ALTON - The Alton River Dragons closed out their regular season on Thursday night, July 31, 2025, when they fell to the Cape Catfish 14-8 at home. The River Dragons got off to a slow start in the finale as they trailed 6-0 after four innings of play. Miles Nelson led off the bottom of the fifth inning with a solo home run to put Alton on the scoreboard.
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The River Dragons rallied for four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to cut the deficit to 8-5 in favor of Cape, but the Catfish then answered with four runs in the seventh inning and two more runs in the ninth inning to secure their road win.
The River Dragons were led offensively by their most consistent bat in their lineup for most of the season, with Kyle Campbell racking up three hits. Chuck Berry also had a multi-hit game, and Sean McConachie reached base three times in the loss. JJ Jackson threw an inning of shutout baseball out of the bullpen to finish out his solid pitching from the mound this season.
The River Dragons close out the season with an overall record of 25-30 with a second-half record of 14-15.
Increased Attendance: The River Dragons drew 13,172 guests, the second most in team history and only the second time the team has eclipsed 13k in a season. This despite a number of nights in which rain either fell (or threatened to fall) and a prolonged stretch of hot and humid nights throughout July.
Overall Finish The 25-30 record was good for 11th overall in the league, tied for the team’s second best finish (2021 team also finished 11th)
Most Runs Scored: Alton scored a team record 387 runs. Unfortunately, they also yielded a team record 440 against. The team had a franchise best .276 batting average but a franchise worst 7.80 ERA. The team also clubbed a franchise record 36 homers.
Most Alumni Enter the Pros In July, outfielder Eddie King Jr. (2022) was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates and pitcher Peyton Havard (2021) signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. They are the fourth and fifth alumni to enter the pros.
All-Time Pitching Efforts While the team has issues on the mound, it still had a pair of pitchers who entered the record books. Jackson Parrill finished with second most strikeouts ever by an Alton pitcher (53) while Trent Markezich finished with the second lowest ERA in team history (2.76)
Hitting for Average Three River Dragons finished in the top 10 in team batting average. Kyle Campbell finishes with the third highest average (.336), Ethan Cantareira ended sixth (.310) and Caleb Clealand sneaks in at ninth (.303)
Walking into the Record Books Kyle Campbell established a new team record with 41 walks.
Winning on the Road The River Dragons won five consecutive road games July 4 – July 15th, setting a new franchise record.
Triple Play Magic Alton turned the team’s first triple-play in its history June 24 vs. Normal. On a grounder, third baseman Jayden Patel stepped on third, fired to second basemen JJ Jackson who went onto first basemen Trevor Goodwin.
The River Dragons also set a new franchise double play record with four tuned July 6 vs. Burlington
Home Run Record Luke Parmentier became the first player in team history with three homers in a game, doing so July 30 at O’Fallon. The team as a whole hit four home runs in a game on July 27 at Thrillville and against July 30 at O’Fallon, establishing a new team record.
Strikeout Record On June 15 vs. O’Fallon, Jackson Parrill struckout 14, a new individual team record while the team as a whole established a new club mark with 15. The River Dragons also held O’Fallon to just one hit that night, another team record.
Stolen Bases Joe Connolly became only the third player in team history with 20+ steals, ending with 25, the third most among Alton players since 2021.
Slugging it Out Preston Wright finished with 11 doubles, tied for third most in team history. He and Trevor Goodwin blasted six homers, tied for fourth all-time.
All-Time Wins Alton ends the 2025 season with 128 all-time regular season victories, putting the team in position to reach 150 in 2026.
From Start to Finish The following players are the 2025 “Iron Men” having been with the team from the season opening road trip to Jackson through tonight’s finale. Kyle Campbell, Ethan Cantaerira, Gavin Gentry and JJ Jackson, Colin Johnson, Trent Markezich and Hunter Niksch Jackson is the lone opening day starter left, playing that first game at second base.
