The Clay Blue Devils will square off against the Riverside Generals at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The two teams are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.
Clay barely beat Keystone Heights the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Blue Devils put the hurt on the Indians with a sharp 12-2 victory on Thursday. Considering the Blue Devils have won nine contests by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
The team relied heavily on Easton McMahan, who went 2-for-3 with one home run and three RBI. Cole Carnell was another key player, scoring three runs while going 2-for-3.
McMahan wasn't the only one making solid contact: Clay kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in four consecutive games.
Meanwhile, it's playoff time, and Riverside had no trouble coming through when it counted. Everything went their way against Westside on Monday as they made off with a 16-10 win. The victory was some much needed relief for the Generals as it spelled an end to their six-game losing streak.
Rylan Covington was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over three innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in February of 2024. He was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in four of his five plate appearances with four stolen bases, three runs, and three RBI. He also put up a triple, which was his first of the season.
In other batting news, Josh Skipper was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances. He is becoming a predictor of Riverside's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 2-1 (and 1-16 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Douglas Evans, who scored two runs and stole three bases while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances.
Clay has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 16-9 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Riverside, their victory bumped their record up to 3-17.
Riverside's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Tuesday. Clay has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.1 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Riverside, though, as they've been averaging only 3.4 strikeouts. Will Clay keep running through batters, or will the Generals buck the trend? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
