Ureña Dazzles as Rocket City Blanks Smokies
SL Rocket City Trash Pandas

Ureña Dazzles as Rocket City Blanks Smokies

Published on September 2, 2025 under Southern League (SL)
Rocket City Trash Pandas News Release


MADISON, Ala. - The Rocket City Trash Pandas (20-38, 44-82) continued their stretch of dominant pitching on Tuesday, blanking the Knoxville Smokies (28-29, 60-65) in a 1-0, four-hit shutout behind 6.2 scoreless innings from starter Walbert Ureña (W, 5-8).

It marked Rocket City's sixth shutout in their last 10 wins. Over their last 13 games since August 18, the Trash Pandas own a 2.34 ERA, fifth-best in all of Minor League Baseball.

The game's lone run came in the top of the third inning. After Ben Gobbel drew a two-out walk, Oscar Colás ripped an RBI single down the right-field line, scoring Gobbel all the way from first to give Ureña an early 1-0 cushion.

Ureña quickly settled in, inducing grounders early and racking up strikeouts late. Eleven of his first 12 outs came via ground ball or strikeout, and he fanned six of his eight batters over his final three innings-including striking out the side in the fifth and two more in the sixth. He exited in the seventh after a walk, finishing with 6.2 shutout frames on three hits, four walks, and a season-tying eight strikeouts. Seventeen of his 20 outs came via groundout or strikeout. The outing marked his 10th quality start of 2025, tying for the Southern League lead.

Camden Minacci got the final out of the seventh and tossed a scoreless eighth before handing the ball to Kenyon Yovan (S, 1) in the ninth. Yovan worked around a leadoff walk and a Carter Trice single that put runners on the corners with one out. He struck out pinch-hitter Pedro Ramirez and got Ethan Hearn to fly out, locking down his first save of the season.

Ureña continues to climb the Rocket City record books, moving into fourth in franchise history with 122.1 innings pitched. Over his last three starts, the 21-year-old right-hander is 1-0 with a 1.40 ERA, allowing just three earned runs across 19.1 innings while striking out 17.

The Trash Pandas and Smokies meet again on Wednesday night at Covenant Health Park for game two of the six-game series. RHP Joel Hurtado (4-6, 2.97) gets the ball for Rocket City opposite RHP Walker Powell (0-1, 4.50). Fans can watch on Bally Sports Live, MiLB.tv, or listen on Talk Radio WZZN 97.7 HD-2.

The Trash Pandas' final homestand of the season runs September 9-14 at Toyota Field against the Chattanooga Lookouts.

Tickets are available starting at just $8 for general admission and $16 for field-level seats. They can be purchased online at tptix.com. Fans can also purchase tickets in person during regular business hours at the Wicks Family Foundation Box Office or by calling 256-325-1403, option 1. Fans can book their group outings for the 2025 season by visiting trashpandasgroups.com or calling the Group Sales Department directly at (256) 325-1403, option 2.

Check out the Rocket City Trash Pandas Statistics

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Southern League Stories from September 2, 2025


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