SL1 Jackson Generals

Generals Devour Biscuits in Doubleheader Sweep

Published on May 29, 2016 under Southern League (SL1)
Jackson Generals News Release


Montgomery, Ala. - The Generals continued their dominance against divisional foes Saturday night, sweeping a doubleheader against Montgomery at Riverwalk Stadium to extend their lead in the North to 6.5 games with 21 left to play in the First Half. Jackson cruised to a 5-1 victory in the opener before holding on for a 6-4 win in the nightcap.

Jackson (31-18) has won four in a row and eight of ten to improve its mark in the division to 20-9. The Generals have outscored Montgomery (24-24) 29-11 after losing in ten innings in the series opener on Monday. They have won seven of nine against a Biscuits squad that has been just behind in the standings for most of the season.

Game One: Generals 5, Montgomery 1

Jackson had its way in the opener on Sunday, winning 5-1 thanks to timely offense and a fine performance from Sam Gaviglio on the mound. The Generals held a talented Montgomery squad to just a run on three hits and two walks in game one.

Gaviglio (3-2, 4.07) turned in a quality start for the fifth time this season, allowing just a run on three hits in six innings of work. The right-hander needed just 74 pitches to get through six en route to his third win of the season. Casey Gillaspie, who accounted for two of the hits against Gaviglio, homered in the fourth inning to give Montgomery their only run of the contest.

Jackson jumped out to an early lead in the second inning. D.J. Peterson walked and moved to third on a Tim Lopes single before scoring on a base hit from Marcus Littlewood. The Generals added two more in the third inning. With two on and one out, Tyler O'Neill smashed a double to left to put Jackson on top 3-0.

Marcus Littlewood came through again in the fifth against Montgomery's Taylor Guerrieri (2-4, 4.53), driving in a run with a two-out single. Lopes was thrown out at the plate to end the inning, but not before Jackson took a 4-1 lead. Littlewood had three hits and drove in a pair in his second-straight start.

Lopes got an insurance run home in the seventh with a bases-loaded groundout, making it 5-1. Edwin Diaz made his eighth relief appearance, pitching a perfect seventh on 13 pitches to close out the win.

Game Two: Generals 6, Montgomery 4

The Generals took a big lead early in the second game Saturday, but needed to hold on for a close victory to complete the sweep. Jackson needed four pitchers in a seven-inning game that lasted almost three hours.

Midway through the third, Jackson led 6-0 thanks to an early barrage against Montgomery starter Jared Mortensen (4-4, 5.28). The knuckleballer walked seven while allowing a half-dozen runs in 2.1 innings of work.

Tyler O'Neill drove in a run for a sixth-straight game with a first-inning double that plated a pair. O'Neill later scored when D.J. Peterson grounded into a double play, putting the Generals on top 3-0.

Benji Gonzalez, who saw his 12-game hit streak come to an end in the first game, manufactured a run in the second. He tripled to right-center with two outs before scoring on a wild pitch by Mortensen.

D.J. Peterson led off the fifth inning with solo blast to left-center, putting the Generals on top 5-0. The slugger has hit in nine-straight games and the home run was his third in a span of six games.

Jackson also drew four walks in the third, scoring on a bases-loaded free pass issued to Guillermo Heredia by Jordan Harrison after Mortensen had been pulled from the game. Jackson walked a season-high 10 times in the finale.

Despite the sizable advantage, Jackson needed to hold on for victory. Montgomery answered with three runs against spot-starter Andrew Kittredge in the bottom of the third. Pat Blair and Casey Gillaspie each had RBI doubles in the frame before Jake Bauers drove in another with a single to center. Fortunately for the Generals, Guillermo Heredia gunned down Gillaspie at the plate to end the inning.

At the plate, Heredia singled and walked to stretch his on-base streak to 11 games. Over that span, the Cuban outfielder has walked 11 times while striking out just twice.

Montgomery got the potential tying run to the plate in each of the final three innings, but Jackson managed to keep the Biscuits at bay. Dan Altavilla (3-1, 2.95) retired three in a row in the fifth after coming in with two on and nobody out. He left with two on and two out in the sixth, as closer Emilio Pagan got Pat Blair to end the threat.

Pagan retired the first two men he faced in the seventh before running into some trouble. Willy Adames doubled to left and scored Montgomery's fourth run thanks to a pair of wild pitches. Gillaspie drew a walk and Jake Bauers reached on an error, but Pagn struck out Jake Hager to finish off the game.

The Generals swept a doubleheader for the first time this season, improving to 5-3 over four twin-bills. Jackson is a season-best 13 games above .500 and they are the only team with 30 wins in the Southern League. They have already surpassed their win total from the First Half last year (29) with 21 games left to play. There are 6.5 games separating Jackson from second-place Montgomery heading into Sunday's finale.

The six-game series wraps up Sunday evening at Riverwalk Stadium. Lefty Ryan Yarbrough (5-1, 2.89) goes for his sixth-straight win against Montgomery's Ryne Stanek (1-5, 4.53). First pitch in set for 5:35 pm CT in Alabama's capital, and you can catch all the action starting at 5:20 pm CT with the Generals Pregame Show on the TJ Network (AM 1390, FM 94.1) in Jackson and online via the TuneIn Radio App.

While the Generals are on the road for 11 games, fans can enjoy OVC baseball in West Tennessee! The Ohio Valley Conference Baseball Tournament will be hosted at The Ballpark at Jackson for a seventh-straight year! There will be games Wednesday, May 25 through Sunday, May 29. Fans can purchase tickets at the box office, by calling the Generals at (731) 988-5299 or online !

The team returns home for five games against Pensacola on Sunday, June 5! The opener is a Family FunDay Sunday, with children 12 and under getting free admission, ice cream, fun zone access and the chance to play catch on the field pregame! The series concludes with another State Farm Agent Wes Harris Dollar Night! General Admission tickets, hot dogs, popcorn, Pepsi products and select beer are just $1 all night long, and fans can upgrade to reserved seats for $5!

The Generals cannot wait to have you at the team's next home series. Get your tickets now by calling the team at (731) 988.5299, stopping by The Ballpark at Jackson or going online to jacksongeneralsbaseball.com.

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Southern League Stories from May 29, 2016


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