Max Clark and Izaac Pacheco power Whitecaps; RJ Sales dominates for Lakeland

Scores, news, and notes from around the Detroit Tigers’ farm system for Wednesday, May 14, 2025.

Scranton-Wilkes/Barre RailRiders 5, Toledo Mud Hens 4 (box )

Nick Margevicus started and ended poorly in his outing, but hey in the middle he was pretty good. The Hens offense fought back late but couldn’t complete a comeback on Wednesday.

Margevicius surrendered a two-run shot to T.J. Rumfield in the bottom of the first inning. He then settled in for the next four innings and was looking better despite not getting much in the way of whiffs.

In the top of the fourth, Carlos Mendoza singled, but was then cut down stealing with Hao-Yu Lee at the dish. That was unfortunate, as Lee cranked a 418 foot solo shot to left center field. Ryan Kreidler added a solo shot in the fifth, and we had a 2-2 ballgame.

Manager Gabe Alvarez stuck with his lefty starter in the sixth and it bit him. A single and a pair of walks issues finally brought the hook, but Matt Seelinger allowed all three runs to score. 5-2 RailRiders.

In the seventh, Lee reached on an infield single and took second on a throwing error. Manuel Margot drew a walk, and both runners were wild pitched 90 feet. Andrew Navigato struck out, but Bligh Madris walked to load the bases. Kreidler struck out, but Brian Serven also drew a walk to force in a run and make it 5-3.

A Margot double play ball snuffed a potential rally in the top of the seventh but Jordan Balazovic and Brendan White handled the seventh and eighth for the Hens without allowing a run.

Navigato led off the top of the ninth with a solo shot to pull the Hens within one, but the next three hitters went down in order.

Lee: 2-3, 2 R, RBI, HR, BB

Navigato: 2-4, R, RBI, HR

Margevicius (L, 0-1): 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 5 H, 2 BB, 2 K

Coming Up Next: With the series tied at a game apiece, they’ll get back at it on Thursday night at 6:35 p.m. ET.

Erie SeaWolves at Richmond Flying Squirrels (postponed)

They were rained out in Richmond on Wednesday. A double-header will get underway at 5:05 p.m. ET on Thursday. RHP Garrett Burhenn will take Game 1 for the SeaWolves.

West Michigan Whitecaps 7, Fort Wayne TinCaps 0 (box )

Rayner Castillo threw a good game and Max Clark and Izaac Pacheco powered the offense with Josue Briceño getting the night off.

We’ve talked a bit about Max Clark’s severe opposite field tendencies, but just like last year, as he settles in at the High-A level the pull side power is starting to show up. He led off the game with a blast to right field in his one.

With two outs, Andrew Jenkins walked and Izaac Pacheco doubled him to third. Brett Callahan drew a walk to load the bases, and Luke Gold pulled a double to left, clearing the bases. 4-0 ‘Caps.

It’s been a little bit of a struggle for young mister Castillo as he moves to the High-A level, but he was sharp in this one. The big right-hander’s velo is still down a little bit, but he had no trouble scattering three hits and a walk over five scoreless frames. He struck out five along the way.

Much like the Erie SeaWolves, the Whitecaps’ bullpen has been outstanding so far this season. It continued as Colin Fields went two perfect innings with three strikeouts, and Micah Ashman remains nearly unhittable. The lefty with the invisible fastball spun a perfect frame with two strikeouts to drop his ERA to 0.52 on the year. He holds a strikeout rate just shy of 33 percent on the year with only a couple of walks.

In the fifth, Jenkins singled with one out, and after a ground out moved him to second, Callahan knocked him in with a single. Pacheco would triple home Jenkins in the top of the ninth, running his OPS to .836 on the year. After years of struggling, Pacheco has finally made some successful adjustments.

Pacheco: 2-4, R, 2 RBI, 2B, 3B, BB

Clark: 2-5, R, RBI, HR

Jenkins: 2-4, 3 R, BB

Castillo (W, 1-2): 5.0 IP, 0 R, 3 H, BB, 5 K

Coming Up Next: The Whitecaps look to make it three in a row over Fort Wayne at 7:05 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 2, Clearwater Threshers 1 (box )

RJ Sales and the Flying Tigers bullpen led the way in a close, well-pitched contest in Clearwater on Wednesday night.

The Detroit Tigers 10th rounder last year, the 21-year-old Sales scattered two hits and a walk, racking up 10 whiffs and five strikeouts over five scoreless innings of work. The right-hander had his mid-90’s fastball cooking and got his share of whiffs on the slider as the Threshers struggled to get the barrel on the ball throughout his outing.

The Flying Tigers weren’t exactly knocking the cover off the ball either. Kevin McGonigle opened the game with a line drive single, but he was stranded. Garrett Pennington led off the second with a single as well, but again no dice in the scoring department. The same was true with a leadoff single in the fourth from Bryce Rainer. The hits would keep coming, but the Flying Tigers had three runners caught stealing in the contest as well.

Finally if the fifth, Jackson Strong laid into a 3-2 fastball down the middle and cranked a solo shot to right for his second round-tripper of the season. In the sixth, Kevin McGonigle and Bryce Rainer walked to start the inning. A passed ball saw McGonigle take third, but Rainer didn’t read it well and stayed put. A wild pitch got him to second anyway.

On a Franyerber Montilla ground out to second, Rainer broke for third, forcing McGonigle into no man’s land and he was cut down at the plate. Rainer took third as a little collision from McGonigle and the Threshers catcher saw the benches clear for a moment while McGonigle argued that the catcher was blocking home plate. All that was to no avail, but pitcher Marcus Morgan uncorked yet another wild pitch and Rainer scored anyway.

So it was 2-0 Lakeland, and Mr. Morgan still had no idea where the ball was going. He hit Carson Rucker, wild pitched him to second, and then walked Pennington. Mercifully, the Threshers went to the pen, and Gabriel Barbosa struck out Nomar Fana to escape the jam.

Shay Timmer allowed a run in the seventh, but Chris Williams Jr. and Ethan Sloan did their jobs, with Sloan handling the final two frames with three punchouts to earn his first save of the season.

Strong: 2-3, R, RBI, HR, BB

McGonigle: 1-2, BB

Rainer: 1-3, R, BB

Sales (W, 2-1): 0 R, 2 H, BB, 5 K

Coming Up Next: The Flying Tigers take a 2-0 series lead into a 6:30 p.m. ET matchup on Thursday.