Baseball Recap: Como Park Takes a Loss

Como Park had lost seven straight at home dating back to last season, but on Monday they dropped down to 0-5 to make it eight. They came up short against the St. Paul Central Minutemen, falling 20-2. The Cougars were not able to make up for their defeat to the Minutemen from their previous meeting back in May of 2025.

Como Park saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Brendan Avant, who went 2-for-3 with one RBI. Those hits marked the first that Avant has got this season. Mitchell Pelzer was another, getting on base in both of his plate appearances with two stolen bases.

As for St. Paul Central, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 2-1. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered a grand total of 2 run in those games.

On St. Paul Central's side, Emmett Jones was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over three innings while giving up just two earned runs off two hits. Jones was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with one run.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Billy Vander Aarde, who went 3-for-4 with six RBI, two runs, and one triple. Those six RBI gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Oliver Stitzel, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with four runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.

Looking ahead, St. Paul Central will challenge Alexandria at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Como Park will be paying especially close attention to the Minutemen's game: after the Minutemen face off against the Cardinals, they'll take on Como Park again at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday.