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(24-31) Gwinnett Stripers 3, (31-25) Lehigh Valley IronPigs 4
Michael Reed, CF: 3-4, 2B, RBI, .335/.471/.509
Dustin Peterson, RF: 1-4, 2B, .264/.310/.463
Lucas Sims, SP: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 6 BB, 3 K, 1.45 ERA
After both starters only allowed one run it came down to which bullpen was the worst best, and it came down to the IronPigs taking the game. The Stripers offense was stifled through 5 innings, but a one out double by Dustin Peterson in the sixth inning got the ball rolling for the offense. Michael Reed brought him in with a single, tying the game up at a run each. The Stripers came in to the bottom of the ninth down 4-1, but a lead off double from Carlos Franco had them threatening to try to cut into the lead. Phil Gosselin bunted, for some reason, to make the second out and Rio Ruiz struck out for the second out, but two consecutive hits from Sean Kazmar and Rob Brantly scored two and put the tying run on. The Stripers couldn’t come away with anything more though, and lost 4-3. Michael Reed has been on fire for the entire season, but especially since April 29th, a span during which he is hitting .312/.476/.538 with 27 BB to 22 K in 124 innings.
Lucas Sims was.....effective in allowing only one run over 5 innings Tuesday night, despite walking 6 batters. They can’t hit what the can’t reach, I guess. Sims had trouble controlling the ball all night but was avoiding contact and through 3 innings hadn’t allowed a hit. After the first hit against him he walked the next two guys to load the bases with two outs in the fourth inning, but got a ground out to end the inning and avoid giving the IronPigs the lead for the moment. A lead off double came back to bite Sims in the 5th-as another single and a sacrifice fly brought in the first run of the day in the only inning he didn’t issue a walk. Jason Hursh struggled in relief of Sims and allowed 3 hits, 2 runs, and 2 walks over 2 innings of work. Rex Brothers allowed a run in his one inning, but Evan Phillips did his work and pitched a perfect 9th inning with two strike outs. Phillips used only 12 pitches-10 of those for strikes.
Next Game: 6/6 vs (31-25) Lehigh Valley IronPigs @ 7:05 PM ET
Probable Starters
GWN: TBD
LHV: Drew Anderson (1-1, 4.26 ERA)
(25-33) Mississippi Braves 2, (29-29) Montgomery Biscuits 8
Travis Demeritte, LF: 0-4, .230/.338/.391
Alex Jackson, C: 0-2, .175/.256/.294
Bryse Wilson, SP: 2.1 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, 7.43 ERA
A rough day at the plate for the Mississippi offense and a bad inning for Bryse Wilson doomed the Braves to their third straight loss at the hands of the Biscuits. Or whatever appendages Biscuits have, I’m neither a baking nor an anatomy expert. After Montgomery took an early lead the Braves were able to answer back in the bottom of the fourth with a run on hits by Luis Valenzuela and Connor Lien, but they couldn’t overcome the six run third inning. Tyler Marlette doubled and Luis Valenzuela singled him in for the second and final run of the game. Alex Jackson was removed after 5 innings for unknown reasons.
Bryse Wilson came out of the gates strong for Mississippi with 2 strikeouts in a perfect first inning, but faded a bit in the second inning. Bryse struck out the first batter of the inning, but that would be his last strikeout of the game as he allowed 2 hits and a walk in the inning to score a run. In the third inning Wilson allowed a leadoff walk, and then 4 more hits and a walk before departing with 2 runners on base, 1 out, and 4 runs in to score. Elian Leyva couldn’t strand either of Wilson’s runners, putting Wilson’s final line at 7 earned runs. Wilson hasn’t made it out of the 3rd inning in either of his last 2 starts, with 13 total earned runs in 5 innings in those games. Wilson has allowed 17 runs in his last 3 starts after allowing just 6 in his first 8. Josh Graham allowed a run each in the last two innings, but struck out 5 and only walked one in 2 innings.
Next Game: 6/7 vs (29-29) Montgomery Biscuits @ 6:00 PM ET
Probable Starters
MIS: Andres Santiago (3-0, 3.98 ERA)
MTG: Brandon Lawson
(22-32) Florida Fire Frogs 5, (30-23) Bradenton Marauders 7
Jared James, LF: 2-3, 2B, HR, 2 HBP, 2 RBI, .239/.304/.416
Connor Johnstone, SP: 3.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 0 K, 2.60 ERA
Jared James starred for the Fire Frogs in this game, but their strong offensive showing was still not enough to overcome a rough bullpen outing and the lack of an actual starter in that 5th spot. James led off the scoring for the Frogs in the third inning with his 2 out double that brought in Marcus Mooney to tie the game at 1. Alejandro Salazar then singled to score James and give Florida the lead. James was back at it in the 5th inning with a home run that stretched the lead to 3-1. The Fire Frogs then quickly fell behind and went into the 9th inning down 7-3. A single from Alejandro Salazar scored the fourth Fire Frogs run, and Kurt Hoekstra brought in the 5th and put the tying run on base, but Braxton Davidson struck out with the bases loaded to end the game.
Connor Johnstone made another spot start and pitched well for the Fire Frogs nearly completing 4 innings on less than 50 pitches, but left a lot of time in the game for the bullpen to struggle. Mauricio Cabrera got the last out of the 4th inning but had much lass success in the 5th, allowing 3 runs on 4 hits and a walk before being pulled with one out. Chase Johnson-Mullins, fresh off of the DL, came in and ended the 5th by forcing a double play. CLM had his own struggles in the sixth inning, but limited the damage to one run.
Next Game: 6/7 vs (30-23) Bradenton Marauders @ 6:30 PM ET
Probable Starters
FLO: Tucker Davidson (3-4, 5.70 ERA)
BRD: Adam Oller (0-0, 2.45 ERA)
(34-23) Rome Braves 6, (21-34) Asheville Tourists
Isranel Wilson, CF: 1-3, BB, .208/.304/.356
Derian Cruz, 2B: 3-5, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, .224/.257/.344
William Contreras, C: 2-4, 2 HR, BB, 2 RBI, .290/.376/.449
Brandon White, SP: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, 1.38 ERA
There wasn’t a ton to like about the pitching in this game, but the offense came through came through including some key performances from the top prospects on the team. The first came on a solo home run from William Contreras, the first of two home runs on the game for Contreras. Contreras has 5 home runs in his 38 games this season and an .825 OPS. Derian Cruz took advantage of his opportunity leading off with 3 hits, including a double and a home run. Isranel Wilson had a hit and a walk in the game, and since May 7th (20 games) Wilson is hitting .267/.353/.483.
Drew Harrington did not have a good day on the mound, allowing 8 runs in the second inning before departing with two outs. This is the first game since April 9th that Harrington didn’t strike out a single batter and his first career start without a strikeout. Cutter Dyals filled up some innings in relief with 2 1⁄3 scoreless, but it’ wasn’t a smooth transaction as he allowed 3 hits and walked three batters with no strikeouts. Brandon White had the best day of the pitchers, retiring all 7 batters he faced with 3 strikeouts.
Next Game: 6/7 vs (21-34) Asheville Tourists 7:05 PM ET
Probable Starters
ROM: Huascar Ynoa (2-6, 5.62 ERA)
ASH: Garrett Schilling (3-1, 2.47 ERA)