Published On: June 30th, 2025

By: Niall Rosenberg

 

ROCKFORD, Ill. — The end of the first half means new beginnings for the Rivets.

 

The Rockford Rivets (13-19) faced off against the Royal Oak Leprechauns (17-19) for the last time in the first half of the season. In what has been a rough stretch for the team the last couple of weeks, the losing continues. The Leprechauns’ hitters continued to dominate Rivets’ pitching, winning this one 9-6. The Rivets have lost 11 out of their last 12 games.

 

“I think the longest losing streak I’ve been a part of in my career in the last 15 years was three games,” Head Coach Chase Brewster said. “So what we’ve done the last 11 games has felt like the end of the world for a lot of people.”

 

The Leprechauns started tonight the same way they have the past three against the Rivets, taking the early lead. Sloppy defense from the Rivets cost them in the second. A fielder’s choice play at the plate called safe scored the first run of the game. Shortly after, an error by the Rivets’ defense scored two more, and the Rivets went down three quickly.

 

After not scoring until the fifth inning yesterday, the Rivets responded in their half of the second. Ty Waid (McLennan) turned on a hitter’s count pitch to center over the batter’s eye for his third bomb of the season.

 

The Rivets’ bats continued to fire in the third. A double from Conner Cunningham (Murray State) put a runner in scoring position for Cade Climie (Houston) with two outs. In Climie’s final game as a Rivet this summer, he lined a single to right, scoring Cunningham, and the lead was cut in half to one.

 

After what’s been a rough stretch of pitching for the Rivtes, Alexander Llinas’ (Nova Southeastern) start was a breath of fresh air. In his four innings of work, he gave up three runs, but only one was earned on a bang-bang play at the plate. Llinas gave up three hits, four walks and finished with six strikeouts.

 

“Alexander’s been a man all summer,” Brewster said. “He’s given us a chance to win every single time he’s pitched. He’s another one we can’t wait to watch his success next spring.”

 

George Gouriotis (Edgewood) came in relief for Llinas in the fifth. The right-hander struggled on the mound this inning. The first two batters reached on a single and a walk, followed by an RBI single, growing the Leprechauns’ lead back to two. Another walk and a sacrifice fly added another run. By the end of the fifth, the Rivets trailed 5-2.

 

The Rivets’ power continued to be on display. With two runners on, Climie got a breaking ball and demolished a no-doubter over the left field wall. One swing tied this ballgame at five apiece.

 

“Just finally starting to get my groove. It sucks that it’s coming at a bad time. My summer’s coming to an end,” Climie said. “I came to Rockford to try and find my groove again and it took me a while, but it felt good to get one up and out of the stadium.”

 

The Leprechauns keep finding a way to score against the Rivets’ pitching. The sixth saw a two-RBI single, giving Royal Oak the lead for the third time tonight. They added an insurance run in the eighth and the ninth.

 

The Rivets showed some fight in the last two innings. They added one run back in the bottom of the eighth thanks to an RBI single from Jack Scheri (Wabash Valley). The eighth also saw two runners on with no outs, but the Rivets couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity.

 

The ninth inning saw a leadoff walk for Climie, but the next three batters all struck out and the Rivets fell once again.

 

“Unfortunately, the last 10 days, I’ve used every good luck speech I got,” Brewster said. “There was none to give… We got some hitters’ counts. He (Fischer Hendershot) threw it right by us, and he was just better than us.”

 

The second half begins tomorrow in Kenosha before returning to Rivets Stadium for a four-game home series.

 

Fans can purchase tickets for Rivets games all season long at www.rockfordrivets.com.

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The Rockford Rivets 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’ 31st season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history 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, 360 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, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). League games are viewable live on Northwoods League+ (at watch.northwoodsleague.com), ESPN+, and the Northwoods League Network.  Learn more and find complete streaming schedules at watchnwl.com. For more information, visit www.rockfordrivets.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rivets as your favorite team.

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