SL1 Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp

Suns thrill afternoon crowd

April 16, 2003 - Southern League (SL1)
Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp News Release


JACKSONVILLE, Fla. –- Jesus Feliciano's ground ball trickled past the second baseman and into an unattended shallow right field allowing two Suns to score in the 13th inning, giving Jacksonville a 5-4 victory over the Tennessee Smokies on Wednesday afternoon in front of 4,362 fans at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville.

Bucky Jacobsen, who had entered the game in a double switch in the ninth inning, led off the 13th with a home run which had given the Smokies a 4-3 lead. Reliever Kevin Sprague (0-1) allowed a leadoff double to Brennan King, walked Dave Detienne and retired King on a fielder's choice. A wild pitch moved the runners into scoring position, setting up Feliciano's opportunity.

The Smokies (7-6) had given the Suns ample chances to tie or win throughout the late innings. Juan Figueroa, pitching with a 3-1 lead in the ninth, walked the bases loaded before giving way to B.R. Cook. Third baseman Chris Weekly overthrew first base, allowing two tying runs to score in the ninth. The Suns had baserunners in each of the extra innings.

The Suns (7-6) scored first. In the fourth, Nick Alvarez's fielder's choice scored Koyie Hill who started the inning with a single. But the single run wasn't enough to support starter Heath Totten who worked into the seventh. Totten had allowed three hits through six innings, but ran into trouble when he surrendered two doubles, a single and a walk in the seventh. That inning led to Tennessee's three runs.

Lino Urdaneta, despite allowing Jacobsen's home run, pitched 3-2/3 innings of otherwise scoreless baseball to keep the Suns close. Scott Proctor (1-0) earned the win in relief of Urdaneta when he struck out John Nelson on three pitches in the 13th.

The Suns and Smokies conclude their five-game series at 7:05 p.m. Thursday at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. Right-hander Edwin Jackson (0-1, 4.00 ERA) is scheduled to face Smokies righty Nick Stocks (1-0, 2.45). The promotion will be Thursday Throwdown, where fans may purchase Budweiser beers for $1.

Check out the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp Statistics



Southern League Stories from April 16, 2003


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central