By Eli Halverson | July 8, 2025

After a solid 4-2 week against division rivals, the Joes hit the road to open a series against the Michigan Monarchs on Tuesday night.

A hot start once again got Hamilton rolling in the first. A hit batter and a single put two on, and star hitter Jackson Wang came through with a two-run single, giving the Joes an early 2-0 lead and pushing his season RBI total to 21. Unfortunately for Hamilton, the rest of the night would be anything but favorable.

The wheels came off quickly, as the Monarchs exploded for six runs in the bottom of the first. Emmanuel Gutierrez set the tone with a leadoff home run, and things spiraled from there. Seven walks followed the homer, knocking the Joes’ starter out of the game before he could even finish the inning. Michigan took a 6-2 lead through one and never looked back.

Things didn’t improve much from there. The Monarchs added an RBI single in the third, and then three more in the sixth and seventh innings to keep padding the lead. Meanwhile, the Joes' bats fell completely silent. Monarchs starter Easton Remick allowed just the two first-inning runs, and the bullpen was lights-out, surrendering only one baserunner over the final four innings.

After another quiet inning at the plate for Hamilton in the eighth, Michigan tacked on two more with a double followed by a fitting error to end the game early via run rule, 12-2 in eight innings.

There weren’t many bright spots for the Joes on the night, but one came in the form of a new face: pitcher Michael Murphy. The Xavier University product tossed 3.1 innings in relief, allowing just one run and striking out five. In two appearances with the Joes, Murphy has looked sharp and is making a strong case for a bigger bullpen role as the team pushes toward the postseason.

Hamilton will look to bounce back quickly with a doubleheader on Wednesday. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 4:35 PM.