Rochester brought the winning run to the plate with two outs in the bottom of the ninth of Tuesday’s game against Thunder Bay. The man with the bat in his hand had hit a ball over the scoreboard four innings prior. Fans could clearly feel the potential of something big coming on.
Once again, he made loud contact, but it found its way harmlessly into the centerfielder’s glove.
Tuesday’s 5-3 loss to the Border Cats saw more positive takeaways. After falling behind in the first, they responded with a run of their own courtesy of Nico Defazio’s RBI double.
They then found themselves in a 4-1 hole. But Mattie Thomas, in his first game of the year, obliterated a two-run homer that cleared the scoreboard in left-center field.
That was all the runs the Honkers could muster. A rally was put together in the ninth, with Ryan Tiger and Petey Craska each reaching, however Mattie Thomas lined out to center field.
Aaron Mccurley and JuJu Thompson were both stellar out of the Rochester bullpen, combining for five innings and just one earned run.
The Rochester Honkers 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. Entering its’ 31st season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 26 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 350 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 (TEX), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (STL) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, 2021 and 2023 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and two-time All-MLB first team 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 northwoodsleague.com/rochester-honkers or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Honkers as your favorite team.
