Baseball Preview: Akron Rams vs. Otis Bulldogs
The Akron Rams will face off against the Otis Bulldogs at 9:00 a.m. on Friday. Both teams come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Akron is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. Everything went their way against Briggsdale as Akron made off with a 13-3 win. Akron might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team's won six matchups by six runs or more this season.
Caleb Poss was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing three innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off five hits. Poss was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a triple, a stolen base, and an RBI.
In other batting news, Tucker Stahn and Brock Swedlund did most of the damage at the plate: Stahn went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and a double, while Swedlund scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was Brandon Hellyer, who scored two runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Otis had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 13 runs), and they went ahead and made it four on Tuesday. They came out on top against the Buffaloes by a score of 15-10.
Paxton Davis was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while going 2-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Tayte Smith, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4.
The victory made it two in a row for Akron and bumps their season record up to 14-4. As for Otis, they have been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six contests, which provided a nice bump to their 13-4 record this season.
Friday's match might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Akron has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .454. However, it's not like Otis struggles in that department as they've averaged .535. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Akron came out on top in a nail-biter against Otis in their previous matchup back in March, sneaking past 9-8. The rematch might be a little tougher for Akron since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
