IL Memphis Redbirds

Memphis Redbirds Game Notes: July 6, 2021

July 6, 2021 - International League (IL)
Memphis Redbirds News Release


Tuesday, July 6th 6:00 p.m. CT Memphis Redbirds (21-33) at Louisville Bats (21-32) Game 1 of 6

Louisville Slugger Field / Louisville, KY Game #55 of 130 Road Game #25 of 65

LHP Matthew Liberatore (3-4, 4.40 ERA) vs. RHP Michael Mariot (0-2, 3.43 ERA)

MiLB.tv & First Pitch App: Evan Stockton & Justin Gallanty

Last Time Out: The Memphis Redbirds capped off a memorable weekend by taking down the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, 2-1, on a sunny and warm Fourth of July Sunday at AutoZone Park. 8,076 fans packed the park and cheered. Connor Thomas was the story of the night for Memphis, as the former Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket allowed just one hit and one walk in seven scoreless innings with four strikeouts. Thomas retired the final nine batters he faced in order. Buoyed by Thomas' brilliance on the mound, the 'Birds backed him up at the plate with some early run support. Conner Capel lined an opposite-field home run over the fence in the bottom of the second, and Ali Sánchez smacked a double off of the center-field walk in the fourth to score Juan Yepez. Memphis hung on late for a 2-1 win.

Memphis Starter: Matthew Liberatore will make his ninth start of the season for the Redbirds tonight. Liberatore pitched brilliantly in his last outing, allowing three runs on five hits in 8.0 innings against Jacksonville last Wednesday night. The lefthander had six strikeouts and just one walk, and it was the longest start for any Memphis starter so far this season. Liberatore was named the Cardinals' Minor League Pitcher of the Month for June last week. The 21-year-old went 3-1 with a. 3.42 ERA in four starts during the month and posted a WHIP of 1.01. Liberatore also made two starts with Team USA, helping the team win the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. He is ranked as the No. 1 prospect in the Cardinals' organization by MLB Pipeline.

Louisville Starter: Michael Mariot makes his fifth start of the season for Louisville on Tuesday night. The righthander has recorded a 3.43 ERA in 21.0 IP (eight earned runs allowed) with 14 strikeouts and six walks. His last start, on Wednesday at Nashville, was excellent. Mariot allowed just one earned run on six hits in 6.0 innings pitched with five strikeouts and one walk. The 32-year-old was originally drafted in the 8th Round of the 2010 Draft by Kansas City out of Nebraska. He appeared in 19 games with the Royals combined between the 2014 & 2015 seasons. Mariot has not appeared in the Major Leagues since that time. Prior to this season, he had not appeared in a Minor League game since 2018, as he spent time in the Mexican League, the Atlantic League, and the American Association.

Headed to the Mile High City: Matthew Liberatore and Nolan Gorman were named to the Sirius XM Futures' Game roster last week. Those two 'Birds will be competing at Coors Field in Colorado on July 11 against the premier prospects in professional baseball.

Going for the Gold: Brandon Dickson has been named to the United States National Team that will be competing at the Olympic Games in Tokyo later this month. After pitching eight seasons in Japan, Dickson will return to the Land of the Rising Sun with Team USA. The Olympic baseball tournament begins in July 27.

Big Series for the Backstop: Ali Sánchez was on fire last week against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. The catcher went 9-16 in the series with a double, a home run, and three RBIs. Sánchez had two separate three-hit games in the series. He enters Tuesday night riding a seven-game hitting streak.

Juan's the One: Juan Yepez is one of the hottest hitters in Triple-A baseball right now. The 23-year-old has hits in 13 of his last 14 games, batting .326 with two doubles, two home runs, five walks seven RBIs and ten runs scored. Yepez was called up from Springfield (Double-A) at the end of May and has batted .266 in 28 games with Memphis since being called up.

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