The Hudson Valley Renegades had a chance to even their record at .500 last week but lost a pair of series to fall to 14-18 at press time.
In the first game of a three-game set at Dutchess Stadium on July 17, the Renegades beat the State College Spikes, a Pennsylvania-based Pirates affiliate, 5-1.
Jason Ragan improved to 4-2 with a 2.16 ERA with the win. Ragan threw seven innings, his longest outing of the season, allowing just one run on five hits while striking out four. Noah Booth pitched the final two innings to pick up his second save of the season.
The Renegades scored a run in five separate innings. The offense was led by left fielder Steve Vogt, who went 3-4 with two doubles and a run batted in. Second basemen Cody Cipriano and designated hitter Mike McCormick contributed two hits apiece.
The win brought the Renegades to 13-14 on the year, and the following night they took on the Spikes with the hope of winning their third game in a row and improving to a .500 record, a mark which has eluded them since the beginning of the season.
Facing one of the New York-Penn League’s best pitchers in Tony Watson, the Renegades were shut down, but they mounted a late-inning rally against the Spikes bullpen. The comeback fell short, however, and the Renegades lost the game 5-4.
The Spikes scored all five runs against Renegades starter Doug Echeverria, who fell to 0-5 with the loss. Trailing 5-2 going into the bottom of the sixth, Hudson Valley scored a run and another in the seventh to cut the lead to 5-4. But they failed to complete the comeback, going scoreless in the final two innings.
Watson gave up six hits and two earned runs over six innings. Watson (5-0, 1.87 ERA) leads the league in victories and is fifth in earned run average.
Hudson Valley center fielder Emeel Salem and left fielder Steve Vogt went 2-4 in the losing effort.
On July 19, the Renegades lost the game – and the series – to the Spikes, again by a 5-4 margin. For the second straight night, the ’Gades found a reserve of energy to stage a comeback, but or the second straight night, the comeback was futile.
It started in the bottom of third when Emeel Salem led off with a single and a stolen base. Salem scored on a double by right fielder Maiko Loyola to score the Renegades’ first run and cut the deficit to 4-1. The Renegades scored again in the fourth and the eighth.
Then, trailing 5-3 in the final inning and down to their last out, Salem hit his first home run of the season to bring the ‘Gades within one. But Spikes closer Ronald Uviedo got out of the jam, recording his second consecutive save and seventh overall this year.
Renegades starter Josh Johnson (1-2) took the loss, allowing seven hits and five runs, four of them earned, in five innings.
Hitting the road
Having lost two straight, the Renegades took their 13-16 record on the road, traveling to Auburn to take on the Blue Jays affiliate Auburn Doubledays in a three-game series.
In the opening game on Friday, July 20, the Renegades came out with guns blazing. Hudson Valley scored nine runs in the first four innings and went on to win 9-3.
Jesse Darcy (2-3) got the win for the Renegades. Darcy gave up one run on three hits in five innings, striking out five along the way.
The Renegades’ offensive barrage was led by right fielder Maiko Loyola, one of the league’s hottest hitters all season. Loyola finished 3-5 with a double, triple and two runs batted in. Second basemen Cody Cipriano chipped in with a three-run homer in the first.
On Saturday, July 21 the Renegades and Doubledays went into extra innings tied at three runs apiece. In the bottom of the 10th, the home team prevailed. With one out and a runner on second, second basemen Darin Mastroianni hit the game-winning single to beat the Renegades 4-3.
The Renegades had their chance in the top of the 10th, putting runners on second and third with two out, but third baseman Gregg Sexton flied out to end the inning.
Hudson Valley starter Alex Cobb (3-2, 3.00 ERA) recorded a no decision, allowing six hits and three runs in six innings. Relief pitcher Noah Booth (0-1), who came on in the bottom of the 10th, gave up the game-winning single and took the loss.
Loyola led the way once again for the Renegades, going 3-5. Center fielder Emeel Salem finished 2-5 and scored two of the Renegades three runs.
Hudson Valley lost another heartbreaker the next night, Sunday July 22, going down 2-1 to lose their second consecutive series. The winning run came on a homer by Doubledays’ first basemen Manuel Rodriguez in the bottom of the sixth.
Jason Ragan (4-3, 2.23 ERA) took the loss for the Renegades, although he turned in his second straight solid performance on the mound. Ragan allowed just four hits and two earned runs in seven innings of work, striking out five and walking none, but could not overcome the homer by Rodriguez.
The Renegades’ sole run came in the fourth, when first basemen Henry Wrigley drove home left fielder Reid Fronk with a single. The Renegades threatened to tie the game in the top of the ninth, putting two runners on base, but the rally and the game ended when catcher Mike McCormick struck out and Wrigley popped-up.
With the win the Auburn Doubledays improved to a Pinckney Division-best 19-14. The Renegades dropped to 14-18 and stand in last place in the McNamara Division, nine-and-a-half games behind the Brooklyn Cyclones, who lead the division and the league with a 24-9 record.
After a day off, the Renegades will take on the Mahoning Valley Scrappers and the Lowell Spinners in a six-game homestand.