Jul 7, 2023 3 min read

When the weather gets hot and the Wild Things begin their annual mid-season surge, everything seems possible, even outfielders Anthony Brocato and Wagner Lagrange hitting balls over walls with absurd regularity and Washington climbing in the standings and into the playoff race.

Brocato and Lagrange each hit two home runs in the first three innings Friday night and Washington belted six round-trippers for a 12-5 victory over the Sussex County Miners, who were making their first appearance at Wild Things Park in their three seasons in the Frontier League.

Washington has won five of its last six games. In eighth place in the West Division at one point during the current homestand, the Wild Things are now tied for fourth place.

Catcher J.C. Santini and designated hitter Melvin Novoa also homered for the Wild Things, but it was Brocato and Lagrange who set the tone for the night.

Brocato led off the bottom of the first inning with a home run hit the opposite way, to right field, off Sussex County starter Alex Hart (3-6). It was the third time on the homestand that Brocato began a game with a home run.

After Scotty Dubrule walked, Lagrange belted a home run to left field that made it 3-0 only three batters into the bottom of the first inning.

Two innings later, Washington broke the game open with a seven-run third that included three home runs. Dubrule started the inning with a single and Lagrange hit his second home run of the game, and his 15th of the season, a two-run shot to right field.

It gave Washington a 5-2 lead and Lagrange four home runs in his last four games. It also left some people wondering how the left fielder, who is batting .298 before going 3-for-5 against the Miners, did not get a spot in Wednesday’s all-star game at Windy City.

Before the big inning ended, Tommy Caufield had an RBI triple, Santini hit a two-run homer just inside the left-field foul pole and Brocato smacked his second homer of the game, this one off the top tier of advertising signs beyond left field, giving the Wild Things a 10-2 lead.

The advantage grew to 12-2 in the sixth when Novoa, who is Washington’s lone all-star, hit his sixth home run of the season, a two-run shot to left field off Sussex reliever Matt Stil.

Washington starting pitcher Hayden Shenefield (1-2) pitched well, going six innings and allowing two runs on seven hits. He walked two and struck out six.

The only batter Shenfield had trouble with was Miners first baseman Gavin Stupenski. He singled and scored in the first inning and tripled and scored in the third.

Sussex County scored three times against the Wild Things’ beleaguered bullpen. The runs came on a homer by cleanup hitter Oraj Anu off reliever Ray Pacella.

Prior to the game, Washington signed relief pitcher Jan Figueroa. A former college player at Florida International, Figueroa had been playing with the Puerto Rican National team. He made his professional debut in the seventh inning in place of Pacella and it was quite a good first impression. Figueroa retired all six batters he faced, three on strikeouts.

Notes

To make room for him on the roster, relief pitcher Chance Benton (0-0, 3.38 in three appearances) was released. … Washington had 15 hits, including three each by Brocato and Lagrange.