Braun issued just one walk in his 5.2 innings of work for the Clingstones
(29-48) Gwinnett Stripers 2, (32-43) Norfolk Tide 5
- Jarred Kelenic, CF: 3-4, RBI
- Jonathan Ornelas, SS: 1-4, HR, RBI, R
- Davis Daniel, SP: 4.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 6 BB, 2 K
It was a rough go of it for Gwinnett on Wednesday, despite the Stripers tallying just two hits less than Norfolk on the night.
Things actually got off on a positive note relatively early for the Stripers. Sandy Leon doubled to kick off the frame and Matthew Batten moved him into scoring position on a sac bunt. Jarred Kelenic then singled into right field to plate Leon and make it a 1-0 game.
However, starter Davis Daniel didn’t help matters over the course of his outing. While he did toss a pair of scoreless frames to begin the game and was handed a one-run lead headed into the bottom of the third, Norfolk’s offense managed to score five runs in the inning.
In total, Davis gave up six hits — three of which were for extra-bases — and issued a pair of walks in the inning as well.
Davis wasn’t great, but the Gwinnett bullpen actually managed to stop the bleeding, as Domingo Gonzalez, Jose Ruiz and Jesse Chaves combined to toss 3.2 scoreless innings to at least keep the Stripers in the game.
While the effort from the pen was nice, Gwinnett’s offense floundered the rest of the way home. The Stripers would manage to put a couple of runners in scoring position over the final six frames, but a solo homer off the bat of Jonathan Ornelas was the lone run Gwinnett was able to produce, losing this one by a 5-2 final.
(27-41) Columbus Clingstones 3, (43-28) Biloxi Shuckers 5
- Ethan Workinger, 2-5, HR, 2 RBI, R
- Drew Compton, 1B: 2-3
- Lucas Braun, SP: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, BB, 8 K
It took ten innings, but Columbus came out on the wrong side of their extra inning affair on Wednesday, losing by a 5-3 final.
On the mound, Lucas Braun was pretty solid for the Clingstones. Across 5.2 innings of work, the righty scattered three hits and allowed three runs while striking out eight. He also only issued one walk on the day as well.
Braun’s performance was enough to keep the Clingstones in the game while the offense attempted to catch up.
Trailing 2-0, Columbus finally scored in the home half of the fifth. The first run of the game for the Clingstones came on behalf of a Drew Compton sacrifice fly to score Kobe Kato, cutting the deficit to 2-1. Then, Ethan Workinger launched his 12th homer of the year over the left field wall to plate Kevin Kilpatrick Jr. and give Columbus the 3-2 lead.
While Biloxi managed to tie the game in the next half inning, the Columbus bullpen came through and held the Shuckers scoreless through regulation. Amos Willingham, Elison Joseph and Blane Abeyata combined to toss 3.1 innings of scoreless ball, issuing three walks and two hits while striking out eight batters.
With Brian Moran on the mound for Columbus in the top of the 10th inning, the Shuckers notched a pair of runs after drawing two walks and lacing a double down the left field line to give them a 5-3 lead.
In the home half, Columbus unfortunately was retired in order to end the game and hand the Clingstones the loss.
(31-39) Rome Emperors 2, (35-36) Greenville Drive 6
- Justin Janas, RF: 1-3, RBI, BB
- Mac Guscette, C: 1-3, RBI
- Jacob Kroeger, SP: 6 IP, H, ER, 3 BB, 5 K
A five-run ninth inning ultimately proved to be Rome’s downfall in this one, as Greenville beat the Emperors by a 6-2 final.
Before we get to the collapse of the bullpen, we need to single out Jacob Kroeger’s solid performance once again. On Wednesday, the lefty tossed six innings of one-run ball while striking out five and walking three batters. With his stellar start, Kroeger has lowered his season ERA to 2.30 on the season.
In his three starts since joining Rome, Kroeger has completed 15.2 innings of work, giving up four runs and striking out 20 batters during that span — which mostly came from his 11-strikeout performance on June 12.
He is 25-years-old, so he is a bit older for the level of competition he’s facing. It wouldn’t be surprising at all to see the Braves give him the bump up to double-A, especially if he continues to put up great numbers against high-A batters.
Meanwhile at the plate, Kroeger’s offense didn’t provide him with any help. The Emperors managed to reach on an error and a walk over the first several innings, but their first hit didn’t come until the bottom of the fifth when Mac Guscette reached on an infield single.
Trailing 6-0 after Greenville tagged reliever Logan Samuels for five runs in the top of the ninth, Rome finally scored in their final at-bat — albeit too little, too late.
The first run of the game for Rome came on a Justin Janas single to plate Titus Dumitru to make it a 6-1 game. Then, Mac Guscette came through with a sac fly, scoring Mason Guerra to cut the deficit to 6-2. However, Bryson Horne proceeded to fly out to end the game.
(35-34) Augusta GreenJackets 1, (38-33) Fayetteville Woodpeckers 10
- John Gil, SS: 1-4, 2B, R
- Colby Jones, 2B: 1-3
- Justin Militello, SP: 3 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 6 BB, 2 K
Keeping with a rather depressing trend on the day, Augusta simply got routed in this one, losing 10-1 to Fayetteville. So we’ll keep this one short.
Starter Justin Militello and his defense didn’t give the GreenJackets much of a fighting chance to begin with. In just three innings, Militello gave up six runs — four earned — and walked a staggering six batters while only striking out a pair. The bullpen didn’t fare much better, tossing five innings and giving up four runs in the process.
Offensively, the outlook in this one started out on the positive side of things, as John Gil scored on an RBI-groundout off the bat of Owen Carey to give Augusta an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. However, at the plate over the course of the rest of the game, Augusta managed only two hits and didn’t score again after the first inning.