IL Norfolk Tides

Tides Run Wild and Wilkerson Homers as Norfolk Rolls Past Bulls Friday

Published on July 9, 2021 under International League (IL)
Norfolk Tides News Release


A team season-high six stolen bases and a two-run homer from center fielder Stevie Wilkerson powered the Tides (24-30) to an 8-4 win over the Durham Bulls on Friday night at Harbor Park.

Norfolk opened up an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on an RBI hit from third baseman Tyler Nevin. After Durham retook the lead with a two-run second inning, the Tides knotted the score once again with a sacrifice fly from catcher Nick Ciuffo in the bottom of the second.

Tides starter Kyle Bradish (5.0IP, 6H, 4R, 3BB, 6K), making his eighth Triple-A start and fifth at Harbor Park, struck out the side in the first inning en route to picking up his second win. He finished his outing with six punchouts, exiting the game after throwing a 1-2-3 fifth inning.

Durham took a 4-2 lead in the fourth inning, highlighted by an RBI double from catcher Joseph Odom. Entering the bottom half of the frame with the Tides down by two, center fielder Zach Jarrett ripped a one-out double. With first baseman J.C. Escarra at bat, Jarrett then broke for third base. An errant throw from Odom behind the plate skipped into left field and allowed Jarrett to sprint home with Norfolk's third run.

The Tides weren't done testing the Durham defense. Escarra singled and promptly stole second, taking third on an error from Bulls shortstop Tristan Gray and coming around to score on a wild pitch. A seemingly innocuous two-out walk to Wilkerson proved costly as well, as he moved to second base on the wild pitch and scored on an RBI single from shortstop Mason McCoy.

Wilkerson added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth, launching a two-run home run to center field. The 29-year-old utility man, outrighted to Norfolk on July 3 after playing most of the year with Baltimore, is hitting .354 in 14 total games with the Tides this season.

Norfolk reliever Konner Wade (2.0IP, 1H, 0R, 1BB, 2K) silenced the Durham bats for three innings, allowing just two baserunners. The Tides later tacked on two more runs in the seventh on a Ciuffo base hit and a groundout from McCoy.

Right-hander Dusten Knight (1.0IP, 0H, 0BB, 1K) continued an extremely impressive season out of the Tides bullpen, slamming the door in the ninth inning for the win and lowering his ERA to 0.95 (19.0IP, 2ER) in the process.

Jarrett, Escarra, designated hitter Jahmai Jones and second baseman Rylan Bannon each stole a base, while McCoy swiped two bags. The Tides also took advantage of a rare night of Durham fielding miscues: The Bulls, who entered the game tied for the third-best fielding percentage in all of Triple-A baseball (.985), committed a season-high four errors on Friday evening.

Saturday night's game will feature a pair of highly-touted pitching prospects, as Kevin Smith - Baltimore's No. 15 prospect - will face off against Durham's Luis Patiño, the No. 2 prospect in the Tampa Bay organization and No. 17 prospect in all of Minor League Baseball. First pitch at Harbor Park is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

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International League Stories from July 9, 2021


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