SL1 Mississippi Braves

M-Braves Drop Fourth Straight, Series to Shrimp

Published on July 15, 2019 under Southern League (SL1)
Mississippi Braves News Release


JACKSONVILLE, FL - The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp used a six-run fifth inning and clinched the six-game series with an 8-2 win over the Mississippi Braves on Monday night at The Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. The clubs will meet one final time in the series on Tuesday morning.

Jacksonville's Corey Bird hit the first grand slam by an opponent this season to cap off the six-run inning and give Jacksonville an 8-0 lead. Jasseel De La Cruz (L, 2-5) held Jacksonville (14-10, 43-51) out of the hit column until the fourth inning.

Having retired nine of ten entering the fourth inning, the 22-year-old plunked rehabbing third baseman Martin Prado to begin the inning. After a wild pitch and strikeout, Stone Garrett hit a single scoring Prado, and Jacksonville took a 1-0 lead. Later in the inning, Bird made it 2-0 on a single to center with two outs.

Jacksonville pitcher Daniel Castano (W, 2-1) opened their bottom of the fifth inning with his first professional hit. De La Cruz walked the next two batters before inducing a 4-6-3 double play from Riley Mahab. Castano scored on the pitchers best friend to make it 3-0. Garrett followed with a single to score Brian Miller, and it was 4-0. The next batters reached on free passes setting up the Bird grand slam home run. The grand slam was the first allowed by the M-Braves (9-16, 41-51) since Jose Rojas hit one on May 11, 2018, the night of his cycle. Jonathan Aro faced the ninth batter of the inning and coaxed a pop out to get out of the inning.

Aro led off the top of the sixth inning against Castona and singled to right, ending his no-hit bid. The M-Braves rallied with two outs in the top of the seventh inning to get on the scoreboard. Ray-Patrick Didder and Alejandro Salazar hit back-to-back RBI doubles to pull the Braves within six at 8-2. Castano would exit the game and settle for a season-high seven strikeouts and 6.2 innings of two-run baseball.

Didder recorded his second straight multi-hit game, finishing 2-for-4 with a double and run scored. William Contreras finished 2-for-4 with a run.

Aro pitched 1.1 innings of shutout baseball behind De La Cruz, and Jordan Harrison struck out two over 2.0 innings, lowering his ERA to 2.90.

The M-Braves and Jumbo Shrimp conclude the six-game series on Tuesday. LHP Kyle Muller (5-5, 3.69) makes his team-leading 19th start for the Braves against Jacksonville RHP Jorge Guzman (4-8, 3.93) for the Shrimp. First pitch is scheduled for 11:05 am CT with coverage beginning at 10:50 am on 103.9 FM, First Pitch App. and TuneIn Radio. The game will also be streamed on MiLB.tv (subscription required).

The M-Braves return to Trustmark Park for one more homestand this month, July 18-21 against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Visit mississippibraves.com for tickets or call 888-BRAVES4.

The Mississippi Braves are the Double-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. Since the inaugural 2005 season, 144 M-Braves have gone on to Major League Baseball. The M-Braves have made postseason play four times and went on to win the Southern League Championship in 2008. Stop by Trustmark Park or call 888-BRAVES4 Monday through Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. For the latest news and updates, visit mississippibraves.com or connect with @mbraves on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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Southern League Stories from July 15, 2019


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