Baseball Game Preview: Mineral Ridge Rams vs. Jackson-Milton Bluejays

Mineral Ridge and Jackson-Milton are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2016, but likely not for long. The Rams are taking a road trip to take on the Bluejays at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Mineral Ridge is coming into the match hot, having won their last five games.

Mineral Ridge came out on top against Garfield on Thursday thanks in part to the team's impressive four-run second inning. The Rams skirted past the G-Men 8-6. Eight seems to be a good number for the Rams as the squad scooped up a victory with the same number of runs in their previous game.

Jack Gillie

Stolen Base (Career)

04/24/25 @ Garfield	2
04/22/25 vs Springfield	1
04/12/25 vs Lowellville	1
05/21/24 vs Jackson-Milton	1
05/02/24 @ McKinley	1

Jack Gillie was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. Those two stolen bases gave him a new career-high.

In other batting news, Xavier Klamer was excellent, going 1-for-4 with three RBI, one triple, and one run. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in April of 2024.

Meanwhile, Jackson-Milton came up short against Waterloo on Wednesday and fell 8-5.

Mineral Ridge's win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 9-2. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.2 runs over those games. As for Jackson-Milton, their loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 4-3.

Mineral Ridge beat Jackson-Milton 3-0 when the teams last played back in May of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Rams since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.