Strong starting pitching, Briceno goes deep twice and Lakeland wins with walk-off grand slam

Scores, news, and notes from around the Detroit Tigers’ farm system for Friday, August 1, 2025.

Toledo Mud Hens 3, St. Paul Saints 2 (box )

Sawyer Gipson-Long looks ready to go after a few weeks off. The last time we saw him, he was getting lit up by Memphis for seven runs in 3.2 innings. On Friday, SGL was much sharper, throwing three hitless frames. He struck out five and walked none, although he did hit the first batter of the game.

He responded with five strikeouts over the next six batters, including a strikeout of the side in the second. Everything looked good. Ten swings and three whiffs on 14 sliders. His velocity was down about a mile, so give him another outing like this and then get him up to Detroit to help that bleeding pitching staff.

Bailey Horn got the win as the primary relief arm behind Gipson-Long. He struck out four over two innings, but St. Paul got to him for a run in the fifth following a two-out walk.

Fortunately, Toledo built up a three-run cushion in the second, scoring on an Andrew Navigato double, a Brian Serven single and an Akil Baddoo sacrifice fly. Trey Sweeney also had a hit in the second, putting three of the Mud Hens’ four total for the day in one frame.

To the lineup’s credit, Toledo walked 10 times on Friday, but Trei Cruz’s eighth-inning single was the only base knock of the day.

Alex Lange and Drew Sommers recorded holds before Matt Seelinger came in for the save. Lange went 1-2-3 in the sixth, and Sommers did the same in the seventh. Sommers struggled in the eighth, hitting the leadoff man and walking the second batter. Only one run ended up scoring on a single later in the inning, preserving the Toledo lead.

Seelinger came on for Sommers after that run crossed and induced a double play to get out of the eighth. He struck out the side in the ninth, working around a one-out base hit. Good pitching won this game for the Mud Hens.

Jung: 0-3, BB, 2 K

Malloy: 0-4, K

Gipson-Long: 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K; 42 pitches (28 strikes)

Erie SeaWolves 10, Akron RubberDucks 3 (box )

Erie also rode a strong pitching performance, but the offense did its part, putting up a pair of crooked numbers in a 10-3 victory over the Akron RubberDucks.

Josue Briceno was the big bat of the day, hitting a pair of solo home runs and scoring three times. However, Briceno’s bombs weren’t really the difference makers.

Erie broke the scoreless tie with a bases-loaded walk in the second, and Max Clark made it 3-0 with a line drive up the middle. A throwing error gave Toledo another run.

Briceno’s first homer made it 5-0 in the third inning, and another error brought in a sixth run for the Hens in the fourth.

Garrett Burhenn gave Erie seven shutout innings, allowing just five hits and no walks while striking out four. He did so efficiently, too, throwing just 85 pitches on the day. It’s easily the best outing of his minor league career so far.

Just before Burhenn came out of the game, the SeaWolves gave him three more runs. Jake Holton cleared the bases with a triple in the top of the seventh, and Burhenn went 1-2-3 in the bottom half of the frame.

It’s a good thing Erie didn’t have to go to the bullpen early because neither arm threw well tonight. Jordan Marks walked the first batter he faced and gave up the shutout with an RBI double in the next at-bat. Marks got the first two out of the inning on strikes, one swinging and one looking, but Richard Guasch came in early for a four-out non-save.

Briceno’s second homer of the game interrupted the Akron momentum in the ninth, but Guasch gave up a leadoff double to get the RubberDucks going again. A wild pitch and an error sequence led to a run. Two more walks came in the inning, but Guasch finally got out of it.

Clark: 2-5, RBI, 2 K

Briceno: 2-4, 2 HR (2), 3 R,2 RBI, 2 K

Burhenn (W, 11-2): 7.0 IP 5 H, 0 R, 0 Bb, 4 K; 85 pitches (61 strikes)

West Michigan Whitecaps 4, Dayton Dragons 3 (box )

We’re 3-for-3 on solid starting pitching performances across Detroit’s farm system so far, with West Michigan keeping the trend going. The Whitecaps got five shutout innings from Andrew Sears en route to a 4-3 win over the Dayton Dragons Friday night.

Sears struck out seven and walked three while allowing three hits. It’s not the first time he’s had a high strikeout performance across five innings or so, most recently striking out eight against Lake County in June. Sears isn’t untouchable, but he knows how to sequence his stuff and get outs.

Brett Callahan gave West Michigan the first runs of the game in the bottom of the first, singling in Peyton Graham and John Peck. The Whitecaps didn’t do much at the plate until the fifth, when Graham singled and scored on a sacrifice fly. A bit boring, but that third run is everything.

Graham got involved once again in the seventh, doubling in Seth Stephenson for an insurance run.

Out of the bullpen, Carlos Lequerica held things together in the sixth and seventh innings, Freddy Pacheco had a rough eighth and Moises Rodriguez got the save.

Graham: 2-4, 2B (1), R, RBI, BB, K

Peck: 1-4, R, RBI

Sears (W, 7-4): 5.0 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 7 K; 82 pitches (50 strikes)

Lakeland Flying Tigers 6, Tampa Tarpons 4 (box )

Continuing the trend of strong starts on the mound was Luke Stofel for Lakeland on Friday. Stofel gave up a pair of runs, but he delivered the quality start for the Flying Tigers in a 6-4 win over the Tampa Tarpons.

Stofel got through the Tarpons’ lineup the first time through just fine. He was lights out until the lineup turned over in the third inning. Walk, single, single, RBI groundout and Tampa had the lead. After all, the only scoring Lakeland did early was an RBI groundout in the second.

He got back to work in the fourth, though, and cruised through the sixth inning with six strikeouts. Meanwhile, Lakeland tied things up at two runs apiece in the fourth on an error by third base.

Travis Kuhn took over for Stofel in the seventh. A leadoff walk meant danger, but Tampa only managed one run on an RBI double, albeit the go-ahead run. Pedro Garcia had an easier time, facing the minimum in the eighth. He gave up a leadoff walk, but Sergio Tapia caught the runner stealing to keep things moving.

Tampa led 3-2 going into the final inning, but an insurance run in the top of the frame wasn’t enough to secure the win. The Tarpons scored on a wild pitch from Garcia, making it 4-2, but Ricardo Hurtado called the game for the Flying Tigers with a walk-off grand slam while pinch-hitting for Tapia.

What a way to end a game!

Rucker: 2-4, R, K

Hurtado: 1-1, HR (6), R, 4 RBI

Stofel: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K; 82 pitches (51 strikes)