TAMPA, FLORIDA – MARCH 21, 2026: Alex Lodise #74 of the Atlanta Braves bats during the second inning of a spring training Spring Breakout game against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field on March 21, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
While Augusta was the lone team to come away with a minor league win on Friday night, there was still plenty of action to go around. Let’s dive into it all.
(68-67) Gwinnett Stripers 3, (74-62) Charlotte Knights 9
Maverick Handley, C: 1-3, HR, RBI, R
Rowdy Tellez, 1B: 2-4, 2B, RBI
Garrett Baumann, SP: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 5 R, ER, BB, 2 K
Box Score
Gwinnett came up on the wrong end of this one after the Stripers found themselves battling back from an early deficit on Friday.
Garrett Baumann made his second start at triple-A since being promoted to the level for the second time this season and the results were a bit of a mixed bag, to say the least.
While he only allowed one earned run, Baumann surrendered five total runs on eight hits, but did manage to keep the walks in check (one) and struck out two along the way. It’s not exactly a dominant outing, but it’s a pretty solid start for a guy who has typically had command issues but only issued one free pass on the night.
Trailing 7-0, the Stripers didn’t plate their first run until the bottom of the fifth when Maverick Handley launched his second triple-A homer of the season to make it a 7-1 game.
Gwinnett proceeded to score one run in each of the sixth and seventh innings as well as Rowdy Tellez and Jim Jarvis both tallied an RBI, but that was all the firepower the offense could muster in the loss.
On another note, Blake Burkhalter got a bit roughed up, as he gave up two runs in 1.2 innings, including a homer in the sixth frame.
(62-62) Columbus Clingstones , (73-55) Pensacola Blue Wahoos
Dixon Williams, CF-1B: 1-3, HR, RBI, R
Alex Lodise, SS: 2-5, HR, 2B, RBI, R
John Gil, 2B: 1-5, HR, 4 RBI, R
Drue Hackenburg, SP: 8 IP, 3 H, ER, 5 K
Box Score
This one was as wild of a conclusion as you will see this season, as the Clingstones managed to tie things up in their final at-bat, sending this one to extras where all chaos broke out.
Before we get into the late drama, let’s look at how we got there to begin with.
Drue Hackenburg got the start and had himself an excellent night on the mound. In eight innings of work, Hackenburg allowed just one run on three hits while striking out five and not issuing a single walk in this one.
After getting sent down from Gwinnett following his Aug. 28 start, Friday marked Hackenburg’s first double-A appearance since June 10. In three starts for Columbus, Hackenburg has allowed just two earned runs across 18 innings of work for the Clingstones this season.
While Hackenburg was dealing through the first two-thirds of the game, his offense was struggling to put together anything consistent. Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the seventh, Columbus managed to tie things up on a Dixon Williams solo homer — his second long ball at double-A — to make it a 1-1 game.
Pensacola took a late 2-1 lead in the top of the ninth, before Alex Lodise came through with a clutch, leadoff homer to tie things up and send this one to extras.
Unfortunately, the wheels absolutely fell off the Columbus bullpen, as the relief corps fave up six runs in the top of the 10th, allowing the Blue Wahoos to take an 8-2 lead.
While that may have seemed like a certain death sentence given the late going and the large deficit, the Clingstones actually showed a bit of life in the home half of the 10th.
Dalton McIntyre started the inning on second base before Archer Brookman and Ambioris Tavarez drew walks to load the bases.
With one out in the inning, John Gil turned on a 3-2 pitch and absolutely demolished it over the left field wall for a grand slam — the fourth of the season for Columbus — pulling the Clingstones within two runs.
JOHN GIL WITH LATE LIFE🤯 That’s the Clingstones fourth @synovus Slam of the season! With each grand slam, Synovus donates $1,000 to support local youth sports in our community. pic.twitter.com/tJHS0Bj4aS— Columbus Clingstones (@GoClingstones) September 5, 2026
While Eric Hartman was hit by a pitch to bring the potential tying run to the plate, Lodise grounded into a double play to end the game.
(59-68) Rome Emperors 2, (73-56) Winston-Salem Dash 8
Will Verdung, 3B: 3-4, HR, 3B, RBI, 2 R
Colby Jones, 2B: 1-4, 3B, RBI
Aiven Cabral, SP: 5 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, BB, 6 K
Box Score
Rome found themselves in a relatively early hole and the Emperors failed to climb out of it as they were handed the 8-2 loss on Friday.
Aiven Cabral got the start and tossed five innings, allowing four runs on six hits while issuing one walk and striking out six batters in the process.
Trailing 4-0, the Emperors finally got on the board as Will Verdung and Colby Jones registered a triple in the span of three batters to plate the former and make it a 4-1 deficit.
Unfortunately, Winston-Salem got that run back in the top half of the sixth, extending their lead to 5-1 on the night.
The final offensive blow of the night came courtesy of Verdung, who took a 1-0 pitch and pulled it over the left field wall for a solo homer, cutting the Winston-Salem lead to 5-2.
Friday marked the third straight game in which Verdung has driven in one run, as he has saw his average with the Emperors rise to .326 with an OPS of .879.
Meanwhile, it continues to be a rough stretch for both Carter Beck and Conor Essenburg, both of whom went 0-4 on the night. Beck is currently hitting .177 with the Emperors, while Essenburg saw his average drop to .200 at high-A.
(69-60) Augusta GreenJackets 6, (72-58) Charleston RiverDogs 2
Caleb Klein, RF: 3-4, 2 R, BB
Dallas Macias, LF: 2-4, 2 2B, 3 RBI
Parker Brosius, CF: 0-2, 2 R, 3 BB
Wil Libbert, SP: 3.2 IP, 2 H, ER, BB, 2 K
Box Score
Aside from the big league club, Augusta was the lone team throughout the Atlanta system to come away with a win on Friday.
Wil Libbert made the second professional start of his career on Friday, and while he only went 3.2 innings, he still managed to limit Charleston to just one run on two hits. The Ole Miss product also struck out a pair of batters and issued one walk as well.
Augusta first scored in the top of the fourth. Trailing 1-0, Caleb Klein scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Dominic Kibler to knot things at 1-1.
The GreenJackets took their first lead of the night in the top of the sixth as Dallas Macias doubled home Parker Brosius to make it a 2-1 Augusta advantage.
In the top of the eighth, the GreenJackets would take advantage of some Charleston miscues in the field, as Brosius stole third and proceeded to scamper home on a wild pitch to give Augusta a 3-1 lead. Meanwhile Kibler would later score on a wild pitch to extend the lead.
Macias would once again come through in a big way, plating a pair of runs in the top of the ninth with a double, scoring Klein and Kibler to make it a 6-2 Augusta advantage.
Dallas doubles up for two more!! pic.twitter.com/R6dCDdJG5l— Augusta GreenJackets (@GreenJackets) September 5, 2026
Reliever Adiel Melendez slammed the door in the ninth, striking out three batters in 1.1 innings of work to seal off the GreenJackets’ win.
Friday was the continuation of a dominant stretch for Melendez dating back to Aug. 5. Since then, the lefty has tossed 12.2 innings across six appearances, all while not allowing an earned run in the process and striking out 21 batters in that stretch of games.