HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers banged out 15 hits and cruised to their fifth straight victory with a 12-2 win over York on Sunday afternoon at Truist Point.

The win puts the Rockers at 65-55 overall and 26-28 in the second half of the Atlantic League season. With Kentucky’s win over Gastonia and Lancaster’s victory over Southern Maryland on Sunday, the Rockers will maintain a half-game lead on the Barnstormers in the Wild Card race and a 2.5-game lead on Kentucky.

The Rockers were led by Michael Russell, Michael Martinez and Jerry Downs who each had three hits. Downs had three RBI on a sac fly and a two-run double while adding a pair of singles. Martinez drove in a run with a solo homer leading off the Rockers’ six-run second inning while Russell reached on three singles. Zander Wiel knocked in a pair of runs on infield groundouts in each of the first two innings.

Craig Stem (W, 6-6) went five innings and allowed just four hits and two runs while striking out three. The win was the 12^th of Stem’s career with the Rockers, giving him the franchise record for career wins. Stem had previously tied the club mark of 11 set by Tommy Lawrence in 2021.

Junior Rincon pitched the sixth inning for the Rockers, Gabriel Castellanos hurled the seventh and eighth and Joe Johnson finished up by throwing the ninth. None of the relievers allowed a run.

York’s two runs came in the third when J.C. Encarnacion knocked a two-run homer, his 13^th of the year.

The Rockers will enjoy an off-day on Labor Day and then continue the current homestand by hosting Gastonia on Tuesday, September 6 at 6:35 p.m. at Truist Point.

NOTES: Stem’s 12 wins is one more than Tommy Lawrence (2021) won for the club record for career wins. Stem won one game with the Rockers in 2019, five games in 2021 and six games in 2022.

With three strikeouts on Sunday, Stem pushed his club record for career strikeouts to 198.

Rockers have now won five straight game and will prepare to host Gastonia in a mid-week series starting on Tuesday, Sept. 6.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers rallied for two runs in the bottom of the ninth to score a 5-4 walk-off win over the York Revolution on Saturday night at Truist Point. The win was the fourth straight for the Rockers as they continue to battle for the Atlantic League’s Wild Card playoff berth.

Trailing 4-3 entering their final at-bat, the Rockers’ Zander Wiel lined a single to right to start the inning before Michael Martinez blooped a single into shallow center field. Jay Gonzalez’s sacrifice bunt was fielded by York pitcher Jim Fuller (L, 4-6) but his throw to third was wide of the bag, allowing Wiel to score the tying run and putting Martinez at third and Gonzalez at second. Fuller struck out Giovanny Alfonzo for the first out of the inning before Mike Gulino hit a high chopper towards third. York third baseman Josue Herrera fielded the ball cleanly but was unable to get off a throw to first as Martinez streaked home with the winning run in the 5-4 victory.

The ninth inning heroics gave High Point closer Ryan Dull (W, 6-1) the win after he came on and set the Revolution down in order in the top of the ninth.

York had built an early 4-0 lead that the Rockers worked for eight innings to overcome. Yefri Perez singled and stole second in the first inning and scored on an RBI single by Nellie Rodriguez. In the second, the Revs scored three runs off High Point starter Liam O’Sullivan. Jhon Nunez singled and Troy Stokes, Jr. grounded to third and Michael Russell’s throw to first was high, putting runners on first and second. Josue Herrera delivered an RBI single and Perez plated two more with a double to put York on top 4-0.

Wiel led off the bottom of the second with a solo homer, his 29^th of the season to cut the deficit to 4-1. The Rockers got two more runs back in the fifth when Alfonzo singled and scored on a double by Gulino. Gulino took third on a single by Russell then scored on an infield out by Ben Aklinski to close the gap to 4-3.

The Rockers improved to 64-55 on the year and 25-28 in the second half of the Atlantic League season. High Point’s win combined with Kentucky’s loss to Gastonia gives the Rockers a 2.5-game lead in the ALPB’s Wild Card race.

High Point and York will conclude the series on Sunday at 4:05 p.m. The Rockers will send Craig Stem to the mound to face York’s Courtney Mack.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point Rockers pounded out 14 hits including six doubles and three home runs in beating York 11-3 Friday night in front of a crowd of 1,955 at Truist Point.

Michael Russell had a double and a homer for the Rockers as did Jerry Downs. Ben Aklinski hit two doubles and Zander Wiel blasted a solo homer, his 28^th of the year which set the club record for homers in a season.

Mitch Atkins earned the win, his first since 2021, to improve to 1-0 on the season. York starter Ben Herrick fell to 0-3 with the loss.

The Rockers scored in each of the first five innings in building an 8-3 lead. Aklinski doubled home a run in the first and Wiel’s homer in the second gave the Rockers a 2-0 advantage.

York took a 3-2 lead in the third when Elmer Reyes hit a two-run double and J.C. Encarnacion added an RBI single. But that would be the end of the scoring for the Revs.

Downs hit a solo homer in the third to tie the game at 3-3 and Michael Martinez collected an RBI single later in the inning that put High Point ahead 4-3. Russell hit a two-run homer in the fourth and Giovanny Alfonzo stroked a two-run double in the fifth as the lead grew to 8-3.

After being shutout in the sixth inning, the Rockers scored three times in the seventh with Aklinski collecting an RBI single and Downs adding a two-run double.

Atkins went five innings and allowed just three hits while walking two and striking out three. Herrick lasted six innings and allowed 12 hits and eight runs while walking three and striking out three.

The Rockers improve to 63-55 overall and 24-28 in the second half of the Atlantic League season. The Rockers maintain their 1.5 game lead in the ALPB Wild Card race as Kentucky also won on Friday night.

High Point and York meet again on Saturday at 6:35 p.m. at Truist Point. The Rockers will send Liam O’Sullivan to the mound to face Revs’ lefty Josh Norwood.

GASTONIA, N.C. – The High Point Rockers managed just two hits but they were enough to defeat Gastonia 3-2 on Thursday night at Caromont Health Park. The win marked the 200^th victory in franchise history and also the 200^th win for Rockers’ manager Jamie Keefe at High Point.

High Point’s scheduled starting pitcher, Mitch Atkins, was pushed back to a Friday start so Keefe made Thursday’s game a bullpen game. Opting to go without at DH, reliever Junior Rincon was sent to the mound to start. In the second, Rincon walked Cole Freeman and, with two outs, Stuart Levy homered to give the Honey Hunters a 2-0 lead.

Gastonia starter Reilly Hovis did not allow a hit through four innings but was lifted after walking Tyler Ladendorf to start the fifth. Ezequiel Zabaleta (L, 4-1) came on and walked Jay Gonzalez then allowed a two-run double into the right-center gap by Giovanny Alfonzo to tie the game at 2-2. Zabaleta then walked Michael Russell and Ben Aklinski to load the bases. Zabaleta walked Logan Morrison to give the Rockers a 3-2 lead before the Honey Hunters turned to lefty Onas Farfan who retired Quincy Latimore to end the threat.

Mickey Jannis (W, 2-1) entered the game for the Rockers in the third inning and held the Honey Hunters hitless until Joseph Rosa lined a single to right with one out in the sixth. Rosa moved to second on a wild pitch, a knuckleball that got away from catcher Mike Gulino, but Jannis induced an easy ground ball out from Reece Hampton to escape any damage.

Jannis would complete five innings and allow just one hit while striking out four and walking two. Bryce Hensley came on in the eighth and allowed one hit while shutting out Gastonia before yielding to Tyler Higgins in the ninth. Higgins hit Jaylen Smith with a pitch with two outs but was able to retire Levy to earn his third save of the year.

Gastonia finished the night with four hits.

High Point is now 23-28 in the second half of the Atlantic League season and 62-55 overall. Kentucky defeated Lexington 8-3 Thursday night and the Rockers hold a 1.5-game lead over the Genomes in the ALPB Wild Card race.

The Rockers return home and start a three-game series at Truist Point against the York Revolution on Friday night at 6:35 p.m.

GASTONIA, N.C. – Quincy Latimore hit a seventh inning grand slam in the nightcap and allowed the High Point Rockers to salvage a split of a doubleheader with Gastonia on Wednesday night at Caromont Health Park. The Rockers dropped the opening game 2-0 before rebounding with an 8-7 win in eight innings in the nightcap.

The Rockers had entered the seventh (and final inning) of the second game trailing the Honey Hunters 5-1 before erupting for six runs to take a 7-5 lead. The key blow was Latimore’s grand slam, his second of the season, that brought the Rockers from a 5-3 deficit to a 7-5 lead.

The critical seventh inning started when, with one out, Tyler Ladendorf and Michael Martinez singled before Michael Russell singled to center to score Ladendorf and make it a 5-2 game. Ben Aklinski then hit a chopper to third and the throw to second was dropped by second baseman Joseph Rosa, allowing Martinez to score and make it a 5-3 game. Jerry Downs then singled to load the bases and set the stage for Latimore’s grand slam to left center and put the Rockers up 7-5.

The lead was short-lived as the Honey Hunters tied the game in the bottom of the seventh to force extra innings. Ryan Dull (W, 4-1) came on to work the bottom of the seventh and allowed singles to Jake Skole and Cole Freeman before Herlis Rodriguez flew out to right with Skole moving to third. Jack Reinheimer then delivered an RBI single to score Skole to make it a 7-6 Rocker lead. Rosa’s bloop single to center then scored Reinheimer to knot the game at 7-7.

In the eighth, Russell chopped an infield single to score Joe Johnson and give the Rockers an 8-7 lead. Tyler Higgins then set the Honey Hunters down in order to preserve the win and earn his second save of the year.

The Honey Hunters started the nightcap by striking for four runs in the bottom of the first off starter Neil Uskali and held the lead until the seventh inning. Uskali walked the first two hitters in the Gastonia line-up then hit Zach Jarrett with a pitch to load the bases. Luis Roman then drove in three runs with a triple and scored on a sac fly by Luis Castro.

Logan Morrison cut into the lead with a solo homer leading off the second for the Rockers to make it a 4-1 game. Gastonia extended the lead to 5-1 in the third on doubles by Jarrett and Castro with Castro claiming the RBI.

In game one, Gastonia lefty John Anderson (W, 12-4) handcuffed the Rockers, holding High Point to just five hits while striking out five in a 2-0 Honey Hunter win. Aklinski and Downs each managed a pair of hits for the Rockers.

Scoreless through three innings, Gastonia got on the board in the fourth when Freeman and Emmanuel Tapia each singled before Castro singled to right to score Freeman.  In the sixth, it was another single by Freeman and a double by Tapia that led to Alex Holderbach’s sac fly to score Freeman and put Gastonia ahead 2-0.

Craig Stem (L, 5-6) threw a complete game for the Rockers, yielding eight hits while striking out one.

With the split, the Rockers now stand at 61-55 on the season and 22-28 in the second half of the Atlantic League season. With Kentucky losing to Lexington earlier in the day, High Point takes a 1.5-game lead over the Genomes in the Wild Card race. Gastonia, the South Division first half champion, continues to lead the second half race with an eight-game lead over Lexington.

High Point and Gastonia will conclude the three-game series on Thursday at 6:15 at Caromont Health Park with the Rockers sending Mitch Atkins to the mound to face Zack Godley.