BURLINGTON, N.C. — The Tri-State Coal Cats weathered a furious late-game rally to secure a 9-8 victory over the Burlington Sock Puppets on Wednesday night at Burlington Athletic Stadium, snapping a five-game losing streak in dramatic fashion.
Tri-State (5-7) appeared poised to run away with the game early, building a commanding 8-0 lead heading into the bottom sixth inning. The offense struck in all but three innings, highlighted by Sal Mineo’s perfect 5-for-5 performance at the plate, including two doubles, three singles and a walk.
The Coal Cats scratched their first run across thanks to a bases-loaded walk to Tyler Smolinski. Xavier Rivera added a sacrifice fly in the second, plating Christian Recendez. In the third, Michael Rodriguez doubled to score Chandler Murray, and Jackson Golden grounded out to bring Rodriguez home, making it 4-0.
Tri-State added two more runs in the fifth on Jorge Gonzalez-Febo’s RBI single and a double play that allowed Smolinski to score. Mineo later crossed the plate on a throwing error, extending the lead to 7-0.
Tucker DeLisle and Cesar Gonzalez combined for seven strong innings on the mound, allowing just two runs on seven hits while striking out eight. Gonzalez surrendered Burlington’s first run in the sixth on Bromley Thornton’s RBI single, but Tri-State responded in the top of the seventh with Golden’s sacrifice fly to score Smolinski.
Despite holding a lead, Tri-State faced relentless pressure from the Appalachian League’s top hitting offense. Burlington (9-4) made things interesting late, adding a run in the seventh and two more in the eighth to cut the deficit to 9-4 heading into the ninth.
The pressure mounted when Bromley Thornton singled to score D.J. Merriweather, cutting the lead to 9-5. Then, with two outs, Burlington’s Brian Carrothers launched a three-run homer off Branson McCloud, pulling the Sock Puppets within a run. McCloud, however, recovered to secure the final out and the win.
Burlington reliever Chris Massey was exceptional in his first appearance this season, tossing two scoreless innings, striking out three and walking two without allowing a hit.
The Coal Cats will look to build on their win as they face Burlington again at 7 p.m. Thursday at Burlington Athletic Stadium. For more information about the Tri-State Coal Cats, visit appyleague.com/tri-state or follow @TriStCoalCats on X and Instagram.
