The Aberdeen IronBirds won their second series of the season Monday night with their 5-3 win over the visiting Batavia Muckdogs at Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen.
The IronBirds (4-7) came from behind for the second straight game to win back-to-back games for the second time this year. The wins come at home after a sweep at the hands of Lowell.
Aberdeen fell behind 2-0 early, but matched Batavia's two-run top of the second inning with two runs in the bottom of the second. Austin Pfeiffer, Steve Laurino, Mike Odenwaelder and Guillermo Salas all singled in the inning with Odenwaelder and Salas collecting the RBIs.
Batavia retook the lead with a run in the fifth, but Aberdeen responded again. The IronBirds scored twice in the sixth and once more in the seventh to put the game away. Pfeiffer and Laurino hit back-to-back doubles to get the two-run sixth inning started and Steve Levy added an RBI single later in the inning.
Drew Turbin scored the run in the seventh, drawing a leadoff walk, stealing second, moving to third on an errant catch and scoring on Randy Gassaway's sacrifice fly.
Pfeiffer was 3-for-4 with a single, double and triple. Laurino was also 3-for-4 and is batting .368. Levy finished with two hits.
Elias Pinales picked up the win in relief. He worked three innings, allowing just one hit, while striking out five. Starter Jean Cosme pitched the first five innings, yielding three hits, three earned runs and a walk. Cosme struck out six. Ryan Meisinger pitched one inning, walking one and striking out three to earn his first save in his first appearance.
Roster moves
The Baltimore Orioles announced organizational moves Monday that made changes to the IronBirds roster. Outfielder Ademar Rifaela was transferred from Aberdeen to Delmarva, as was right-hand pitcher Caleb Kellogg.
Catcher Brandon Coluccio was transferred from Aberdeen to Norfolk on the disabled list.
Four pitchers were transferred from Gulf Coast League Orioles to Aberdeen. They were right-handers Andrew Elliott, Lazaro Leyva and Ryan Meisinger and left-hander Robert Strader.
Back home with a win
Aberdeen came back to Ripken Stadium Sunday and got back in the win column, beating the league's worst team, Batavia, 3-2.
The Muckdogs scored a run the first, but Aberdeen came back to go ahead with a two-run rally in the fourth inning. Batavia committed two of its three hours in the inning, aiding in the Aberdeen scoring. Steve Laurino and Jerry McClanahan (RBI) had singles in the inning.
Batavia evened the score at 2 in the sixth, but Aberdeen answered with the game-winning run crossing the plate in the seventh. Ademar Rifaela doubled home the run with two outs.
Larino finished 2-for-4 to raise his average to .324. Cedric Mullins, who had the day off, was also hitting .324. Rifaela had two hits in the win, too.
Tanner Scott threw three innings in relief to improve to 2-0. Scott allowed three hits, a walk and an earned run. Starter Luc Rennie also struck out five over four innings of work, his longest outing of the season. Patrick Baker pitched two scoreless and hitless innings to earn the save, his first.
'Birds swept in Lowell
The IronBirds left Lowell, Mass., on the short end of an three-game sweep. The latest loss came Saturday evening, a 4-3 setback to the New York-Penn League's Stedler Division leading Spinners.
Aberdeen struck first, scoring a pair of runs in the top of the second inning. Steve Laurino and Yariel Vargas were both hit by pitches in the inning that started with an Austin Pfeiffer single.
Stuart Levy drove in a run with a sacrifice fly and Ricardo Andujar plated the other with an RBI single.
Lowell also scored twice in its half of the second and then added single runs in the third and sixth innings. Aberdeen added its final run in the seventh. Cedric Mullins had a bunt single, stole second and scored on Drew Turbin's single.
Mullins and Pfeiffer each had two hits to lead the IronBirds. Zach Albin (0-2) suffered the loss, working five innings. He allowed seven hits and four runs (three earned). Caleb Kellogg pitched three scoreless innings of relief.
The Aberdeen IronBirds were beaten for a second straight night in Massachusetts as the Lowell Spinners dealt the IronBirds a 7-2 loss Friday.
Aberdeen led through three innings, 2-1, but Lowell scored a single run in the fourth to tie it. Lowell then scored single runs in the sixth and seventh innings as well, before blowing the game open with a three-run eighth.
Aberdeen's two runs came courtesy of a pair of wild pitches by Lowell starter Jake Cosart. Steve Laurino and Austin Pfeiffer scored the runs and Pfeiffer led the team with two hits. The IronBirds had six total.
Drew Turbin had the lone extra-base hit, belting a two-out triple in the ninth. It was Turbin's first triple of the season.
Francisco Jimenez pitched five and third innings and took the loss. Jimenez allowed eight hits and three earned runs. He struck out four.
Aberdeen's win streak was snapped at two Thursday in a one-run loss to the Spinners in Lowell, Mass.
The IronBirds fell 6-5 to the Spinners, whose 6-1 record leads the New York-Penn League's Stedler Division.
Aberdeen fell behind in the first as Lowell scored a pair. The IronBirds responded with three runs in the third. Drew Turbin doubled and scored on Randy Gassaway's double. Steve Laurino reached on a fielder's choice, driving in Ronarsy Ledesma, who had reached base after being hit by pitch.
Oswill Lartiguez drove in Laurino with the third run.
The lead didn't last long as Lowell plated four runs in the bottom half of the inning. A single and three consecutive doubles off of Travis Seabrooke, Aberdeen's starting and losing pitcher, provided the scoring.
Aberdeen scratched out single runs in the fifth and seventh innings and had the tie run on in the ninth, but came up a run short.
Turbin and Gassaway both had two hits to lead Aberdeen's eight-hit attack.
Seabrooke pitched five and two-third innings, allowing all six earned runs on eight hits and a walk. He struck out five. Yi-Hsiang Lin pitched two and a third innings of scoreless relief.