Bats' offense erupts in 12-6 win, clinches series at Iowa

Louisville did more than finish a strong week in Des Moines. It left Principal Park with evidence that its road offense might be built for something bigger than one hot Sunday, rolling past Iowa 12-6 to clinch the series and take its first set at Iowa since 2021.

The Bats entered the finale at 15-11 and got out in front immediately. Blake Dunn doubled to right, Edwin Arroyo moved him to third with a bunt, and Hector Rodriguez drove him home with a sacrifice fly. From there, Louisville kept leaning on two-out production and never let Iowa settle in.

Noelvi Marte singled to extend his hitting streak to 10 games, then Ivan Johnson changed the game with one swing. He launched a grand slam on the second pitch of his at-bat, turning a 1-0 start into a 5-0 cushion. That gave Louisville room to keep stacking at-bats, and the Bats did not stop there.

Johnson doubled in the third, Will Banfield brought him home with a double of his own, and Garrett Hampson followed with a run-scoring single for a 7-1 lead. The fourth inning was the knockout blow. Rodriguez tripled, Marte singled him in, and then Michael Toglia, Francisco Urbaez and Johnson ripped three straight doubles to blow the game open at 11-1. By then, Louisville had spread the damage across the middle of the order and bottom half alike, with multi-hit days from Johnson, Urbaez, Marte, Toglia, Banfield and Rodriguez.

That kind of balance is what makes the result more meaningful than a one-day outburst. Louisville won four of six games in Iowa and finished with its second road series win of the season, already surpassing its total number of road series victories from all of 2025. The Bats also had already shown their ceiling in the opener, a 10-3 win, before closing the trip with another lopsided performance.

Sam Benschoter, making his second start of the season after Jose Franco was recalled to Cincinnati along with outfielder JJ Bleday, gave Louisville three innings of steady work. He allowed one run on six hits and struck out four. Lyon Richardson followed with a scoreless fourth to improve to 2-0, and Anthony Misiewicz and Tejay Antone each finished with shutout innings.

Marte’s week was enough to earn International League Player of the Week honors after he hit .560, going 14-for-25 with two homers and six steals against Iowa. Since arriving in Louisville two weeks earlier, he had hit .452 with 19 hits, 30 total bases, a 1.214 OPS and six stolen bases. In a roster built around six Reds Top 30 prospects and managed by Pat Kelly, the Bats left Iowa with more than a series win. They left with a road formula that looked harder to dismiss.