Baseball Game Preview: Swink Lions vs. Rocky Ford Meloneers

The Swink Lions will venture away from home to square off against the Rocky Ford Meloneers at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday. Swink is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.4 runs per game this season.

If Swink beats Rocky Ford with six runs on Thursday, it's going to be the team's new lucky number: they've won their past two matchups with that exact score. The Lions walked away with a 6-2 victory over La Veta on Monday. Winning may never get old, but the Lions sure are getting used to it with their third in a row.

Landon Mills

Earned Runs

03/22/25 vs Peyton	7
04/02/25 vs Fowler	4
03/28/25 vs Limon	3
03/07/25 vs Centauri	1

Landon Mills and Nate Cabrera made a big impact while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Mills struck out seven batters over 3.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and only one walk). Meanwhile, Cabrera pitched 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Mills also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Swink is undefeated when he allows at most one earned run, but 3-4 otherwise. At the plate, Mills scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances, while Cabrera scored three runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-4. Mills has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Nick Paolucci, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4. Swink is 5-1 when Paolucci posts two or more runs, but 2-3 otherwise. The team also got some help courtesy of Luke Hanagan, who went 2-for-3 with one RBI.

Meanwhile, Rocky Ford entered their tilt with Center on Tuesday with two consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with three. They blew past the Vikings 20-8. The Meloneers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five games by ten runs or more this season.

Rocky Ford now has a winning record of 5-4. As for Swink, their record now sits at 7-4.

Everything went Swink's way against Rocky Ford when the teams last played back in May of 2024, as Swink made off with a 13-1 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Lions since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.