Three runs in the 10th inning. That's how Thursday night ended down at Truist Field.
Your Charlotte Knights had pushed Memphis to extras. The game was tied. The crowd was still in it. Then the Redbirds pushed across three runs in the top of the 10th — and just like that, Charlotte dropped Game Three of the Memphis homestand 9-7 and fell behind in the series, two games to one.
That was the gut-punch. Here's the full picture from a wild first half of what's shaping up to be a legitimately competitive six-game series.
Tuesday Night: Memphis Announced Itself
The series opener belonged to Memphis from the jump. The Redbirds used a six-run sixth inning to blow a close game open on Tuesday night and walked out of Truist Field with a 9-4 victory. Hunter Dobbins — rehabbing on assignment from the Cardinals' big-league club — threw five-plus effective innings and took the win.
The Knights made noise late. Korey Lee launched a solo home run in the eighth inning to spark a comeback attempt, but the hole was too deep. Charlotte had been outrun.
Wednesday Night: Noah Schultz Took Over
Then Wednesday happened — and it was a reminder of exactly what this team can do.
Noah Schultz, the 22-year-old, 6-foot-10 left-hander who is one of the top pitching prospects in the White Sox organization, went five innings, struck out nine, and gave the offense a platform to work with. Charlotte made full use of it.
The third inning was the whole ballgame. Korey Lee opened it with a three-run home run. Jacob Gonzalez followed immediately with a two-run blast. Five runs in one inning, and the Knights never looked back. Charlotte 7, Memphis 3. Series tied.
THAT is the version of this team that keeps manager Chad Pinder feeling good about what he's building here.
Thursday Night: Extras, and a Tough Loss
Game Three hurt the way extra-inning losses always hurt: the Knights did plenty right and came away with nothing.
Charlotte and Memphis were still tied after nine innings at Truist Field on Thursday night. Then Memphis pushed across three runs in the top of the 10th, the Knights couldn't answer, and the Redbirds walked away with a 9-7 win and a 2-1 series lead.
The kind of game you have to put behind you fast. Fortunately, Charlotte doesn't have a choice — Game Four is tonight.
What's Next
Three games remain in this Memphis homestand: tonight (Game 4, 7:04 p.m. at Truist Field), Saturday (Game 5, 6:05 p.m.), and Sunday's finale (Game 6, 1:05 p.m.).
The math is simple. The Knights need two wins in the final three games to take the series. That's doable. The team that showed up Wednesday night knows how to do it.
The Charlotte Knights went 65-85 last year and went 4-3 before this Memphis series opened. The roster carries real big-league futures — Schultz, William Bergolla Jr., and a deep, talented bullpen built for this level. The season is long. But a 2-1 hole against the Cardinals' Triple-A affiliate is exactly the kind of test that tells you something about a ballclub.
Truist Field, 7:04 tonight. Come find out what this team is made of.