Weekend split

Unable to take advantage of runners in scoring position earlier in the game, Aidyn Coffey took an aggressive lead at second base to try and make something happen.

“Aidyn, I gotchu,” Noah McEldowney shouted from the plate to communicate that Coffey didn’t need to risk getting picked off.

One pitch later McEldowney made good on his word and delivered an RBI triple to right-center field to get the Rockets on the board.

Overall, that’s how the weekend went for the Rockets — some crucial mistakes and some major bailouts.

The Portland Rockets split a pair of double headers to finish 2-2 over the weekend against two Fort Wayne Teams. They opened the weekend up with a 3-1 victory over the Renegades on Saturday before errors crippled them in an 8-6 loss. On Sunday, the Rockets dropped the first game to the Jackers 3-2 before finishing the weekend with a 5-4 win.

Tyler Reynolds and McEldowney carried the Rockets (8-11) to Saturday’s win with strong performances on the mound.

“Tyler did his job and then McEldowney came in and it was a good lefty, righty slant, change of pace,” said Rockets manager Randy Miller. “One guy throws a little speedier ball and it looked like we had a plan and executed it.”

Reynolds started the game on the mound, only giving up one unearned run in the fifth inning after a pair of errors and a sacrifice fly. Four punchouts did enough to slow the Renegades down to earn Reynolds the win.

McEldowney then came in from center field to toss the final two innings and secure the save. He also provided a spark with his bat, as his RBI triple in the third inning started the scoring for the Rockets.

Two more runs came in the fifth inning. The frame started off with a solo home run by catcher Gavin Gleason, off of Ty Layson, who is Gleason’s teammate at Manchester University. (Joel Kennedy, Crosby Heniser and Jared Holley of the Rockets also played for Manchester with Gleason and Layson.)

“For me, hitting has been a little bit of a struggle lately but that’s baseball,” Gleason said. “It felt good to finally get a home run out here and just got to build on that and stay positive.”

The final run scored via double by Coffey to drive in Vasin Ridgeway later in the inning.

In the second game on Saturday, the Rockets entered the bottom half of the fourth inning tied at 1-1 after Cade Meade drove in a run in the third and an error got Joel Deakins across in the top of the fourth.

Single by Landon Rogers and Trey Pullins put a pair of runners on for Coffey, who blasted a three-run home run to deep center field to take a 4-1 lead. That lead didn’t last due to key mistakes.

“Coffey hits a monster … and we’re ahead 4-1 and we can’t close the deal with that makeshift unit they have?” Miller said. “We should tip the hat. But, our whole thing today was ‘no matter who’s doing what, do your job.’ We did not execute that.”

The Renegades took a 5-4 lead in the top of the fifth on with four unearned runs. An error by Blake Caldwell at third base allowed the first run to score, and three more came around before the final out could be made.

The sixth inning opened with an error by Rogers in left field and another by Caldwell at third. Donavin Massing then laid down a bunt that the Rockets allowed to roll for a single as Caldwell went to cover third and Connor Young didn’t come off the mound hard enough for the ball.

The first run scored on a passed ball and the other two came as the result of a blooping fly ball that landed between Rogers and Coffey in shallow left field to give Fort Wayne an 8-5 advantage. None of the Renegades’ runs were earned in the game.

“The plays were indicative of a hot, tired ballclub,” Miller said. “We were that and I think we’re better than that.”

The only other runs for Portland came on a single by Caldwell in the fifth and a sacrifice fly by Ridgeway in the seventh.

Offense was in short order in the first game against the Jackers as well. An error in the first inning and a double by Gleason in the fifth gave the Rockets two runs, but despite five more hits, they couldn’t scratch any more across.

Fort Wayne got a pair of runs off of Mitch Waters on a walk and a trio of singles in the fourth inning. A single and two more walks loaded the bases in the sixth before the second hit of the inning drove in the winning run against Waters in the 3-2 loss.

The Rockets flipped the script in the second game, picking off the Renegades in a one-run victory.

Portland rattled off four runs in the fourth inning on singles by McEldowney and Meade and a sacrifice fly by Garrison Brege.

McEldwoney also delivered the winning run with a base hit in the fifth to drive home Pullins.

The Jackers scored four runs off of Holey – three in the fourth and one in the fifth – but it wasn’t enough to secure the sweep.