PCL1 Fresno Grizzlies

Nashville tames Grizzlies 9-1 to open 8-game roadtrip

Published on May 14, 2016 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Fresno Grizzlies News Release


The Fresno Grizzlies fell victim to seven shutout innings from Nashville Sounds starter Chris Smith on Friday, losing 9-1 in the first matchup against an American Conference foe this season, the first of the initial eight-game road trip to the Eastern half of the PCL. The loss on the travel day was a rare one in the first game of a series, dropping Fresno to 6-4 this season in series openers, and 34-12 in such games in the Tony DeFrancesco era, since the beginning of last season.

Nashville (17-19) got started in the first and didn't look back. Jake Smolinski jacked his second home run of 2016 out to center, for a 2-0 lead after an inning. A Rangel Ravelo sac fly in the fourth and a Chad Pinder RBI double in the sixth made the score 4-0.

Fresno starter Brad Peacock went 5.1 innings, allowing seven hits and five earned runs, with a walk and four strikeouts. In Peacock's seventh start of the season, the loss was his first decision of the year. Jordan Jankowski pitched the final 2.2 innings for the Grizzlies (15-19), racking up six strikeouts.

In the sixth Pinder scored on a wild pitch, and in the eighth the Sounds strung together four consecutive two-out hits to make it 9-0. (Matt Olson RBI single, two-run Ravelo double and a Bryan Anderson RBI double.)

Catcher Max Stassi (2-for-4), back with the Grizzlies after playing in two games with the Houston Astros when their top catcher Jason Castro was on the paternity list, enjoyed the only multi-hit game of the night for Fresno. Both of Stassi's knocks were for extra bases, and when he and Danny Worth ripped back-to-back doubles in the top of the ninth, it broke up the Nashville shutout. Unfortunately, the eight-run loss was the largest in defeat for the Grizz this season.

Smith (2-5) went seven victorious innings, allowing just four hits and a walk. He struck out five, his first action against the Grizzlies since last year's postseason, when Fresno defeated him in the opening round in game two of the series against El Paso.

Game two of this series is tomorrow afternoon (12:05 PT / 2:05 CT) at First Tennessee Park, the Grizzlies' first visit to the new facility in its second year. Probable starters are RHP Brady Rodgers (1-2, 3.75) for Fresno and RHP Henderson Alvarez (0-0, 3.38) for Nashville.

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Pacific Coast League Stories from May 14, 2016


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