River Ryan’s debut with the Toledo Mud Hens was straight fire, seriously! The dude absolutely proved his stuff is still electric, and the Hens took home a solid 7-3 win against the Iowa Cubs on Wednesday. This guy’s been on a rehab journey, dealing with a right hamstring injury he totally pushed trying to come back too quick with the Dodgers. Smart move by the Tigers taking their sweet time getting him back on that mound, right? He only threw two innings in this one, but man, you could see it. Two soft hits, one of which should’ve been an out anyway, zero walks, and two strikeouts. That fastball was SCREAMING, hitting 98.2 mph and averaging 97.1. Plus, he wasn’t just hucking heat, he was mixing in all six of his pitches. Talk about a full arsenal!
Pérez’s Bat Catches Fire Early
The Mud Hens offense wasted no time backing up Ryan. In the top of the second, Corey Julks walked, though he got caught stealing, which was a bummer. But then Seby Zavala singled, and after James Outman struck out, Justice Bigbie kept the rally going with another single. That brought up veteran catcher Carlos Pérez, and man, did he deliver! Pérez absolutely CRACKED a three-run shot to left field, putting the Hens up 3-0. He wasn’t done either. In the fourth, Outman walked to lead off, and Pérez came through AGAIN with an RBI double, making it 4-0. The man finished the game 2-3 with a run, four RBI, a double, and a homer. What a performance!
Bullpen Holds, SeaWolves Struggle
Carl Edwards Jr. took over from Ryan in the bottom of the third and absolutely cruised through his first three innings, even striking out the side swinging in the fifth. He did falter a bit in the sixth, allowing two runs, but still pitched into the seventh without more issues. Outman later singled in Julks in the top of the eighth, stole second, and then scored on a Bigbie single to make it 7-2. Ty Madden locked down the eighth, and Nic Sandlin tossed a scoreless ninth to wrap up the 7-3 victory.
Now, over in Erie, it was a totally different vibe for the SeaWolves. They got crushed 11-3 by the Reading Fightin Phils. Things actually looked promising early on. In the second, E.J. Exposito singled and then scored on a Chris Meyers blast to left center field for a 2-0 lead. But Lucas Elissalt, who was cruising at first, started struggling to get ahead of hitters. He gave up a run in the third and then got absolutely hammered in the fourth, giving up a solo shot on a 3-1 fastball and another solo homer on a hanging slider. Just like that, it was 3-2 Reading, and Erie never recovered. Elissalt gave up two singles and a walk to start the fifth before Colin Fields took over, but the damage was already done.
The Mud Hens are back in action Thursday with a 7:38 p.m. ET start. Let’s see if Ryan’s electric stuff sets the tone for continued success for these guys.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Bless You Boys.
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