The Sneads Pirates will square off against the Cottondale Hornets at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Sneads is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They blew past Poplar Springs 17-7. The victory continues a trend for the Pirates in their matchups with the Atomics: they've now won five in a row.
Creed Whitworth made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He struck out six batters over 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). He is becoming a predictor of Sneads' success: when he allows at most three hits the team is undefeated (and 8-12 when he doesn't). Whitworth was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 1-for-3.
Kaiden Chehardy
| 04/15/25 vs Poplar Springs | 3 |
| 04/02/25 vs Malone | 2 |
| 04/09/25 vs Vernon | 1 |
| 03/04/25 @ Chipley | 1 |
| 02/28/25 @ Blountstown | 1 |
In other batting news, Kaiden Chehardy was a standout: he got on base in all four of his plate appearances with three runs, one triple, and one RBI. Those three runs gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Isaiah Perkins, who went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and one stolen base.
Sneads always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .639. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, while Cottondale put up plenty of runs on Tuesday, the same can't be said for Malone. The Hornets put the hurt on the Tigers with a sharp 15-0 win. Winning may never get old, but the Hornets sure are getting used to it with their fourth in a row.
Cottondale got a massive performance out of Alex Bellamy, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. That home run was Bellamy's first of the season. Conner Barton was another key player, going 3-for-4 with four runs, four RBI, and one stolen base.
The victory got Sneads back to even at 12-12. As for Cottondale, their record is now 14-11.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Sneads has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Cottondale struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Sneads couldn't quite finish off Cottondale in their previous matchup back in March and fell 5-3. Can the Pirates avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
