Michael Malki threw four scoreless innings on Wednesday as the Y-D Red Sox beat the Orleans Firebirds, 9-2, advancing to the second round of the 2025 CCBL playoffs.
Malki threw 82 pitches in his first start of the season, recording three strikeouts over four innings of work. He recently joined the team from the Mat-Su Miners in the Alaska League, where he posted an impressive 16.2 K/9. His stuff was electric against Orleans, with his sharp 81 mph curveball helping him escape a major jam in the fourth inning.
“The fastball was really good today,” said Malki. “I was able to command it really well and get ahead with it. The curveball and slider were good too, using them to put away some batters and get some flyouts.”
Y-D struck first in the opening inning, jumping out to a 1-0 lead on an RBI single by Chris Hacopian. They added three more runs in the third, with Jayce Tharnish scoring his second run of the day on an Armando Briseño single. Ryan Niedzwiedz brought in Will Baker on a sacrifice fly, followed by a Jack Bell single that brought Briseño home.
The Firebirds made a bold move by intentionally walking Hacopian in the fourth inning, a decision that loaded the bases for Niedzwiedz. The sophomore from SIUE drilled a 91 mph double past the third baseman, scoring two more runs for Y-D.
Orleans got on the board in the fifth inning, scoring their only two runs of the game. Landon Hairston, who homered on Tuesday against Y-D, grounded into a run-scoring forceout. Anthony Potestio then drove in another run with a single, cutting the deficit to four.
Chris Downs worked four scoreless innings in relief of Malki, with both of the Firebirds' runs unearned due to an error by Briseño. Downs struck out three and walked just one in his outing.
Tharnish continued his torrid series with a two-run single in the seventh, giving Y-D a six-run lead. The center fielder led the offensive charge on Wednesday with a four-hit night, collecting six hits in the two-game series. He drove in three runs and scored four times this round against Orleans.
Another key contributor to the win was Niedzwiedz, who recorded his second sacrifice fly of the game in the eighth. He brought home four runs, accounting for nearly half of Y-D’s total on Wednesday. Trey Lawrence wrapped up the series with a scoreless ninth inning, allowing just one hit on 21 pitches.
The Y-D offense put up 14 hits against the Orleans pitching staff at Red Wilson Field, blowing out the Firebirds in Game 2 of the series. Y-D scored nine or more runs five times during the regular season, although the offense had quieted down near the end of the 2025 campaign. Wednesday’s outburst sent a strong message to the league that their lineup is firing on all cylinders again, with a pitching staff capable of matching that performance.
The Brewster Whitecaps and Harwich Mariners will face off on Thursday in Game 3 of their series, with Y-D set to play the winner starting Friday evening. They'll be on the road for Game 1, with Game 2 scheduled for 4 p.m. at Red Wilson Field on Saturday afternoon.
