Game 1 – The Speakers open the scoring against Hisashi Iwakuma on the first two batters of the series. Anthony Rizzo doubles and Buster Posey singles him home.
After Chris Archer walks a pair to start the 2nd, he battles to get 2 outs without the runners advancing. Then Neil Walker powers an RBI single to tie.
With 2 outs and nobody on the 6th, JD Martinez and Brandon “I Could Use a” Belt single. Matt Duffy laces an RBI double, but Belt is gunned at the plate by Ian Kinsler’s perfect relay.
Kinsler chases Iwakuma following a leadoff single in the 7th. Will Smith Ks Rizzo, but then the wheels come off. RBI single, walk, and Kris Bryant’s RBI double chase Smith. Pinch-hitter Chris Young greets new Lemonhead Cody Allen with a 2-run single through the drawn in infield. The crushing 4-run inning puts the Speakers on top, 5-2.
Belt’s 8th inning sac fly gets us to the final score, 5-3. Jeremy Jeffress retires all 6 Lemonheads he faces for a 2-inning save.
Posey (4-5, 2 RBI) gets singles each of his first 4 ABs (8,7,9, 8) before striking out in the 8th. JD Martinez (2-3, D, 2 R, BB) leads the ‘Heads.
W – Archer (5-3); L – Iwakuma; S – Jeffress (2)
Game 2 – Posey’s RBI double gives Jesse Hahn a 1st inning lead, which he graciously returns when Lemonheads prospect, Joey Gallo strokes a clutch 2-out RBI single in the bottom half. The Lemonheads pile on in the 2nd. JT Realmuto’s RBI triple and David Peralta’s 2-run double give the Lemonheads an early 4-1 lead.
Francisco Liriano walks Posey with the bases loaded in the 5th. The Speakers score a pair to close the gap to 4-3.
After Hahn retires the first two hitters in the bottom half, Realmuto and Walker single, sending Hahn (4.2 IP, 11 H, 6 ER) to the showers. Brett Cecil comes on, which prompts Manager Bob to pinch hit Travis Shaw for Charlie Blackmon. Shaw connects for a 3-run homer to give the Lemonheads a commanding 7-3 lead!
Shaw turns from hero to goat in the 7th as he bobbles Mookie Betts’ grounder to 1st to lead off the inning. 5 unearned runs later, including Manny Machado’s 3-run shot (10), the Speakers take a slim 8-7 advantage.
After Cecil and Trevor Rosenthal keep the ‘Heads off the scoreboard in the bottom half, Betts strikes for a 1-out double. Pinch hitter Yoenis Cespedes triples him home and scores on a 2-out single, Posey’s 4th RBI.
The Lemonheads go 1-2-3 in the 8th. Chris Owings 9th inning triple leads to a Duffy sac fly, but the Lemonheads fall short, 10-8. Darren O’Day gets the save, but surrenders a run for the third consecutive outing.
Realmuto (4-4, 2 D, T, RBI, 2 R) collects 8 total bases as the Lemonheads out-hit the visitors, 14-10. From the cleanup spot, Posey (2-3, D, 4 RBI, BB) now has 6 RBIs in the series.
W – Rosenthal (1-0); L – Liriano; S – O’Day (2)
Game 3 – Rizzo homers in the 3rd (10), but Owings triples home Belt in the 4th to tie 1-1. Owings tries to stretch his second triple of the series into an inside-the-park-homerun, but Carlos Gonzalez wings the ball to Kinsler, who nails the former Speaker at the plate.
Machado hits #11 in the 7th to break the tie. After the stretch, Owings and Walker single back-to-back. Realmuto hits a sac fly to left to re-tie at 2-2. Blackmon quickly unties the score with a huge 2-run homer. Lemonheads lead, 4-2.
Joaquin Benoit relieves Cody Anderson (7 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 HR) and promptly walks Betts to start the 8th. Rizzo follows with his 11th HR to re-tie at 4-4. Two outs later, Bryant slams his 8th homer to put the Speakers back on top, 5-4.
JD Martinez singles to start the bottom half, but Roberto Osuna retires the next 6 Lemonheads to complete the sweep, 5-4.
Posey adds 2 more hits (8 for the series). Of the Speakers 7 hits, 3 go for singles while 4 leave the park . The Lemonheads total 9 hits, including 2 more triples, a homer, and 2 perfectly placed hit-and-run singles.
W – Carlos Martinez (7-2); L – Benoit; S – Osuna (1)