Perhaps the largest crowd in Dwyer Stadium history -- 3,711 fans -- watched a winning home opener of the 2023 season Saturday for the Batavia Muckdogs.
The Muckdogs defined the Elmira Pioneers 5-4.
Starter Julian Pichardo fanned eight and gave away no free passes over six innings
Michael Pedraza was credited with the win after giving up two runs in the eighth inning, putting the Muckdogs behind 4-3, only to have Batavia battle back in the bottom half of the frame, scoring two runs, to regain the lead at 5-4.
Trey Bacon came on to record the save in the top of the ninth, retiring all three batters he faced, notching two Ks.
Offensively, Josh Leadem smashed a solo home run in the fourth inning to put the Muckdogs on the board, though they still trailed 2-1 at that point. Leadem was 1-3 on the night with a walk and two runs scored.
Anthony Calabro was 1-2 with two walks and two RBIs, driving in the final two runs of the game to secure put Muckdogs in the lead.
The Muckdogs are 1-1 on the new season. Today, Sunday, at 4 p.m., the Muckdogs return to Dwyer Stadium to take on Niagara Power. They're home again on Tuesday, 6:35 p.m., again against Niagara.
Photos by Nick Serrata.
