Brandon Phillips sparks home run outburst as Legends rally to even playoff series
The Charleston Dirty Birds got right to work Tuesday night in their attempt to put a stake through the heart of the Lexington Legends.
Jimmy Paredes hit a solo home run and Olmo Rosario followed up with a three-run blast in the top of the first inning, and Lexington’s postseason hopes for 2021 seemed doomed.
Brandon Phillips, the Legends’ part-owner and on-field leader, was not prepared to let gloom meet doom. The former Cincinnati Reds All-Star answered with a two-run home run of his own in the bottom of the first. Teammates Roberto Baldoquin and Denis Phipps delivered long balls in the second and third innings, respectively, and the hosts went on defeat Charleston 6-5 to even their best-of-three Atlantic League of Professional Baseball Southern Division playoff series 1-1.
The decisive Game 3 was scheduled for Wednesday night at Lexington Legends Ballpark. The winner of the Charleston-Lexington series will face the winner of the Northern Division series between Long Island and Southern Maryland for the ALPB championship. That series was also tied 1-1 heading into a decisive Game 3 on Wednesday night.
Lexington is vying for its third consecutive minor league baseball championship. The Legends won South Atlantic League titles in 2018 and 2019. The 2020 SAL season was canceled because of COVID-19. The Legends moved to the ALPB ahead of the 2021 season.
Lexington starting pitcher J.J. Hoover survived Charleston’s first-inning onslaught Tuesday night to earn the victory. He allowed five runs, 11 hits and three home runs across five innings. Relievers Shawn Blackwell (two innings), Derek Self (one inning) and Austin Adams (one inning) limited the Dirty Birds to zero runs on three hits the rest of the way.
Two of those hits came in the ninth inning before Adams induced Charleston’s Edwin Espinal into a popout to first base to end it.
Notes
▪ Tuesday’s crowd at Lexington Legends ballpark was listed at 5,144.
▪ Unlike Monday’s 13-inning game at Charleston (W.Va.), which the Dirty Birds won 3-2, Tuesday’s game moved swiftly. Monday’s game lasted four hours, 25 minutes. Tuesday’s was over in 2:35.
▪ For the second night in a row, Charleston was without Manager Mark Minicozzi, who is under a COVID-19 quarantine along with five Dirty Birds players.
▪ The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball’s best-of-five championship series begins Friday night.
This story was originally published October 13, 2021 at 11:51 AM.