Baseball Game Preview: Spring Mills Cardinals vs. Martinsburg Bulldogs

Spring Mills hasn't had much luck against Martinsburg recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Cardinals will take on the Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. Spring Mills' pitching crew has only allowed 2.8 runs per game this season, so Martinsburg's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

While Spring Mills didn't have the best season last year (they finished 6-19), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They blew past Clarke County 14-4 on Wednesday. The result was nothing new for the Cardinals, who have now won six matches by six runs or more so far this season.

Brayden Clark looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out seven over four innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances.

Bryce Anders

Runs

04/09/25 vs Clarke County	4
03/29/25 vs Frankfort	4
03/28/25 vs Musselman	3
03/25/25 vs Heritage Academy	3

At the plate, JP Sweeney and Bryce Anders did most of the damage at the plate: Sweeney went 3-for-5 with four RBI, one run, and one double, while Anders scored four runs while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances. Anders is becoming a predictor of Spring Mills' success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 2-3 when he doesn't). Bradley Butts also deserves some recognition as he brought in his first RBI of the season.

The home team had come away the winner the last four times Martinsburg and Jefferson had met, but sadly for the fans who attended this one that wasn't the case. The Bulldogs lost 9-1 to the Cougars on Tuesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest defeat the Bulldogs have suffered since May 21, 2024.

Spring Mills is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-3 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.0 runs over those games. As for Martinsburg, they moved to 6-4 with that loss, which also ended their four-game winning streak.