The West Bend East Suns will head out to challenge the Hartford Orioles at 4:45 p.m. on Wednesday. West Bend East has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the matchup with five straight defeats, while Hartford will come in with six straight victories.
West Bend East couldn't beat West Bend West on Monday even though they stacked four runs on them in the fourth inning. The Suns fell 11-6 to the Spartans.
Orion Holmes and Davis Rowley did some serious damage despite the final result: Holmes got on base in all four of his plate appearances with one run and one RBI, while Rowley went 1-for-3 with one home run.
Hartford came out on top against Cedarburg on Monday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run third inning. The Orioles never let the Bulldogs get on the board and left with a 10-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Orioles, who have now won five contests by seven runs or more so far this season.
Jack Perkowski tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out seven over 4.2 innings pitched. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Brady Helms, who went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI. Those two stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Logan Laufenberg also deserves some recognition as he brought in his first RBI of the season.
Hartford hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team has now struck out at least four batters in four consecutive games.
Hartford's victory was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-4. The road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.4 runs on average over those games. As for West Bend East, their loss dropped their record down to 2-9.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Wednesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. West Bend East has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Hartford struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
West Bend East might still be hurting after the 12-4 defeat they got from Hartford when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Can the Suns avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
