PCL1 Nashville Sounds

Ninth-Inning Gwynn Blast Provides 5-4 Win

August 27, 2008 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Nashville Sounds News Release


NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Tony Gwynn led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a solo home run to center to propel the Nashville Sounds to an exciting 5-4 victory over the Albuquerque Isotopes on Wednesday afternoon at Greer Stadium.

Gwynn's game-ending blast, which came off Isotopes reliever Carlos Martinez, was his second of the season and the Sounds' fourth of the afternoon. All five Nashville runs in the contest came via the longball as the Sounds (59-79) notched their 11th last at-bat victory of the year.

Erasmo Ramirez (3-4) was the beneficiary of Gwynn's heroics and picked up the victory as part of yet another solid day by the Nashville bullpen. He worked a scoreless top of the ninth, following Randy Choate (1.0 scoreless IP) and Mark DiFelice (2.0 scoreless IP) to the hill behind starter Troy Cate.

The Sounds' relief corps have combined to allow only two runs in their last 26 2/3 innings of action.

Martinez (1-2) took the loss for Albuquerque after surrendering the game-winning shot in his one-third of an inning of action.

Nashville third baseman Mat Gamel put the Sounds on the board in the bottom of the second inning when he belted his first career Triple-A home run, an opposite-field shot to left-center off Bobby Keppel that caromed off the guitar-shaped scoreboard.

Albuquerque grabbed the lead with a pair of longballs of its own in the fourth. Tagg Bozied led off the frame with a line drive solo shot over the left field foul pole off Nashville starter Troy Cate. The blast, which came on a 3-2 offering, was his 26th of the year. Two batters later, Mike Ryan staked the visitors to a 2-1 lead with a massive solo shot to right-center that landed on Chestnut Street. It was his seventh longball of the year and second in two days against Sounds pitching.

The Isotopes tacked another pair of runs in the fifth after opening the inning with a pair of back-to-back doubles. Third baseman Lee Mitchell ripped a two-bagger off the wall in right-center before Keppel helped his own cause by bouncing an RBI double over the head of Gamel at third base. Bozied plated the second run with a sacrifice fly to center later in the frame.

The home run derby continued in the sixth as the Sounds rallied to tie the contest at 4-4 with a pair of longballs. Jay Gibbons led off the inning with a solo shot to center off Keppel, his fifth blast of the year, which extended his longest hit streak of the year to six games.

Later in the frame, Brendan Katin belted Nashville's second pinch-hit home run of the season, a two-out, two-run, game-tying shot off the clubhouse building in center field. The roundtripper, which scored Vinny Rottino, was his 17th of the season and second in as many days.

Both Nashville pinch-hit homers this season have come against the Isotopes. Adam Heether hit the first one on May 28th at Isotopes Park.

The Sounds missed a chance to pull ahead when they left the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth. Gibbons singled, Rottino was hit by a pitch, and pinch-hitter Chris Woodward drew a walk to fill the bags before Isotopes reliever Carlos Martinez induced an inning-ending fielder's choice grounder from Hernan Iribarren to escape the jam unscathed.

The Sounds wrap up their 2008 home schedule with Thursday's 7 p.m. series finale against the Isotopes. Left-hander Lindsay Gulin (7-7, 3.63), the current Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week, will man the bump for Nashville on Thursday evening to face Albuquerque right-hander Tim Corcoran (0-0, 4.50).

It will be the final Thirsty Thursday of the summer at the ballpark. All draft beverages will be $1 until the end of the 5th inning or 8:30 p.m., whichever occurs first.

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Pacific Coast League Stories from August 27, 2008


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