-demoted player to blast off with a pair of home runs as Jhonkensy Noel hammered two home runs on Thursday. After being the worst hitter in MLB over the first two months of the season, he has a .273 batting average with a 1.151 OPS at Triple-A. Hitting pitchers at the MLB level is hard, folks.

Wilson also had a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a triple. Chase DeLauter doubled while C.J. Kayfus reached base safely twice with a single and a walk. Yordys Valdes also walked twice.

Starting pitcher Parker Messick was rock solid, not allowing a run in 4.2 innings, but he didn’t pitch long due to four walks and three hits allowed with six strikeouts.

Will Dion allowed one run in 2.1 innings of long relief and Andrew Misiaszek struck out the side and Zak Kent pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to close out the victory.

Akron RubberDucks 2, Hartford Yard Goats 4

Box Score · RubberDucks fall to 37-22

Akron hit four doubles out of its seven hits, but the RubberDucks couldn’t string hits together. Jorge Burgos went 2-for-4 while Alex Mooney also went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles. Joe Lampe went 1-for-2 with a double and a walk, knocking in all of Akron’s runs.

The ugly offense ruined a tremendous start from Trenton Denholm, who pitched 6.0 scoreless innings on six hits with six strikeouts and no walks.

Shawn Rapp added a scoreless inning of relief, but Tyler Thornton got blasted for four run in the eighth inning to blow the lead and the game.

Lake County Captains 7, Dayton Dragons 6

Box Score · Captains improve to 32-28

Lake County got a pair of standout offensive performances from Alfonsin Rosario and Wuilfredo Antunez, who both went 2-for-4 with a double. Antunez also stole a base.

Jonah Advincula reached base safely three times, going 1-for-2 with a walk, a hit by pitch and scored three runs, playing leadoff perfectly. Christian Knapczyk also reached base safely twice, going 1-for-3 with a walk and two RBIs while Maick Collado went 1-for-2 with a walk.

Starting pitcher Cam Favors allowed three runs on five hits in 4.1 innings pitched. The lone pitcher to have a strong game was Robert Wegielnik, who tossed two scoreless innings of relief.

Lynchburg Hillcats 13, Carolina Mudcats 1

Box Score · Hillcats improve to 38-22

Lynchburg went ballistic on offense, scoring 13 runs on 13 hits, six walks and stealing eight bases.

Tommy Hawke led the way, going 2-for-3 with two walks, three stolen bases, three runs scored and three RBIs. Hawke has now stolen a ridiculous 56 bases this season. He has no business playing at Single-A anymore.

Several other players had huge games, including Welbyn Francisca, who went 2-for-4 with four runs batted in and two stolen bases.

Other top performers included Ryan Cesarini, who went 3-for-5 with a double and a stolen base, and Chris Espinola and Bennett Thompson, who both went 2-for-4 with a double. Yaikel Mijares went 1-for-3 with a walk.

Starting pitcher Jacob Zibin impressed in just two innings of work, not allowing a hit with one walk in just 21 pitches. Piggyback partner Melkis Hernandez was rock solid, allowing one run on three hits with two walks and two strikeouts in 5.0 innings.

ACL Guardians 7, ACL Mariners 5

Box Score · Guardians fall to 18-13

The ACL Guardians again had a strong day on offense, led by top outfield prospect Robert Arias, who went 3-for-5, raising his season OPS to .895 with a .316 batting average at age 18.

Jonathan Martinez went 2-for-4 with a triple and a walk while Juneiker Caceres blasted off with a home run, his second this week.

A rehabbing Juan Brito made his season debut, walking once in three plate appearances. It’s nice to see all of Cleveland’s top prospects finally getting healthy.

A rehabbing Michael Kennedy also started the game, but struggled badly, walking four batters in 1.1 innings, allowing two runs on one hit with a pair of strikeouts.