The Flying Squirrels (62-77) and Bowie Baysox (72-67) split a pair of close contests on Sunday evening in front of a sellout crowd of 9,560 fans at The Diamond.
Richmond snagged the opening game of the doubleheader 6-5 on a walkoff single from Rando Moreno. Bowie claimed the night cap, 1-0, scoring the lone run on an error. The split, coupled with an Altoona Curve doubleheader split Sunday, means the Western Division regular season champion will be determined on Monday, the final day of the season. First pitch is set for 12:05 p.m.
Game One
Tied 5-5 in the bottom of the seventh inning, Moreno delivered his fourth game-winning hit of the season, lifting Richmond to victory in game one Sunday. Moreno, who entered in the sixth inning for an injured C.J. Hinojosa, hobbled out of the batters box towards first while scoring Dylan Davis from third base. It was the third walkoff win for Richmond on the homestand and the team’s 11th overall.
The run in the seventh negated a game-tying homer form Garabez Rosa in the top of the inning. Reliever Cody Hall entered for Richmond to try and lock down a 5-4 win, but was beat by Rosa to tie the game. Hall (4-2) earned the win, striking out two in the effort.
Hall replaced Herb who lasted six innings in the no-decision. Herb allowed four runs on eighth hits. He departed with the lead. Herb walked three and struck out six, using 95 pitches in the effort.
A back-and-forth affair early, eventually settled into a well-pitched contest for both Lucas Long and Tyler Herb. Tied 3-3 in the sixth, the Baysox broke the tie with a run with the Squirrels countering with two in the home half of the inning.
Dylan Davis regained the lead Richmond in the second inning with his ninth home run of the season. Davis cranked a line drive shot that disappeared over the center field fence, giving the Squirrels a 3-2 advantage. Bowie returned fire once again, this time with an RBI single off the bat of Austin Hays to tie the game, 3-3.
Bowie grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Tyler Herb started the game with a four-pitch walk to Cedric Mullins. Austin Hayes then delivered a double down the left field line for the first run.
The Squirrels countered with two runs in the bottom of the first against Lucas Long. C.J. Hinojosa worked a walk and Aramis Garcia brought him around via a double down the left field line. Jerry Sands followed with another RBI double, pushing Richmond ahead briefly, 2-1.
The Baysox quickly tied the game, 2-2 in the top of the second. Designated hitter Aderlin Rodriguez knocked a high fly ball off the foul pole in left field, good for a solo homer. It was the 22nd home run of they year for Rodriguez and his second of the series.
Game Two
Bowie took advantage of a defensive Richmond miscue to score the only run in the night cap on Sunday. Audry Perez doubled to begin the third inning off of McNamara. With two outs, Ryan Mountcastle lifted a fly ball to left field that was dropped by Daniel Carbonell, allowing Perez to score the games first and only run.
The Richmond offense struggled to generate any offense against Tanner Scott, Jesus Lirzanzo and closer Scott McGough. Liranzo (3-4) earned the win by tossing four scoreless innings. Liranzo allowed three hits and sturck out one. McGough entered in the seventh and shut the door to earn his 13th save of the year.
Richmond’s Dillon McNamara tossed four innings and allowed one run (unearned ) in his final start of the season. The righty struck out two and did not walk a batter on 54 pitches. Seth Rosin, Vic Black and Jarret Martin all added a scoreless inning to keep the game close, 1-0.
Tanner Scott was limited to two innings in the short start. Scott struck out four and walked two, escaping with the bases loaded in the second inning.
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