Columbus Clippers vs St. Paul

Tristan Gray opened the scoring with a solo home run in the second inning — his fourth consecutive game with a long ball — and Hendry Mendez snapped an 0-for-16 skid with a two-out, two-run single to put St. Paul up 3-0.

The game flipped in the third. The Clippers hit three home runs in the inning — a two-run shot by Kahlil Watson (16th), a solo blast by Ralphy Velazquez (18th), and a two-run blast by Blake Perkins (2nd) — turning a 3-0 deficit into a 5-3 lead. Velazquez struck again in the fourth with a two-run homer (19th) and Kyle Manzardo added an RBI double, stretching the lead to 8-3.

The Saints answered with a six-run fifth. Emmanuel Rodriguez launched a two-run homer (9th), his third straight game going deep for the first time in his career. Cody Morissette doubled home two, and Noah Cardenas followed with a two-run homer (12th) to put St. Paul ahead 9-8.

Columbus reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the fifth. Woo-Suk Go, who had pitched a perfect fifth, loaded the bases on two walks and a hit batter. Manzardo delivered a two-run single to left-centre, making it 10-9 Clippers.

St. Paul tied it in the seventh on a fielder's choice off the bat of Gray, and three consecutive walks — the last to Walker Jenkins — forced in the go-ahead run for an 11-10 lead.

The decisive blow came in the eighth. After Rodriguez and Mendez walked and a throwing error by Manzardo loaded the bases, Morissette crushed a grand slam to right field — his 11th home run of the season and 10th with the Saints — making it 15-10.

Velazquez completed his historic night with a solo homer in the bottom half (20th), but Matt Bowman struck out the side in the ninth to close it out.

Morissette's grand slam in the eighth inning. The Saints led by just one run (11-10) with the bases loaded and two outs. Morissette drove a pitch from left-hander Alex Aleman deep to right for his first career grand slam, turning a tense one-run game into a five-run advantage that erased any remaining Clippers momentum.

• Cody Morissette (STP): 2-for-4, double, grand slam, 6 RBI, 2 runs scored. His six RBIs tied a career high, and his grand slam was the 11th home run of his season, making him the 10th Saint with double-digit homers in 2026.
• Ralphy Velazquez (COL): 3-for-4, three home runs (18th, 19th, 20th), 4 RBI, 3 runs scored. The Clippers outfielder became the first Columbus hitter this season with a three-homer game and reached the 20-homer mark.
• Emmanuel Rodriguez (STP): 1-for-3, two-run homer (9th), 3 walks, 3 runs, 2 RBI. Homered for the third straight game for the first time in his career and reached base four times.
• Tristan Gray (STP): 1-for-5, solo homer (4th), 2 RBI, 4 runs scored. Extended his streak of homering in four straight games. Four runs scored were a career high.

The game featured nine home runs — five from Columbus and four from St. Paul. St. Paul went 5-for-16 with runners in scoring position and drew 10 walks against seven strikeouts, while Columbus hit 4-for-14 with RISP and managed just two hits after the fifth inning. The Saints' 18 home runs across the series tied a franchise record for any six-game set, with one game still to play.

The Saints evened the series at two wins apiece heading into Sunday's finale at Huntington Park. St. Paul sends RHP Ryan Gallagher (5-6, 6.56) to the mound, while Columbus had not announced a starter at the time of writing. First pitch is at 12:05 p.m. CT (1:05 p.m. ET).

A classic Triple-A slugfest with nine home runs and 26 combined runs. Morissette's grand slam was the decisive blow in a game neither bullpen could tame until Bowman's perfect ninth. Velazquez's three-homer night for the losing side was the standout individual performance. The Saints carry momentum — and a tied franchise home-run record — into the finale.