Clippers Score Ten Times in Friday Night Thriller

COLUMBUS, OH - The Columbus Clippers lit up the scoreboard Friday night, but a huge 7th inning rally by visiting Indianapolis tilted the game in the wrong direction. The Clippers lost for the first time since Opening Day, 11-10.

The Clippers wasted little time taking the lead. Petey Halpin led off the bottom of the 1st inning with a single, after which George Valera deposited a two-run homer over the right-field wall to give Columbus a quick 2-0 advantage.

That lead grew to 3-0 in the 3rd inning. Top Guardians prospect Travis Bazzana singled and later came around to score on a RBI-hit by Stuart Fairchild.

Things got crazy in the 5th. Indy chased home its first two runs in the top of the frame, denting the plate for the first time all evening against Clippers starter Rorik Maltrud. The Clippers answered with a four-run rally in the bottom half of the frame. Bazzana tripled and came into score on a Juan Brito RBI single. Brito then slid home safely after a passed ball. Kody Huff and Dom Nuñez each drove in runs as well, giving Columbus a 7-2 edge after five.

Fairchild and Huff drove in more runs in the 6th to give Columbus a 9-2 edge, but then the wheels came off.

Maltrud was impressive in his second career Triple-A outing with 5.2 solid innings of work, allowing two runs on five hits while striking out two.

Columbus and Indianapolis meet again on Saturday, with a special first pitch time of 4:05pm. The first 1,000 families in attendance will receive a Clippers 2026 Magnet Schedule. Tickets are available by calling 614-462-5250 or visiting the ticket section of ClippersBaseball.com.

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