Eau Claire, WI – The Express extend their win streak to 5 with a victory over the visiting Minnesota Mud Puppies. The final score of the Sunday afternoon contest read 15-3 in favor of Eau Claire.
Freddy Rodriguez (Cal Poly) started on the hill for the Express and pitched a smooth 6 innings to open the ballgame. In his appearance, he gave up just 3 runs on 6 hits with 7 Ks. His start was good enough to set the tone and limit the Mud Puppies.
While the pitching kept the Puppies at bay, the bats came alive for the Trains. The first big splash of scoring came in the bottom of the 2nd inning when the Express led off with three consecutive singles to load the bases. Ryan Nagelbach (UIC), Reed Latimer (UAB), and Dylan O’Connell (WKU) then went to work to bring in their buddies on the basepaths. The three combined to drive in 4 Runs and put the Express up early.
From there, the Express poured on 3 runs in the 4th, and another 4 in the 5th. In each of these innings, a home run was scored by the Trains as Cort MacDonald (Stanford) started it off with a two-run blast. O’Connell’s shot came second, with a deep line drive that sailed over the left field wall onto the Football Field.
From here, the competition was essentially over for the Mud Puppies, as Kellan Short and Ethan Louthan came in to finish the game on the mound.
Eau Claire combined for an astounding 23 hits on the day, en route to this rout. Every single starter in the lineup managed at least 1 hit on the game, and 8 Trains had multi-hit days.
After today’s win, the Express will enjoy the following 3 days off, as the Great Plains All-Star Break begins. 5 men from Eau Claire will head to Bismarck to compete in the game, and 3 of the 5 will be taking part in a Home Run Derby tomorrow evening (7/31). Be sure to follow along with all of the action on the Express’ social pages, and tune into the games on ESPN U.
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The Eau Claire Express are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires, and front office staff, over 325 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.eauclaireexpress.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Express as your favorite team.
