Red Wings turn it up to 11 in historic sixth inning, beating Toledo 14-1 to enter final day of first half in first place

BY DAN GLICKMAN

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The scoreboard above the visitors’ bullpen in ESL Ballpark was broken.

After six innings, the line score indicated the Rochester Red Wings – playing as the “Cocos Locos de Rochester” as part of a promotion – had scored one run each in the fourth, fifth, and sixth. And yet, further down the line-score, Rochester’s number of runs was far bigger: 13 runs to the Toledo Mud Hens’ lone score.

Some of the players couldn’t really believe it post-game, either.

“I can’t even remember the last time [a team of mine] scored that many runs,” said right fielder Christian Franklin, who went 2-for-3 with two walks, a home run, and two RBI on the night. “It was fun, I feel like guys were swinging at good pitches and just connecting, while laying off the bad ones. Just kind of doing what we’ve been preaching.”

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And yet, it happened: in a bottom of the sixth inning that lasted over 40 minutes, the Red Wings scored 11 runs in front of 10,190 fans to ensure the playoff race in the first half of the International League season will go to the final day – as the Red Wings’ 14-1 win combined with Nashville 17-3 victory over the Memphis Redbirds put them in first place with just one game to play in the first half.

“Lots of good things tonight,” said Red Wings manager Matt LeCroy. “We just got to come out tomorrow and compete, I’m so happy they’ve put themselves in this position. The last game of the first half – it matters.”

A win on Sunday, or a loss by Memphis against Nashville, will clinch the first-half title for the Red Wings and give them the right to host the International League’s championship series in September.

The 11-run sixth inning saw eight hits, five walks, and a hit-by-pitch. Every batter in the Red Wings’ lineup except for Andrew Pinckney came to the plate twice. The Mud Hens cycled through four pitchers. Brady House alone drove in four runs across two hits in the inning. It was the highest-scoring inning for the Red Wings since at least 2004 – the farthest back MLB’s digital database goes for the minors for such records.

It began innocently enough, with Phillip Glasser singling with the Red Wings up 2-1. Christian Franklin drew a walk, and then Seaver King beat out a throw at first to avoid a double-play and put runners at the corners. It was then that Toledo put in Konnor Pilkington, and the onslaught began: Yohandy Morales singled to bring in Glasser and make it 3-1, then Abimelec Ortiz was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Brady House then doubled to bring in two and make it 5-1 and chase away Pilkington for Tyler Mattison, who promptly gave up a two-run double to Harry Ford to up the lead to 7-1. Trey Lipscomb walked, Pinckney had an infield single to load the bases, and then Glasser had his second hit of the inning, knocking a single that deflected off the glove of Toledo shortstop Gage Workman before falling into center to score Ford and increase the lead to 8-1. Franklin then drew a bases-loaded walk (9-1) before Seaver King singled (10-1).

It was only then that Toledo got a second out on the inning, as Morales struck out swinging. It wasn’t the end of the scoring, however: Woo-Suk Go came in to replace Mattison and promptly walked Ortiz with the bases loaded to make the score 11-1. Finally, House brought in two more with his second hit

of the inning, singling in Franklin and King to up the score to 13-1.

Rochester, still without a usual fifth starter, used a “bullpen game” to handle the pitching duties for the day. Carson Palmquist, who has traditionally been a starter and who started seven games for the Colorado Rockies in 2025, was first to take the mound. The native Floridian threw two perfect innings while striking out two to begin the game before being replaced by Andre Granillo.

Granillo worked a scoreless third, helped when MLB.com Pipeline No. 7 overall prospect Max Clark grounded into an inning-ending double-play. He was not as successful in the fourth inning, though, as Toledo third baseman Max Anderson led off by unloading on a change-up left high on the first pitch of the inning, powering it over the center field wall at 105.1 MPH to put the Mud Hens up 1-0.

The Red Wings struck back quickly with a leadoff solo home run of their own in the bottom of the fourth, as Christian Franklin went opposite field against former Red Wing and 2016 World Series champion Carl Edwards Jr., sending a ball at 107.9 MPH into the right field bullpen to make it 1-1.

The bottom of the fifth opened with possible controversy. House led off and hit a bouncing ball to short. It was a tough throw for Workman that led to a close play at first. First base umpire Joe Belangia III called the Wings third baseman out, but replay on the Rochester broadcast appeared to show him safe.

The play was soon forgotten, though, as Ford got hold of an 85 MPH pitch from Edwards left up and drove it 102.4 MPH over the left-center field fence to make it 2-1 for his second home run of the season.

“I was just trying to relax and let go,” said Ford post-game, after a 2-for-3 night with a double, his home run, and three RBI in what his manager called his best showing as a Red Wing. “I had success against Edwards last year, so I was thinking about that while trying to just find a good pitch to hit.”

The 11-run explosion came an inning after that, effectively ending the game, although Morales later added the 14th and final run in the eighth when he golfed a 72.9 MPH changeup from position player Max Burt for his 17th home run of the year, a towering shot that Statcast estimated as going 445 feet.

The Red Wings and Mud Hens conclude the first half of the schedule on Sunday at 1:05 p.m., when Rochester sends out lefty Jackson Kent (3-1, 4.07) against Toledo’s right-hander Troy Watson (2-2, 2.70). The Wings will then head south to begin the second half of the season in Charlotte.

A win on Sunday is far from a given. Although the Red Wings, at 45-27, have a much better record than Toledo’s 33-40, the Mud Hens have played them tough throughout the series, which Rochester now leads 3-2. Watson, in particular, was effective against the Wings on Tuesday’s series opener, throwing five innings of one-hit ball.

But if the Wings can win – or clinch the first-half title with a Memphis loss (the Redbirds play beginning at 2:05 p.m.) – they’ll accomplish something that Lecroy, who has long spoken of wanting to bring to Rochester, has long spoken of wanting to bring to Rochester: a return to the postseason for the first time since 2013.

“Nothing would make me happier for our club, for our organization, for the city, and for Naomi and Dan and the rest of the front office here,” he said. “It’s a wonderful community, they love our baseball team, and for me it would make me real, real happy and proud to hopefully get an opportunity to play for a championship [here].”

With one day left in the first half, it might happen.