BY DAN GLICKMAN
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Rochester Red Wings left-fielder Trey Lipscomb went deep twice, including a go-ahead three-run shot in the bottom of the seventh, to help give the home team a 5-2 win over the Charlotte Knights on Saturday night and keep them three games back of Indianapolis in the race for the International League’s second half title.
That game-winning home run, however, almost didn’t happen. Through most of the game, the Red Wings (25-19 in the second half, 70-47 overall) had squandered opportunities to score: they’d stranded six runner heading into the seventh inning, and had only Lipscomb’s earlier solo-shot in the sixth to count for their lone run in what was a 2-1 game.
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And yet, in the bottom of the seventh, the Red Wings found themselves with the bases loaded and one out after Leandro Pineda chased away Tanner McDougal with a single and then Tyler Gilbert walked both Seaver King and Phillip Glasser. And coming to the plate was Yohandy Morales, one of the team’s best hitters. He worked the count full, but then hit a ball somewhat weakly towards third in a way that looked like a tailor-made double play. However, Charlotte third baseman Mario Camilletti double-clutched the ball before throwing to second to get Glasser, and that delay allowed Morales to just barely beat Rikuu Nishida‘s throw to first to both bring in Pineda to tie the game at 2-2 and, more importantly, keep the inning going.
One RBI, coming right up ?
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— Rochester Red Wings (@RocRedWings) August 16, 2026
“I wouldn’t expect anything less from Yoyo,” said Red Wings manager Matt LeCroy. “He gives it his all every night, and I think he was frustrated that he missed some pitches early on in the game he thought he should have hammered… but he got the ground ball, he put the ground ball in play, and he did everything he could to beat it out – and that was it, that was a game-saver.”
It was then that Lipscomb – who also doubled in the game – came to the plate. He’d earlier hit his 23rd home run of the season to right-center off Gilbert to lead off the sixth, and on an 0-1 pitch, he added number 24, smacking a 98.5 MPH fastball left near the middle of the plate up into the “Foul Pole Patio” down the right-field line, making the game 5-2. Two at-bats in two straight innings had brought two opposite field shots for the right-hander from Maryland, and four of the Red Wings’ five runs for the night.
It was all just part of the way he approaches the game, he says.
“I’m just going out there and trusting my preparation for the game with the coaches,” he said post-game. “It’s just going out there and playing ball.”
Lipscomb’s 24 home runs is the most he’s ever had in a professional season, and passes the 22 he had at the University of Tennessee in 2022. It’s over twice as many as he had in 2025, and in fact most of his offensive statistics have drastically improved this season.
“He’s finally settled down and begun to play more consistently,” says LeCroy, who believes that Lipscomb’s performance this season has validated the Nationals’ decision to draft him back in 2022. “Last year, his swing was a little long at times, as he worked through some stuff, and he just wasn’t as sharp, wasn’t as quick. And then this offseason he worked on his body a little bit, got stronger, he’s moving the bat a lot faster than he was last year.”
As far as pitching on Saturday, the Rochester Red Wings have, in the past few weeks, seemingly had a never-ending string of bullpen games. It’s not hard to see why: many of their best starting pitchers on the year have been called up to the Washington Nationals or have seen increased usage as “bulk men” who take over after an “opener” begins the game for an inning or two.
Saturday was no different: Eddy Yean, usually one Rochester’s most reliable relievers, made his first AAA start of the season to begin the train of pitchers. Yean struggled at times on Saturday, going 1.2 innings while allowing five hits and two earned runs (a run-scoring groundout by former Red Wing Joey Wiemer in the first and an RBI single from Nishida in the second) before being replaced by Jared Simpson. Simpson proceeded to pitch 2.1 perfect innings, striking out five, before Luis Perales went the next two frames.
Often used as a starter this season, Perales was effective out of the bullpen, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out five. LeCroy says he will likely be used in a variety of situations going forward.
Erik Tolman came next with a hitless seventh that also allowed him to earn the relief victory to move to 3-2 on the year, and then Kyle Nicolas and Gus Varland threw shutout innings in the eighth and ninth to finish off the win, with Varland earning his third AAA save of the season for the perfect ninth.
The Red Wings and Knights conclude their six-game set on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. Rochester’s pitching situation is currently unknown, but Charlotte (22-22 in the second half, 64-55 overall) is expected to send out right-hander Jonathan Cannon (5-4, 5.02). A win would ensure a series victory for the Red Wings, who currently lead the six-game set, 3-2.
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