The Casteel Colts are taking a road trip to challenge the Chandler Wolves at 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Casteel lost a heartbreaker the last time they played Basha, but it's fair to say they got their revenge given the result of Tuesday's contest. The Colts blew past the Bears 14-4 on Tuesday. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last four times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Baylor Denny was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing four innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits. Denny was even better at the plate, scoring two runs while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
Ryne Barker
| 04/01/25 vs Basha | 3 |
| 03/17/25 @ Mountain Ridge | 2 |
| 02/27/25 @ Corona del Sol | 2 |
| 03/01/24 @ Ironwood Ridge | 2 |
| 03/28/25 vs Desert Vista | 1 |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Ryne Barker, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI. Those three hits gave him a new career-high. Dallas Hairston also deserves some recognition as he launched his first home run of the season.
Casteel lost a few balls and finished the game with two home runs. That's the most home runs they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Chandler never let their opponents score on Monday. They put the hurt on Marana with a sharp 10-0 victory. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Wolves considering their two-run performance the game before.
Like Casteel, Chandler also got a great game from a two-way player: Dylan Lopez. He pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Lopez has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 2-for-2 with four RBI, one run, and one double. Chandler is undefeated when Lopez posts three or more RBI, but 5-8-1 otherwise.
In other pitching news, Zhaid Diaz looked comfortable as he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one walk in seven consecutive appearances.
Back at the plate, Jace Harrell and Thomas Bass did most of the damage at the plate: Harrell scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances, while Bass scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Bass has become a key player for Chandler: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 3-8-1 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Brian Romero, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Casteel is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 10-4 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.5 runs over those games. As for Chandler, the victory got them back to even at 8-8-1.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Wednesday. Casteel hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.5 home runs per game. However, it's not like Chandler struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.4 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Casteel skirted past Chandler 9-8 in their previous matchup last Tuesday. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Colts since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
