For the Sanford River Rats, The past few days have been filled with Rain. Lots and Lots of Rain. With the previous three games being Delayed, Rained out, and rescheduled the Rats’ have a busy week ahead, full of Rivals, Close contests, and great pitching matchups that can add to the Cinema of the River Rats Season. 

THE LIGHTNING

This past series against the high-energy Leesburg Lighting garnered a lot of eyeballs throughout the league. Leesburg was the only team to beat Sanford. Handing them their only two losses since May. This series will have a makeup game this coming Wednesday. Xavier Lopez and Dawson Mock have been stars in this series. In the first game against Leesburg on Friday, Mock went 3-5 with a double and an RBI. He's shown an increase in aggression in the batter's box. Although it has brought his OBP down slightly as he's not drawing as many walks as he was, He has made up for it by mixing his speed and power to create runs for the team. 

THE SQUEEZE

Looking into the coming days, the Rats have another matchup with their unlikely rival, The Winter Garden Squeeze. There is no doubt both these teams share animosity toward each other. With Chirps between dugouts mixing into the sounds of baseball, An environment the River Rats thrived in, just like Dawson Harman. In the third game of the series, Harman mashed a set of hits (S,3B) that propelled Sanford to a 5-3 victory and the Sweep. The River Rats thrive off wild pitching, which has been the Squeeze's biggest pitfall this season. With 104 Walks and 53 Wild Pitches it creates an environment Sanford is very comfortable in. Look out for Mock, Lopez, and Braden Calise in this series, they all sit over .400 OBP this season contributing to the team's OBP of .418.

THE DIAMOND DAWGS

To round out the week, They welcome the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs into their home. A series that put the Rats’ on the brink of losing their winning streak. The Diamond Dawgs may be underestimated, But when the right conditions are set they have a team that can do real damage. Their three-game series against the Rats brought multiple one-run or two-run games to the table. The River Rats will need to capitalize off of the gaps in the defense and turn the free passes into runs. Be on the look out for Anthony Ruocco in this series. He earned 3 walks and scored 2 runs with 1 hit for Sanford in a 5-3 victory over previously over Winter Park, Showcasing his poise at 2nd base with a few run saving plays. 

The River Rats stay at the top of the standings with a 19-2 record. The Orlando Snappers shuffle behind them only 5 games back from Sanford. Going into the second half of the season, this momentum will be crucial to securing the number one seed for the playoffs.

Christian Bussiere, Daytona State

Photo by Taryn Friend, University of Florida