The Timber Creek Wolves will square off against the Dr. Phillips Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Timber Creek's pitching crew has only allowed 1.5 runs per game this season, so Dr. Phillips' hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Dr. Phillips will be up against a hot Timber Creek squad: the team just extended their winning streak to three. Timber Creek never let Osceola get on the board and left with a 3-0 victory on Thursday.
Timber Creek got a great performance from Hunter Wieckowski as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched. What's more, Wieckowski gave up only one walk, the fewest he's had since back in April of 2024.
On the hitting side, Timber Creek saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Johann Mercado, who scored a run while going 2-for-3. Another was Jenuel Velazquez, who scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in two of his three plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Dr. Phillips fought the good fight in their extra-innings game against Lake Howell on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Silverhawks by a score of 4-3. The Panthers have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Charles Estrella-Roa was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he pitched 4.2 innings while giving up just one earned run off six hits.
At the plate, Ramses De Maio was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 2-for-4. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in April of 2024. Chris Pedrinan also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
Timber Creek's win bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Dr. Phillips, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-4.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Timber Creek has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Dr. Phillips struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Timber Creek took their victory against Dr. Phillips in their previous matchup back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 13-2. Will Timber Creek repeat their success, or does Dr. Phillips have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.