Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
Oklahoma City lost to International League champion Norfolk Saturday night in the Triple-A National Championship game. Norfolk, the Orioles’ Triple-A affiliate, won 7-6 in Las Vegas.
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Yency Almonte was the starting pitcher for OKC, joining the squad in Vegas on a rehab assignment. Almonte struck out two and tossed a scoreless inning in his first game action since sustaining a knee injury on Aug. 11.
Yency Almonte threw a nasty slider for one of his two strikeouts tonight with OKC pic.twitter.com/LIqwyp1Nwa
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) October 1, 2023
After they fell behind 1-0, Hunter Feduccia got the OKC offense started in the fifth with his second home run of the playoffs. It was a no-doubter that Feduccia pulled 421 feet. OKC’s backstop batted .400 with a 1.555 OPS while starting all three of their games this postseason.
Hunter Feduccia CRUSHED a 421 foot homer for OKC to tie the Triple-A Championship Game pic.twitter.com/2XVbWO7Tt2
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) October 1, 2023
One inning later, Jonny Deluca gave OKC the lead, driving in a run with a single up the middle. OKC was in a good spot, leading by a run heading into the seventh.
Jonny Deluca knocked in Miguel Vargas with a single to give OKC a sixth-inning lead in the Triple-A Championship! pic.twitter.com/xgYuG2aQ5t
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) October 1, 2023
It was then that a 455-foot grand slam off the bat of top Orioles prospect Colton Cowser turned the game on its head and put OKC behind. They allowed two more runs in the top of the ninth, falling behind 7-2 going into the final half inning.
A leadoff walk from Jorbit Vivas was followed with two quick outs, but that’s when things got interesting. First, Drew Avans singled in Vivas to make the score 7-3. Then, Michael Busch stepped to the plate and drilled his second homer of the playoffs to cut the deficit to two.
Michael Busch hit a two-run homer! Down to their final out, the Dodgers have scored three runs as they try and rally back
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) October 1, 2023
The score is now 7-5 as Norfolk makes a pitching change pic.twitter.com/mVPd758dAX
Norfolk responded with a pitching change, but even from there, the Dodgers were not quite done. Miguel Vargas hit a homer for his second extra base hit of the night. Down to their final out, the Dodgers had scored four runs to make it interesting.
Miguel Vargas makes it back-to-back homers! OKC is within a run of making an incredible two-out comeback!!! pic.twitter.com/73Vysxsioc
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) October 1, 2023
The miracle rally fell just short, as Ryan Ward was put down on strikes to end the game.
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Although they didn’t finish it with a national title, this was still a fantastic season for OKC. The franchise finished the regular season with a Triple-A best .608 winning percentage, and they took home their first Pacific Coast League Championship since becoming the Dodgers’ affiliate in 2015.
Many of the players from this roster will be in competition for Major League jobs next spring, whether it be with the Dodgers or somewhere else. Players such as Busch and Vargas should be expected in Los Angeles next year, with others like Deluca and Feduccia likely to contribute as well.
This game wrapped up the main portion of the 2023 Minor League season. All that remains is the Arizona Fall League, which kicks off its schedule on Monday night.
