HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers started the 2023 season with a win, defeating the Long Island Ducks 3-2 on Friday night in front of a crowd of 2,419 at Truist Point.

Rightfielder Ben Aklinski’s solo homer leading off the fourth inning broke a 2-2 tie and gave the Rockers their third Opening Day victory in four tries.

High Point starter Craig Stem and Long Island starter Brett Kennedy each allowed a first inning run as the Ducks’ centerfielder Boog Powell led off the game with a solo homer to right. The Rockers tied the game in their half when Michael Russell doubled, moved to third on a single by John Nogowski and scored on a wild pitch by Kennedy.

The top of the second inning ended when Long Island’s Luis Guerrero lined a shot back up the middle that hit Stem before the hurler was able to make the throw to first to retire the side.

But the liner forced Stem out of the game with a hand injury and Rockers manager Jamie Keefe had to go to the bullpen earlier than he planned.

The game was tied at 1-1 when rain brought it to a halt after one-and-a-half innings.

Following a 54-minute rain delay, the Ducks went ahead 2-1 in the third when Daniel Murphy singled and scored on a triple by Sam Travis. High Point tied the game at 2-2 when Shed Long, Jr. drew a one-out walk in the third, moved to third on Russell’s second double of the night and scored on a fielder’s choice by Zander Weil.

Aklinski led off the fourth with his homer and neither team would score the rest of the way as each club’s bullpens held the other scoreless over the final four innings.

Bryce Hensley earned the win with two innings of work, allowing three hits. Kyle Halbohn, Jeremy Rhoades, Cam Cotter and Jameson McGrane each tossed scoreless innings before Ryan Dull closed the game with a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth.

The save was Dull’s 14^th of his career, breaking him out of a four-way tie and making him the Rockers’ all-time save leader.

“Stem’s a big question mark,” said Keefe following the game. “It doesn’t look good. We’ll talk to the team doctor in the morning and we’ll know more then.”

Russell finished the night with three hits including two doubles that extended his Rockers’ career record to 66 career doubles. Aklinski and catcher Beau Taylor each finished with a pair of hits. Long Island was led by Powell and Murphy, each of whom had three hits.

But the story was the bullpen. High Point’s relievers threw seven scoreless innings, allowing six hits and striking out five while walking three.

The Rockers will remain at home Saturday night when they again host the Ducks at 6:35 p.m. at Truist Point. High Point community leader Coy Williard will be honored at the game. Fans will be treated to a postgame fireworks show and tickets for Saturday’s game can be purchased online at HighPointRockers.com or at the Box Office. A four-for-$28 special will run through Saturday’s game with the use of the pass code COY.

 

 

GASTONIA, N.C. – The High Point Rockers picked up an 11-3 victory in exhibition action on Sunday afternoon at CaraMont Health Stadium against the Gastonia Honey Hunters.

The Rockers wasted no time getting the scoring started thanks to a Ryan Grotjohn solo blast to put the visitors up 1-0 after an inning of play.

A couple innings later, John Nogowski laced an RBI single to bring across a second High Point run to stretch the lead to 2-0. Rockers starter Craig Stem breezed through his first two innings of work, surrendering just one hit.

However, after recording two outs to open the bottom of the third, Stem left a fastball out over the plate and Luis Curbelo sent it over the wall to knot the score at 2-2.

As the game reached the fourth inning, the Rockers exploded with their bats, ripping four consecutive hits to open the frame. A leadoff single by Randy Norris set up Brian Parreira who belted a two-run homer to propel the Rockers back in front 4-2. Two batters later, following a DJ Burt base hit, Cesar Trejo got in on the action, as he launched a home run that brought in another pair of runs and High Point ended the inning with a 6-2 advantage.

The Rockers weren’t done as they continued the offensive barrage in the fifth. With two outs, TJ Bennett extended the inning with a base hit to bring up Randy Norris. After homering in Saturday night’s game, Norris continued his hot start to the spring, sending a no doubter out of the park to stretch the lead to 8-2. JR DiSarcina was next to the dish, and he powered the first pitch the opposite way and over the right field fence, as the Rockers went back-to-back and assumed a 9-2 edge.

Following a great showing from Stem who worked through four innings, Mickey Jannis, Ryan Dull, AJ Cole and Jameson McGrane combined to allow just one run over the final five innings, as the bullpen effort was strong once again on the heels of an impressive performance just one night ago.

The Rockers tacked on two more runs in the final stages of the game to put the finishing touches on an impressive 11-3 win and finishing the weekend with a split.

The Rockers will now prepare to welcome the Long Island Ducks on Friday night, April 28, for Opening Night at Truist Point with first pitch slated for 6:35 p.m. Tickets for Opening Night are available with a special four-for-$28 discount and are available at www.HighPointRockers.com and at the Truist Point Box Office.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers fell to the Gastonia Honey Hunters 7-3 on Saturday night in an exhibition baseball game at Truist Point.

Ryan Grotjohn had a two-run single in the sixth inning to account for two of the Rockers’ runs while High Point native and Winston-Salem State grad Randy Norris led off the ninth with a solo homer to right.

“It was good to knock the dust off and get back out here,” said Rockers’ manager Jamie Keefe.

MLB veteran Brandon Leibrandt started for High Point and walked the first two batters he faced, leading to a Zach Jarrett RBI single that give Gastonia a 1-0 lead. Jarret would add an RBI double in the third as the Honey Hunters went up 4-0 after three.

“Leibrandt had to grind today,” said Keefe. “His legs weren’t really underneath him. He couldn’t really get his fastball going but he and (catcher) Beau Taylor battled through it.”

Austin Ross threw a scoreless fourth inning for High Point while lefty Bryce Hensley kept the Honey Hunters off the board in the sixth. With Kyle Halbohn on the mound in the seventh, Gastonia received a two-run single from Atlantic League All-Star Carlos Franco to go ahead 6-3. Gabriel Castellanos allowed a run in the eighth while Jeremy Rhoades worked a three-up, three-down ninth for High Point.

The Rockers were held hitless by Gastonia starter Ian McKinney through his three innings of work and two more hitless innings from righty Zach Mort. Second baseman D.J. Burt blooped a single to right in the sixth for High Point’s first hit of the night and Grotjohn’s two-run single made it a 6-3 after six.

“The pitchers have been ahead of the hitters ever since we got here,” said Keefe.

“I didn’t see anything out there tonight that I didn’t like,” Keefe continued. “Defensively, we’re going to be fine. We’re more athletic than we have been. Our defense in the outfield will be fine and our infield defense is nice.”

The Rockers will play at Gastonia at 3:35 p.m. on Sunday afternoon in another exhibition game.

The Rockers open the Atlantic League season on Friday, April 28 at 6:35 p.m. at Truist Point against the Long Island Ducks. Tickets for the Opening Night contest are specially priced at four for $28 and are available at www.highpointrockers.com and through the Truist Point Box Office.

LANCASTER, Pa. – Lancaster’s Oscar De La Cruz tossed a four-hit complete game to lead the Barnstormers to a 6-1 win over the High Point Rockers on Friday night at Clipper Magazine Stadium. The win gave the Barnstormers a three-game sweep of the best-of-five Atlantic League Championship Series.

The win marks Lancaster’s third ALPB Championship as the Barnstormers also won in 2006 and 2014.

“Oscar threw the ball really well tonight and we couldn’t do much against him,” said Rockers manager Jamie Keefe. “They had a heckuva year and proved they were the best team in the league this season. But Craig Stem threw the ball really well and kept us in the game.”

High Point’s only run came on a solo homer by Tyler Ladendorf in the second inning.

De La Cruz threw a complete game, allowed the Rockers just four hits and struck out eight while not issuing a walk.

Lancaster scored three runs in the first, using a walk, a single and an infield throwing error by the Rockers.  Shawon Dunston scored on the error before Trayvon Robinson doubled home a run and Jacob Barfield added an RBI single. Robinson added a solo homer in the sixth for the ‘Stormers.

High Point starter Craig Stem went 5.1 innings and allowed nine hits and six runs, though four of the runs were unearned.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The Lancaster Barnstormers scored seven times in the seventh inning to erase a 6-2 deficit and went on to post an 11-6 win over the High Point Rockers in Game 2 of the Atlantic League Championship Series on Wednesday at Truist Point.

The loss puts the Rockers at a 2-0 deficit in the best of five series. After a travel day on Thursday, High Point will play at Lancaster on Friday night at 6:30. The series will continue with games on Saturday and Sunday if needed.

The Rockers were leading 6-2 after the sixth, thanks to back-to-back homers by Tyler Ladendorf and Michael Martinez in the fourths and three consecutive RBI singles in the sixth.

But the roof fell in on the Rockers in the seventh. Liam O’Sullivan had entered the game in the second inning after High Point starter Mitch Atkins left in the second with the Rockers leading 1-0. O’Sullivan let an inherited runner score as Lancaster tied the game at 1-1. But O’Sullivan kept the Barnstormers scoreless through the third and fourth innings and allowed a run in the fifth when Melvin Mercedes led off with a triple. Andretty Cordero’s grounder to short brought home Mercedes as Lancaster took a 2-1 lead.

Ladendorf and Martinez hit back-to-back homers in the fourth as High Point went back on top 3-2. That lead grew to 6-2 after a three-run sixth. Lancaster starter Nile Ball issued back-to-back walks before Logan Moore punched a single to score Martinez. Michael Russell’s single brought home the second run of the inning and Ben Aklinski’s single gave High Point a 6-2 lead.

But the Rockers would not score another run and managed just two hits over the final 3.2 innings.

O’Sullivan allowed a single and a walk in the seventh before being relieved by Seth Frankoff who yielded consecutive singles and a walk before Bryce Hensley came on. Hensley allowed five hits in one-third of an inning before Rockers manager Jamie Keefe went back to the bullpen for Junior Rincon who was able to record the final out of the inning. When the damage was done, the Rockers had allowed seven hits on eight runs and trailed 9-6.

Lancaster added two more runs in the eighth to extend the lead to 11-6.

Hensley took the loss for the Rockers while Donald Goodson earned the win with a pair of strikeouts in two-thirds of an inning.

Giovanny Alfonzo had three hits to lead the Rockers while Aklinski, Russell, Ladendorf and Martinez all had two hits.

Shawon Dunston and Chris Proctor each had three hits and two RBI for the Barnstormers. Andretty Cordero added a pair of hits and two RBI.

 

 

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The Lancaster Barnstormers rallied for five runs in the top of the 12^th inning and went on to win the opening game of the Atlantic League Championship Series 6-2 over the High Point Rockers on Tuesday night at Truist Point.

The Barnstormers loaded the bases in the 12^th off reliever Cam Cotter, the sixth High Point pitcher of the night. Shawon Dunston reached base after being hit by a pitch and Cotter then issued a walk and an intentional walk, all with two outs. A single by Ariel Sandoval brought home two runs and put the ‘Stormers up 3-1. A walk to Anderson Feliz reloaded the bases and Jacob Barfield smashed a one-hopper to short. Shortstop Giovanny Alfonzo gloved the ball but the force of the drive knocked him backwards and his throw to first was not in time, allowing a fourth run to score. Chris Proctor then singled into the left-center gap to plate two more runs before Barfield was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.

The Rockers tallied a run in the bottom of the 12^th after Quincy Latimore and Zander Wiel opened the inning with singles. But Tyler Ladendorf hit into a double play as Latimore scored to make it a 6-2 game. Lancaster closer West Tunnell struck out Jay Gonzalez for the final out of the game.

The frenzied ending overshadowed what was a tremendous game for the first 11 innings featuring outstanding pitching and minimal hitting. The Rockers sent knuckleballer to Mickey Jannis to the mound to start and he allowed a solo homer to Shawon Dunston leading off the game. But Jannis settled down after that and did not allow another run through his six innings of work, holding Lancaster to four hits while walking three and striking out five.

The Rockers managed a single run off Lancaster starter Brooks Hall who allowed just four hits over his six innings of work. Ladendorf drew a one-out walk in the fifth and moved to third on a single by Michael Martinez. Alfonzo lifted a fly ball to shallow left field that did not appear to be deep enough to score Ladendorf. But the Major League veteran tagged and took a few steps off third as if he were not going to go to the plate. As the relay throw came in from Dunston, Ladendorf’s deception caused first baseman Andretty Cordero to cut off the throw and his relay to home was not in time to catch the sliding Ladendorf who tied the game at 1-1.

Lancaster’s top scoring opportunity came in the seventh when Jake Hoover led off the inning with a double off reliever Gabriel Castellanos. After Hoover reached third following a sacrifice bunt by Trace Loehr, Dunston sent a one-hopper at Ladendorf at second. Ladendorf scooped the ball on the short hop, twirled and threw a strike to catcher Logan Moore who tagged out Hoover for the second out of the inning.

Cam Booser picked up the win for Lancaster, throwing scoreless frames in the 10^th and 11^th innings. Cotter took the loss after allowing five runs on three hits and three walks while striking out one.

Logan Morrison led High Point’s six-hit effort with two singles.

Game two of the series is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. on Wednesday at Truist Point.