Strong pitching from White Sox No. 23 prospect Kade McClure and reliever Zach Muckenhirn helped the Birmingham Barons erase a 3-0 deficit against the Tennessee Smokies on Tuesday night. Despite McClure and Muckenhirn’s steady pitching, Tennessee would ultimately outscore Birmingham 3-1 over the final three innings to secure a 6-4 victory in the first game of the series at Regions Field.
McClure got off to an ugly start, allowing a two-run homer in the first inning to put the Smokies ahead 2-0. However, over the next four innings, McClure would only allow one more run on three hits, while striking out three batters.
Zack Muckenhirn would follow McClure’s effort by allowing one run on two hits across the sixth and seventh frames. The duo of Muckenhirn and McClure would pitch four consecutive shutout innings, giving the Barons’ offense a chance to rally after failing to record a hit over the initial three.
With Birmingham trailing 3-0 in the fourth, Zack Granite, Romy Gonzalez, and Jameson Fisher would each record hits to cut the Smokies’ lead to 3-2. An RBI single by Carlos Perez would tie the score in the sixth, giving the Barons some momentum heading into the final three innings of the ball game.
Unfortunately, though, this momentum would come to a screeching halt in the eighth, when Barons right-hander Alec Hansen was called upon to take the mound. In only one inning of pitching, Hansen would load the bases, walk three consecutive batters, and then strike out three consecutive batters.
Birmingham had one final chance to rally in the bottom of the ninth inning. Barons’ second baseman JJ Muno singled home an RBI to cut the deficit to 6-4. Representing the winning run, Zack Granite struck out to end the ballgame.
Despite seven different Barons recording a hit, the team struggled to find an offensive rhythm throughout the night. The lone Baron to record more than one hit was Carlos Perez, who finished the game 2-for-4 with an RBI.
With the loss, the Barons fall to 16-9. They look to bounce back on Wednesday at 7:05 P.M. CT for another tilt against the Smokies.
Photo credit: Caleb Probst/FutureSox
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