IL1 Gwinnett Stripers

Durango, Tiffee Lead Charge in 11-7 Win

Published on August 13, 2012 under International League (IL1)
Gwinnett Stripers News Release


LAWRENCEVILLE, GA - The Gwinnett Braves offense exploded for an 11-7 win over the Louisville Bats in the series finale on Monday night at Coolray Field. Luis Durango and Terry Tiffee both registered four-hit games for the G-Braves, while Randall Delgado grabbed his third win of the season with four earned runs over 5.0 innings.

With the victory, the G-Braves extended their winning streak to three games and secured their first series win since taking two of three from Durham in a home series from July 6-8.

After a 57-minute rain delay, the G-Braves came out of the gates aflame, crossing the plate four times in the first inning. Durango singled to lead off the inning and Ernesto Mejia doubled him home for the first run of the night. Stefan Gartrell reached base next on a fielding error, then advanced to second on a Tiffee single to load the bases. Jose Yepez cleared the bases with a three-run triple, his first of the season, to give Gwinnett a 4-0 lead.

Louisville took one of the runs back in their half of the second inning as Felix Perez stayed hot with a leadoff double. Perez came around to score on Cody Puckett's RBI double to cut the deficit to 4-1.

Gwinnett responded in a big way with five more runs in the bottom of the second, batting around the order for the second-straight inning. The five-hit frame was highlighted by a two-run single by Tiffee and a RBI double off the bat of Rusty Ryal. The G-Braves exited the inning leading the Bats, 9-1.

Louisville starter Pedro Villareal (L, 3-10) lasted just 1.1 innings as Gwinnett exploited the right-hander early in the game. Villareal allowed nine runs (eight earned) on eight hits, walking three while striking out none. Josh Judy worked 2.0 innings, yielding two runs on four hits, as he struck out five and walked two. Nick Christiani and Will Ohman combined to work 4.0 scoreless innings, concluding the evening for the battered Louisville staff.

The Bats scored two more runs in the third inning. Henry Rodriguez drilled his second double of the night scoring Didi Gregorius from first base. Rodriguez crossed the plate on Perez's RBI double, cutting the deficit to 9-3.

The scoring finally started to slow down in the third when Gwinnett crossed the plate just twice. Josh Kroeger singled, setting the table for Gartrell who belted his 19th home run of the season, a two-run shot, to give the G-Braves an 11-3 lead heading to the fourth.

Delgado (W, 3-2) was solid for 5.0 innings of work, surrendering four earned runs on eight hits en route to his third win with Gwinnett. The right-hander struck out three and walked three in a 97-pitch, 62-strike effort. Miguel Batista relieved Delgado and worked 3.0 innings of one-run baseball. Ryan Buchter retired two batters in the ninth inning, but couldn't close the door as he surrendered two runs on two hits. Anthony Varvaro (S, 6) finally finished off the Bats in the ninth for the save.

The first six hitters in the Gwinnett order all recorded multi-hit nights as Durango (4-for-4, 2 R, RBI) and Tiffee (4-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI) led the offensive charge for both sides. Prior to their efforts, only Josh Wilson had accomplished a four-hit game for the G-Braves this season, doing so on July 17 at Indianapolis. Kroeger collected three hits (3-for-4, R), while Mejia (2-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBI), Gartrell (2-for-5, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI) and Yepez (2-for-4, R, 3 RBI) all recorded two hits for Gwinnett. Mejia's two-RBI night boosts his IL-leading RBI mark to 87.

Rodriguez led the way for the Bats, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored and a RBI, while Perez went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored.

The Gwinnett Braves (56-68) will take their three-game winning streak on the road to Norfolk for four games with the Tides before concluding the six-game trip with a two-game set at Durham. Right-hander Julio Teheran (6-7, 5.35) will start for the G-Braves against Norfolk right-hander Jason Berken (4-4, 3.49) in the first game of the series at Harbor Park on Tuesday night, first pitch scheduled for 7:15 PM. The radio broadcast will air on WDUN 550 AM and 102.9 FM in Gainesville, Georgia with Tony Schiavone calling the play-by-play.

Tickets for all Gwinnett Braves home games are on sale now at the Coolray Field Box Office. Call (678) 277-0340 or visit gwinnettbraves.com for more information.

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International League Stories from August 13, 2012


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