Giants, Bandits Split Doubleheader as Late Fireworks Decide Both Games

BRISBANE, Australia — Adelaide (8-10) and Brisbane (9-10) split a Saturday doubleheader at Viticon Stadium, with the Giants erupting late for a lopsided win in the opener before the Bandits’ bats responded in emphatic fashion to take the nightcap.

In game one, Adelaide rode a dominant start from Conner Greene and a decisive seven-run seventh inning to cruise past Brisbane 13–1, then watched the Bandits pound out 15 hits and four home runs in a 13–5 victory in game 2 to close the day.

In the opener, Greene allowed just one hit over six innings, striking out nine and walking three as Adelaide snapped a scoreless tie in the middle innings before blowing the game open late. Brisbane managed only a lone hit — a single by Dermot Fritsch — and struck out 11 times against Giants pitching.

The Giants broke through in the fourth on a run-scoring groundout, then extended the lead in the sixth with back-to-back solo homers. Adelaide put the game out of reach in the seventh, sending 12 men to the plate and scoring nine runs, highlighted by a three-run pinch-hit homer that capped the outburst.

Brisbane starter Jon Kennedy kept the game close early, working six innings and striking out seven, but was tagged for two homers and four runs. The Bandits bullpen struggled to contain Adelaide’s late surge, surrendering nine runs in the final inning.

The lone bright spot offensively for Brisbane in Game 1 was Fritsch, who scored the team’s only run after reaching base in the fourth. Max Durrington, Will Riley and Sohoo Ham each struck out at least once as the Bandits were limited to just 21 at-bats in the seven-inning contest. The nightcap told a much different story.

Brisbane jumped out early and never looked back, scoring four runs in the first inning and piling on throughout to claim the split and improve to 9–10 on the season. Robbie Perkins delivered the biggest blow, blasting two home runs and driving in seven runs to lead a relentless Bandits offense.

Perkins launched a two-run homer in the first inning to open the scoring, then crushed a grand slam in the fourth as Brisbane blew the game open. He finished 4 for 5 with 10 total bases and accounted for more than half of the Bandits’ RBIs, seven total.

Fritsch continued his strong day at the plate, going 3 for 5 with two doubles, a solo homer and three RBIs. Noah Barber added a solo home run in the seventh, while Kyosuke Mashiko chipped in a run-scoring double as Brisbane recorded extra-base hits in six different innings.

Brisbane starter Connor MacDonald earned the win, allowing two runs over six innings while striking out six. The Bandits bullpen limited Adelaide to three runs over the final three frames despite a late three-run homer by the Giants in the eighth.

At the top of the order, Durrington scored three times and reached base three times, while George Callil, Riley and Rixon Wingrove all contributed hits during a balanced offensive performance that saw every Bandits starter reach base.

Adelaide struggled defensively in game 2, committing two errors that extended innings and led to unearned runs. The Giants managed just four hits, with a late rally courtesy of Devin Saltiban, who extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a three-run homer, accounting for most of their scoring.

The split left both clubs clustered in the middle of the ABL standings, with Brisbane bouncing back emphatically into second place after being overmatched in the opener and Adelaide showing the kind of swing-game volatility that defined the doubleheader.

The Brisbane Bandits will travel to Perth to take on the last-place Heat, who split the round 5 series with Sydney 2-2. Fans can catch all the action on Baseball +, while fans in Japan and Taiwan can watch the ABL on DAZN Japan.