Gwinnett 4, Charlotte 0
Terance Marin lasted five innings in his fourth start of the season, giving up three runs on six hits with two strikeouts. Blake Smith did an excellent job in relief, firing two scoreless innings, giving up two hits while striking out three. It was not a good day at the plate for the Knights, as they were only able to get one hit off Braves starter Williams Perez, who threw a complete game shutout with seven strikeouts. Leury Garcia had the lone hit on the night, going 1 for 3.
The Knights take on the Braves in game two of three tomorrow night, as Chris Beck is set to make the start.
Birmingham 5, Montgomery 2
Carson Fulmer turned in his third quality start in a row, going six innings while giving up two runs on five hits. He struck out seven and issued just two free passes. Matt Lollis did an excellent job following Fulmer, firing two scoreless innings without surrendering a hit and striking out one. Peter Tago earned his second save of the season, throwing a scoreless ninth, giving up no hits and striking out two. It was a nice night offensively for the Barons, as Eudy Pina was a major contributor, going 2 for 5 while hitting his first home run of the season. Jake Peter also had a excellent night, going 3 for 5 and raising his average to .302/.333/.427 on the year. Other standouts at the plate were Eddy Alvarez, who went 1 for 5 with two RBIs, and Jeremy Dowdy and Keenyn Walker, who each went 2 for 4 with one RBI a piece.
Birmingham looks to even the series with the Biscuits tomorrow night, as southpaw David Holmberg will make the start.
Salem 9, Winston-Salem 0
Matt Cooper had another quality start for the Dash, lasting six innings while giving up three runs on four hits with six strikeouts. That is Cooper’s third quality start in a row, as he now has a 3.71 ERA on the season. The bullpen struggled in relief of Cooper, giving up six runs in three innings. Offensively, the Dash only had two hits, as the Red Sox used three pitchers to complete the shutout. Gerson Montilla and Nick Basto both went 1 for 3 with a single on the night.
The Dash return to action tomorrow night, as they will play a double header against the Red Sox. Thaddius Lowry is set to make his sixth start of the season in game one, while Jordan Stephens will look to win his first game of the season in game two of the double header.
Kannapolis 5, Hagerstown 3
Zach Thompson was outstanding in his start, hurling six scoreless innings while giving up just one hit and striking out five. He earned his second win of the season and lowered his ERA to 3.99. Corey Zangari was a force at the plate, going 1 for 5 while blasting his sixth home run of the season, a three run shot in the bottom of the first. Lead off man Tyler Sullivan went 2 for 3 with a walk and a run scored, and defensive wiz Cleulius Rondon went 3 for 3 with a walk and a run scored as well. Known as the best defensive player in the White Sox farm system, Rondon’s achilles heel has always been his hitting. Since being demoted from Winston-Salem last month, Rondon is now hitting a respectable .265/.316/.412 in ten games for the Intimidators. Johan Cruz and Dante Flores also contributed, both going 1 for 4 with a run scored.
Kannapolis begins a four game series with the Lakewood BlueClaws tomorrow night, as southpaw Tanner Banks will make the start. Banks will look to stay hot and remain unbeaten on the young season, as he is going for his sixth win.
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