The Richmond Bobcats will venture away from home to challenge the Telstar Rebels at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Telstar will be up against a hot Richmond team: the squad just extended their winning streak to five. The Bobcats' pitcher stepped up to hand Forest Hills a 10-0 shutout on Saturday. The result was nothing new for the Bobcats, who have now won four contests by six runs or more so far this season.
Richmond got a massive performance out of Zander Steele, who went 1-for-2 with one home run and three RBI. That home run marked the first that Steele has launched this season. Kenny Mecham was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with three stolen bases, two runs, and one double.
Richmond always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .632. The last time their OBP was this high was back in May of 2024.
Meanwhile, Telstar gave up the first runs on Saturday, but they didn't let that get them down. They put the hurt on Carrabec with a sharp 18-7 victory. The Rebels are also no stranger to big wins: their blowout was the fourth game they've won by 6+ runs this season.
Connor Deprey and Bryson Walker were major factors no matter where they played. Throwing, Deprey struck out six batters over 3.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off four hits (and only one walk). Meanwhile, Walker tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Deprey has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances. At the plate, Deprey went 4-for-5 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs, while Walker went 2-for-5 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Those four RBI gave Deprey a new career-high.
In other batting news, Brennan Walker was a standout: he got on base in four of his six plate appearances with three stolen bases, three runs, and one triple. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April of 2024. Another player making a difference was Brody Walker, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs.
Richmond pushed their record up to 5-0 with the win, which was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.5 runs over those games. As for Telstar, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 4-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Richmond has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Telstar struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Richmond was able to grind out a solid victory over Telstar in their previous matchup on Tuesday, winning 6-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bobcats since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
