The Aberdeen IronBirds are running out of time to make their move for the postseason. After their most recent series, they fell a game back from where they started last week.
Playing the Hudson Valley Renegades, the IronBirds would play to a series split. The series saw some strong pitching performances and timely hitting, but ultimately, it wasn’t enough to harbor more than a split.
As of now, the IronBirds remain 5.5 games back with 12 games left to play. A strong finish and some help is what is needed for Aberdeen to continue its season.
Let’s see who stood out this week for the IronBirds:
ELIO PRADO – OF
Prado is a prospect who came over in the trade that sent Andrew Cashner to the Boston Red Sox in 2019. Working his way up from the FCL, Prado earned his promotion to Aberdeen in mid-July and has slashed .252/.320/.400 since.
In the series versus the Renegades, Prado would hit .300, picking up two multi-hit games. His best game was in Saturday’s 4-2 IronBirds’ loss. In the game, Prado would go 2-for-2 with a home run and double, driving in a run and scoring both runs for Aberdeen.
In 98 games between Delmarva and Aberdeen, Prado is slashing .251/.343/.393 with 10 home runs, 37 RBIs, 56 runs and 11 stolen bases. For the season, Prado has nine outfield assists as well.
LOGAN RINEHART – RHP
If the name doesn’t sound familiar, it’s because Rinehart was traded to the Orioles on August 1 from the Mariners. He is making his place in the O’s system and showed up this week for the IronBirds.
This week, Rinehart totaled four innings of work across two games, allowing no runs or hits in either game. He picked up a win in the one game he pitched an inning and followed that with three innings of work and five strikeouts.
Since joining Aberdeen, Rinehart has appeared in six games, totaling 12.1 innings of work. He is 1-0 with a hold and a save while accumulating a 0.00 ERA and 0.97 WHIP, holding opponents to a .143 batting average.
KYLE VIRBITSKY – RHP
Another week, another strong Kyle Virbitsky outing, or shall I say outings. Virbitsky would appear in two games this week, totaling 10 innings of work and allowing just two earned runs in those games.
His best game was the opener of the series, a 3-1 IronBirds victory to open the series. In the game, Virbitsky would complete seven innings of work, allowing only one hit and no runs. He did walk two but struck out four, throwing just 83 pitches (53 strikes).
Virbitsky now improves to 5-1 with a 3.86 ERA across 96.1 innings work. He has struck out 90 with a WHIP of 1.19 and is holding opponents to a .219 batting average.
https://twitter.com/CoachBerto12/status/1694187881303077047?t=ZEQOnLeXOrFYxilBtI5oeQ&s=19
The IronBirds will now head to New Jersey, where they will face the Jersey Shore Blue Claws Tuesday starting at 7:05 p.m. EST at ShoreTown Ballpark.
Will the IronBirds take flight as they look to gain ground on a postseason birth, or will the Blue Claws pinch Aberdeen’s dreams shut?
Who stood out to you for Aberdeen this week? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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