Baseball Game Preview: Swink Lions vs. Rye Thunderbolts

Swink is on a three-game streak of home losses, and Rye a four-game streak of away losses. However, someone's due for a change in luck on Friday. The Swink Lions will welcome the Rye Thunderbolts at 10:00 a.m. Swink is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 9 runs per game this season.

Swink made up a huge gap compared to their last game against Las Animas, but they still couldn't quite topple them. The Lions fell just short of the Trojans by a score of 6-4 on Friday.

Landon Mills

Home Runs

03/22/25 vs Calhan	2
05/02/25 vs Las Animas	1
04/17/25 vs Manzanola	1
04/04/25 vs Crowley County	1

Swink saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Landon Mills, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and one double. Mills has become a key player for the Lions: the team is 3-1 when he posts at least one home run, but 7-8 otherwise. Nick Paolucci was another, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with one stolen base and one run.

Crowley County hit Rye with a seven-run first inning on Thursday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Thunderbolts lost 11-1 to the Chargers.

Rye's loss dropped their record down to 5-15. As for Swink, their defeat dropped their record down to 10-9.

Rye's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Swink has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .459. It's a different story for Rye, though, as they've only averaged .343. Will they be able to contain Swink's hitters?

Swink beat Rye 4-1 when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Will the Lions repeat their success, or do the Thunderbolts have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.