The Valley Union Blue Devils are taking a road trip to face off against the Bagdad Sultans at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the game red-hot, with Valley Union sitting on three straight wins and Bagdad on seven.
Valley Union is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Saturday. They were the clear victors by a 9-3 margin over Superior. The Blue Devils not only won on Saturday, but they posted their biggest win since April 8th (when they won 10-1).
Dylan Mitchell made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out ten batters over seven innings while giving up three earned runs off four hits (and only one walk). That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in March. He was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with three RBI and one double.
In other batting news, Yahir Luna was excellent, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one double, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Bagdad beat Williams 6-3 on Saturday.
Like Valley Union, Bagdad also got a great game from a two-way player: Rowdy Hooper. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Hooper has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than two hits in eight consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going a perfect 2-for-2 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Aaron Landers, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with three runs.
Bagdad's victory was their tenth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 22-4. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for Valley Union, their record is now 11-5.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Valley Union has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Bagdad struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 5 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Valley Union couldn't quite get it done against Bagdad in their previous meeting back in May of 2018 as they fell 4-0. Can the Blue Devils avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
