Bears fall in New Orleans to the Delgado Dolphins

Friday, April 18, 2026: Baseball 

New Orleans, LA 

The Baton Rouge Bears faced off against the Delgado Dolphins on Good Friday in a doubleheader of LCCAC games at Kirsch Rooney Stadium. Unfortunately for the Bears, they struggled offensively and dropped both games, losing by scores of 8-0 and 2-1.

Game One

In the first game, the Dolphins scored a run in five of their six opportunities at the plate, ultimately defeating the Bears 8-0. The Dolphins capitalized on inconsistent pitching from the Bears, managing to load the bases early. Bears pitcher Jayse Degruy limited the damage by allowing only two runs in the first inning, giving the Dolphins a 2-0 lead.

In the second inning, the Dolphins added two more runs, benefiting from two hits and a Bears error. Although the Bears' relief pitcher, Jack Cowan, stopped the Dolphins from scoring further in the third inning, they still held a 5-0 lead after three innings, as the Dolphins added one more run.

The Dolphins extended their lead with two runs in the fifth inning, making the score 7-0. They capped off their performance with another run in the sixth inning, finishing the game at 8-0.

Jayse Degruy started for the Bears, pitching two innings and allowing five runs on five hits while walking seven and striking out two. He was credited with the loss. Jack Cowan pitched three innings, and Jaxon Adams pitched one inning in relief for the Bears. On the opposing side, B. Kragle started for the Dolphins and earned the victory, pitching 6.1 innings without allowing any runs while giving up two hits, one walk, and striking out seven.

Delgado out-hit Baton Rouge six to four, and the Bears committed three errors in the game.

Bears Highlights

Aidan Macado went 1 for 3

Jackson Martin went 1 for 3

Shawn Driggers went 1 for 3

Conner Kleinpeter went 1 for 2

Game Two

The second game featured a classic pitching duel for the first four innings. The Bears broke through in the fifth inning when Conner Kleinpeter recorded his second hit of the game—Baton Rouge's only hits to that point. After reaching third base, Kleinpeter scored on a wild pitch, giving the Bears a 1-0 lead.

However, the Dolphins struck back in the sixth inning. They loaded the bases and managed to score two runs, taking a 2-1 lead over the Bears. The Bears went down in order in the final inning, allowing the Dolphins to secure their comeback victory.

Tanner Cranford started for the Bears and pitched five innings, allowing no runs on one hit while walking two and striking out three. Briggs Ardoin pitched one inning in relief but was charged with the loss. M. Howard started for the Dolphins and earned the win by pitching six innings, allowing one run on four hits, with one walk and six strikeouts.

Both teams recorded four hits, but the Bears were charged with one error in the game.

Bears Highlights:

Dillion Bird went 1 for 3

Conner Kleinpeter went 2 for 3 with 1 run

Jacob Covington went 1 for 1

With the pair of losses, the Bears fell to a record of 5-38 overall and 1-11 in the conference, while the Dolphins improved to 24-12 and 7-4. Delgado continues to lead the all-time series with 95 wins to 36 losses against Baton Rouge.

The Bears and the Dolphins will conclude their three-game series tomorrow Saturday April 19 with a single nine inning game starting at 1 pm at Kirsch Rooney Stadium