HIGH POINT, N.C. – The York Revolution overcame an early 3-0 deficit and hit five home runs en route to a 7-4 win over the High Point Rockers to win the Atlantic League Championship for a second consecutive season on Wednesday night at Truist Point.
After the Rockers took a 3-0 lead in the first inning, the Revs rebounded with a steady offensive attack and a bullpen that held High Point to just two hits over the final 4.1 innings.
York wins the best-of-five series 3-1 and becomes the first ALPB team to have two sets of back-to-back championships, having won titles in 2010-11 and again in 2024-25.
The Rockers touched Revs starter Braden Scott for three runs, all with two outs, in the bottom of the first. Luis Gonzalez drew a lead-off walk and stole second while Scott fanned Drew Mendoza and Ben Aklinski. Evan Edwards then skyed a fly ball to short right field that fell between second baseman Jalen Miller and right fielder Jaylin Davis for a single that brought Gonzaez around with High Point’s first run. Alex Dickerson then hit the first pitch he saw for a home run to right, putting High Point up 3-0.
The Revs used the long ball to nibble away at the Rockers’ lead. Shayne Fontana hit a solo homer leading off the second to cut High Point’s lead to 3-1. Kyle Martin did the same leading off the fourth to make it a 3-2 game.
York took the lead with three runs in the top of the fifth, with one out, Miller singled and scored on a double to right-center by Kyle Martin. Caleb McNeely then followed with a two-run homer to dead center to give York a 5-3 lead.
The Rockers clawed one run back in the fifth when Gonzalez was hit by a pitch to start the frame. After a walk to Mendoza, Aklinski lined an RBI single to center to pull the Rockers to within a run at 5-4. With two outs, York brought in Josh Mollerus to retired Luke Napleton on a fly ball to left that Caleb McNeely caught on the warning track.
York’s bullpen of Josh Mollerus, Jimmy Burnette, Brendan Cellucci and Nick Mikolajchak didn’t strike out a single Rocker but kept the ball in play. The Rockers managed just a single by Aklinski and another by Aidan Brewer over the final four innings.
A solo homer by Jaylin Davis in the eighth and a final solo shot from Elvis Peralta in the top of the ninth propelled the Revs to the win.
Cellucci (W) got the win with 1.2 innings of one-hit relief. Del Bonta-Smith took the loss, allowing seven hits and five runs over 4.2 innings with a walk and five strikeouts.
NOTES: York’s championship is its fifth, the most of any active ALPB club . . . Only Somerset with six wins, has more . . . York has now won back-to-back championships, coupling its 2010-2011 titles with 2024-25 . . . York is now 15-2 all-time in LCS games and has won all five LCS series . . . The ALPB Championship trophy remains in Pennsylvania for the fourth straight year following the 2022-23 wins by the Lancaster Stormers . . . The North Division has won four of the last five ALPB titles . . .
