Troy Watson spins a gem in a Mud Hens victory; Chris Meyers and Max Clark power Erie over Akron

Scores, news, and notes from around the Detroit Tigers’ farm system for Thursday, July 31, 2025.

Toledo Mud Hens 7, St. Paul Saints 1 (box )

As the Detroit Tigers wrapped up a busy trade deadline day, the Hens got to work. This was a very well pitched, close fought affair on Thursday until the Hens blew the game open late.

Right-hander Troy Watson was on point in this one. The veteran fired six innings so of no-hit ball with six strikeouts to two walks allowed.

The Saints handled the Hens lineup pretty well early on as well, but in the fourth Justyn-Henry Malloy singled to left and Jace Jung crushed a two-run shot to left for a 2-0 lead. Akil Baddoo kept the inning going with a double with no outs. Ryan Kreidler was hit by a pitch, but then Baddoo got caught off second base on a pop-up from Trei Cruz and was cut down at second base. Kreidler tried to steal second and was thrown out, and the Hens had run themselves out of a potentially big inning.

In the end it didn’t hurt them as Watson continued to cruise and Tanner Rainey managed to strand three walks in the seventh inning. Geoff Hartlieb handled the top of the eighth, and in the bottom half the Hens erupted for five runs.

Hao-Yu Lee and Trey Sweeney singled to lead off the inning and Malloy lifted a sacrifice fly to bring in Lee from third. Jace Jung walked after an ABS challenge, and Baddoo came through with a single up the middle to plate Sweeney. Kreidler lined a single to score Jung, and Cruz brought in two more with a single that got away from the Saints right fielder.

When the smoke cleared it was 7-0. Hartlieb allowed a hit that broke up the combined no-hitter attempt, and then a lone run in the top of the ninth, but this one was out of reach.

Malloy: 3-3, R, RBI

Baddoo: 2-4, R, RBI, 2B, K

Cruz: 2-3, RBI, BB

Watson (W, 1-0): 6.0 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 BB, 6 K

Coming Up Next: With three straight wins, the Hens have at least a series split secured. They’ll look for the win on Thursday night.

Erie SeaWolves 11, Akron RubberDucks 5 (box )

The SeaWolves pounded out 14 hits to squash the Ducks on Thursday and are now down a game in the best of six series.

Max Clark lit the candle immediately, opening the game with a triple into the right field corner. A Kevin McGonigle sacrifice fly brought the run home and it was 1-0.

In the second Josue Briceño led off with a single and Justice Bigbie followed with one of his own. Chris Meyers stepped to the dish and launched a three run shot over the right field wall. 4-0 SeaWolves.

That lead evaporated when Max Alba ran into trouble in the fourth, allowing the RubberDucks to tie the game at 4-4.

The SeaWolves answered right back in the top of the fifth. McGonigle singled and took second on an Alex Mooney throwing error. Max Anderson plated him with a single. Briceño grounded out, moving Anderson to second, and Bigbie reached on an error that scored Anderson. Meyers smoked a double to right and Bigbie scored to make it 7-4.

Alba was done in the fifth with two on, and a passed ball on Briceño allowed a run, but it was the last one the Ducks would get.

In the sixth, Clark lined a double to right field and scored on a Thayron Liranzo single. In the eighth, Carlos Mendoza and Clark walked, and McGonigle doubled in Mendoza. A Briceño sacrifice fly brought in Clark from third to make it 10-5. A Bigbie single scored McGonigle to complete the scoring in this one.

Andrew Magno collected five outs after Alba left the game. Yosber Sanchez handled the seventh and eighth with four strikeouts to two walks. Blair Calvo handled the ninth without issue.

Clark: 2-5, 3 R, 2B, 3B, BB

McGonigle: 2-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2B, BB

Meyers: 3-4, R, 4 RBI, 2B, HR, BB, K

Alba: 5 R, 4 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 3 K

Coming Up Next: The SeaWolves will look to even the series at 7:05 p.m. ET on Friday night.

West Michigan Whitecaps 3, Dayton Dragons 2 (box )

A bullpen game for the Whitecaps worked out well as they pulled this one out late after the Dragons tied it in the eighth.

Preston Howey, normally a reliever, tossed four inning of one-run ball out of the chute. He quickly had a lead to work with as Austin Murr walked in the bottom of the first and Andrew Jenkins launched his 10th home run of the season for a 2-0 lead.

The Dragons made it 2-1 in the second inning, but the next five frames were scoreless. CJ Weins handled the fifth, and Colin Fields was good in the sixth and seventh innings. In the eighth, Fields allowed a game tying solo shot.

The Whitecaps offense recaptured the lead in the bottom half when Murr led off with a triple and eventually scored on an Izaac Pacheco sacrifice fly.

Dariel Fregio collected his first save since his promotion from Lakeland.

Murr: 2-3, 2 R, 3B, BB

Jenkins: 2-4, R, 2 RBI, HR

Howey: 4.0 IP, ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 2 K

Coming Up Next: The Whitecaps hold a 2-1 lead heading into a 6:35 p.m. ET matchup at LMCU Park.

Dunedin Blue Jays 4, Lakeland Flying Tigers 3 (F/11)(box )

The Blue Jays outlasted Lakeland in an 11 inning contest on Thursday.

Lucas Ellssalt, quickly becoming one of the more interesting young pitching prospects not injured this season, threw a strong game for the Flying Tigers. The right-hander tossed six innings of two run ball, with one earned run allowed. He struck out six against three walks.

The Flying Tigers got on the board in the first. Samuel Gil and Carson Rucker singled before the Blue Jays walked both Cristian Santana and Zach MacDonald to force in a run.

The Blue Jays tied the game in the second inning, and they got another in the fourth after a Carson Rucker throwing error started a rally. Elissalt allowed a single and a walk to load the bases after the error, but a sacrifice fly was all they could muster as the right-hander got a pair of fly balls and a strikeout to smother the threat.

Cristian Santana cracked his 12th home run of the season to lead off the sixth, and the game was knotted 2-2. They took the lead in the seventh when Jackson Strong led off with a double and later scored on a Rucker ground ball that the Blue Jays pitcher booted. That 3-2 lead slipped away when Antonio Florida, promoted from the Complex League this week, allowed a run in the bottom half to make it 3-3.

Ignacio Briceno did a nice job with a scoreless ninth, and tenth inning, but the Flying Tigers failed to score in either the top of the tenth or the eleventh inning, and Briceno couldn’t hold them off any longer. A Tucker Toman single walked it off for the Blue Jays.

Gil: 2-5, R

Santana: 1-4, R, RBI, HR, BB

MacDonald: 1-4, RBI, BB

Strong: 1-5, R, 2B, BB, 2 K

Elissalt: 6.0 IP, 2 R, ER, 3 H, 3 BB, 6 K

Coming Up Next: After dropping the short series in Dunedin, the Flying Tigers come home to welcome in the Tampa Tarpons on Friday night.