Hurston Waldrep and Jacob Shafer turned in big starts on Sunday, with each one allowing just one run.
Sunday saw a pair of great starts in the system, as Hurston Waldrep allowed just one run over six innings and Jacob Shafer continued his dominance over Low-A with one run over five innings. Jhancarlos Lara also made a start, but his results were more mixed due to some real command struggles in this one.
Nashville Sounds 1, Gwinnett Stripers 0
- Drake Baldwin, DH: 1-4, .297/.412/.479
- Hurston Waldrep, SP: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 3 K, 3.97 ERA
- Allan Winans, RP: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 3.06 ERA
Hurston Waldrep pitched a very strong game, though he ran into a pitchers duel and took the loss after allowing just one run on five hits and three walks over six innings. Waldrep only picked up three strikeouts and nine swing and misses, but racked up 10 ground balls to zero fly outs over his six innings. He also picked off two runners at first base during this outing. He was followed by Allan Winans, who didn’t allow any base runners over two scoreless innings to finish off a combined one run, five hit game by the pair.
The Stripers were not just held off the board by Chad Patrick, but they managed just one Drake Baldwin single as their lone hit. JP Martinez and Alejo Lopez walked and were the only two other Stripers to reach base safely in this game. Nacho Alvarez struck out in both of his plate appearances before being thrown out in the third inning.
Tennessee Smokies 10, Mississippi Braves 3
- Cal Conley, SS: 2-4, R, .246/.309/.318
- Ethan Workinger, LF: 2-4, 3B, R, RBI, .224/.276/.316
- Jhancarlos Lara, SP: 4.1 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, 3.92 ERA
Jhancarlos Lara made the start and it was a tough day for him command wise, struggling to throw strikes to the point that only half of his 88 pitches went for strikes. That caused him to allow four runs (three earned) on four hits and four walks, adding four strikeouts. He was followed by a scoreless inning and two thirds from Jonathan Hughes, before Tennessee ripped this one open. Brooks Wilson gave up two runs in his inning of work, and Trey Riley followed by giving up four runs in just two thirds of an inning. Elison Joseph pitched a scoreless inning and a third with two strikeouts to finish this one off on the pitching side.
The Mississippi offense was led by Cal Conley and Ethan Workinger, who each had two hits, as well as Adam Zebrowski, who reached base three times. Conley was two for four with a run, Workinger was also two for four with a triple, run scored, and run batted in, while Zebrowski was one for two with a double and a pair of walks. Cody Milligan added a pair of RBI in the loss. Among the prospects David McCabe was hitless in four at bats with three strikeouts.
Rome Emperors 4, Hickory Crawdads 3
- Ambioris Tavarez, SS: 2-5, .199/.298/.320
- EJ Exposito, 3B: 2-5, 2B, R, RBI, .238/.311/.417
- Adam Maier, SP: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 5 K, 3.38 ERA
Adam Maier made the start and allowed three runs over five innings, and then the bullpen shut the Crawdads down by not allowing a run over the final four innings. Giomar Diaz pitched two of those scoreless frames, with Samuel Strickland and William Silva each having one inning. Not only did the pen not allow a run, but they didn’t allow a hit in those four innings, and just one walk, giving the Emperors a chance to come back with three runs in the eighth to pick up the win.
This game shouldn’t have been as close as it was, as Rome managed only four runs on their 15 hits and left 15 runners on base as the team went 3-17 with runners in scoring position. Aside from their inability to get runners in, everyone was very productive in this win. Not only did eight starters record hits, but seven of them had two hits and an eighth also reached base with a hit and a walk. Ambioris Tavarez, EJ Exposito, and Kevin Kilpatrick were all among those with two-hit performances, with Exposito, Stephen Paolini, and Justin Janas having doubles. Paolini, Janas, Mac Guscette, and Drew Compton all ended up reaching base three times, as they all drew a walk to go with their two hits.
Augusta GreenJackets 4, Down East Wood Ducks 1
- Luis Guanipa, CF: 1-5, R, SB, .184/.250/.200
- Kade Kern, RF: 2-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI, .199/.274/.300
- Jacob Shafer, SP: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 9 K, 1.35 ERA
This was a dominant performance by Jacob Shafer. The Braves 17th round pick this year allowed one run on three hits and a walk over five innings, striking out nine and recording 17 swing and misses. This continues Shafer’s dominant run after signing and brings his ERA to a minuscule 1.35 over five starts to begin his career. The pen was equally dominant as Hayder Ortiz, Jacob Gomez, and Albert Rivas combined for four scoreless innings of relief, two of them coming from Gomez and Ortiz and Rivas each throwing one inning. Ortiz and Gomez each struck out three and Ortiz punched out one, bringing the combined strikeout total to 16 on the day.
The Augusta offense was led by Kade Kern and Junior Garcia, who each recorded two hits. Kern was two for five with a double, scored a run and batted in a pair, while Garcia was two for five. Austin Machado chipped in with a single and a pair of walks in the win, while Will Verdung singled and walked and Titus Dumitru walked twice to also reach base multiple times. Among the prospects Luis Guanipa was one for five with a stolen base and a run scored.