Baseball Game Preview: Midland Trail Patriots vs. Shady Spring Tigers

The Midland Trail Patriots will square off against the Shady Spring Tigers at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Midland Trail has given up an average of 11.3 runs per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

Cameron hit Midland Trail with a four-run second inning on Wednesday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Patriots fell 11-6 to the Dragons.

Greg Cramer was cooking despite his team's loss, going 3-for-4 with two RBI, one run, and one double. That double marked the first that he has hit this season.

Meanwhile, Shady Spring came tearing into Thursday's contest with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 7.3 runs), and they left with even more momentum. They were the clear victors by an 18-4 margin over the Renegades. That 14 run margin sets a new team best for the Tigers this season.

Shady Spring got a massive performance out of Jalon Bailey, who went 3-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Those three hits gave Bailey a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Sam Barnett, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.

Shady Spring kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 16 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 4.8 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 matches they've averaged 11.6.

Shady Spring pushed their record up to 8-8-1 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 14.0 runs over those games. As for Midland Trail, their loss dropped their record down to 1-6.

Midland Trail suffered a grim 12-1 defeat to Shady Spring when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Will the Patriots have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.