Gallo Walk-Off Lifts Bikers in 2026 Futures League All-Star Game

NASHUA, N.H. 一 Even after Mother Nature delayed the proceedings by an extra day, the first Futures League All-Star Game at Historic Holman Stadium since 2018 was well worth the wait.

Lowell Spinners catcher Brett Gallo (Northeastern) hit a two-run single through the left side in the bottom of the ninth inning, leading the Bikers to a 6-5, walk-off win over the Hikers on Wednesday night. 

The Bikers had 3-0 and 4-3 erased, setting up only the second walk-off finish in Futures League All-Star history. Most Valuable Player Gallo joined Lowell teammate Zander Bratspis (Kansas State) and the Nashua Silver Knights duo of Phoenix Williams (Mount St. Mary's) and Connor Smith (Gannon) with multi-hit games.

Most Outstanding Pitcher honors went to Worcester Bravehearts and Hikers righty Lane LeClair (Franklin Pierce), who was the only arm on either side to post a scoreless inning with multiple strikeouts in what was a scoreless game at the time. 

New Britain Bees teammates Ben Kuja (Brandeis and Kacin Robinson (Stonehill) came up with big swings as part of multi-hit performances for the Hikers, combining for four of that team's six total hits. 

Kuja had three RBI across back-to-back innings, hitting a two-run single in the seventh and then an RBI knock in the eighth. Robinson hit a leadoff triple into the right-center gap and scored another go-ahead run in the ninth, while matching an All-Star Game record with three stolen bases. 

In the early going, members of the host Silver Knights stole the show.

After Nashua starter Will Perkowski (Southern New Hampshire) pitched a 1-2-3 first inning for the Bikers, Smith scored the opening run on Peter Keblinsky's (Southern Maine) fourth-inning RBI single before roping his own two-RBI double to deep center to equal the 3-0 advantage in the fifth. 

The Hikers got on the board on a sacrifice fly by Lowell's Cam Biller (Mount St. Mary's) in the sixth. Robinson scored the run after being hit by a pitch to begin the frame and then stealing second and third. 

After Worcester's Jake Shaughnessy (Eastern Connecticut) tossed a scoreless sixth for the Hikers, Kuja knocked his first hit into right field and took second on a subsequent throw as the tying run came across the plate in the form of Worcester's Julian Mercado (College of Central Florida).

In the eighth, Kuja gave the Hikers their first lead on an RBI single to left, but Williams gunned down the possible go-ahead run on a throw from left field. 

That defensive play allowed the Bikers to re-tie the game in the latter half of the frame. The Westfield Starfires' Nick Fox (Central Connecticut) hit a leadoff single to center field and Gallo hit an infield single before advancing on a throwing error. Lowell's Jack Quigley (Maine) brought Fox home with another tying run on a sacrifice fly.

The Hikers responded in the ninth, quickly tying the game on Robinson's triple and New Britain's Myles Gythfeldt's (Lafayette) sacrifice fly two batters later. 

However, the Bikers had the last laugh in their second straight scoring frame. With one out, Smith singled, Keblinsky reached on a dropped ball error and Fox walked to load the bases for Gallo, whose knock into left plated two runs to win the game.

Following Perkowski, Westfield's Josh Mayo (Springfield) and Cam Fisher (UMass Boston) and Worcester's Adam Carpenter (Rhode Island) all tossed scoreless innings for the Bikers. Nashua's Nigel Cross (Wentworth) allowed a run, but didn't give up a hit through two innings. Westfield reliever Thomas Pirog (Keene State) earned the win, posting a strikeout during his ninth inning.

On Monday night, Westfield first baseman Morrie Fried (Brown) won the Home Run Derby by going deep on back-to-back swings to edge past the Norwich Sea Unicorns' Shaun Flannery (UConn) during a five-swing tiebreaker in the championship round. Fried topped a field that included challenger and 2004 World Series champion Jonny Gomes, becoming the second straight and third all-time Derby champion from the Starfires.

With the All-Star break in the books, the Futures League resumes its regular season on Thursday morning. 

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