The Melrose-Mindoro Mustangs are taking a road trip to challenge the Eleva-Strum Cardinals at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Melrose-Mindoro is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.4 runs per game this season.
Melrose-Mindoro took a loss when they played away from home on Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Monday. Everything went their way against Augusta as they made off with a 13-0 win. The victory continues a trend for the Mustangs in their matchups with the Beavers: they've now won four in a row.
Brett Peterson made a splash no matter where he played. He didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over four innings pitched. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in five consecutive appearances. He was even better at the plate, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with two stolen bases, three runs, and one triple. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April.
In other batting news, Melrose-Mindoro got a massive performance out of Eric Herzberg, who went 2-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Jacob Thesing was another key player, getting on base in all three of his plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs.
Melrose-Mindoro always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .529. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Augusta only posted an OBP of .158.
Meanwhile, Monday just wasn't the day for Eleva-Strum's offense. They fell just short of Osseo-Fairchild by a score of 2-0 on Monday.
Eleva-Strum saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Calvin Barneson, who went 1-for-3 with one stolen base.
Melrose-Mindoro's record is now 14-5. As for Eleva-Strum, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost seven of their last nine contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 5-10 record this season.
Melrose-Mindoro was able to grind out a solid win over Eleva-Strum when the teams last played back in April, winning 3-0. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Mustangs since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
