Baseball Game Preview: Rich Township Raptors vs. Thornwood Thunderbirds

For the second straight game, Rich Township will face off against Thornwood. The Raptors will be playing at home against the Thunderbirds at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Rich Township has given up an average of 6.8 runs per game this season, but Wednesday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.

For some reason, the away team has come away with the win the last four times Rich Township and Thornwood have met, but the home crowd finally got their W on Monday. The Raptors fell just short of the Thunderbirds by a score of 11-10.

For Thornwood's part, Derrion Howard was incredible, getting on base in all five of his plate appearances with six stolen bases, three runs, and one triple. Howard is becoming a predictor of the Thunderbirds' success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 3-6 when he doesn't). Hashim Vincent was another key player, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with one stolen base, one double, and one RBI.

Thornwood was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .394. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Rich Township only posted a batting average of .258.

Thornwood has been performing well recently as they've won nine of their last 12 games. That's provided a nice bump to their 10-6 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.7 runs over those games. As for Rich Township, their loss dropped their record down to 7-11.

The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Wednesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Rich Township has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 7 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Thornwood struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 10.5 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.