After winning four of five games versus the Tennessee Smokies in their most recent homestand, the Birmingham Barons hit the road on June 8th and began a stretch of 12 consecutive games away from Regions Field. The team’s first stop was in Montgomery, Alabama, where the Barons would take on the Montgomery Biscuits in a six-game set.
@ Montgomery
In game one, Birmingham stumbled out of the gates falling behind 2-0 after two innings and ultimately losing by a final of 5-2. The Barons’ offense only recorded five hits on the night, while Birmingham pitcher Kade McClure helped ignite Montgomery’s offense by allowing two solo home runs across the first two innings alone.
Game two was more of the same. The Barons struggled on offense once again, only managing three hits in a 4-2 loss that wasn’t as competitive as it may appear. Birmingham trailed 4-0 after eight innings, and didn’t score a run until the ninth inning of the ball game.
Through the first two games of the series, the Barons’ lone bright spot was starting pitcher Konnor Pilkington, who struck out seven batters across five frames in the Barons’ game two loss.
The Barons would finally find a spark on offense in game three of the series, as first baseman Carlos Perez would send three runners home with an RBI double in the first inning to give Birmingham a 3-0 lead over the Biscuits. The lead would be short-lived, though, as Montgomery would outscore Birmingham 13-2 throughout the remainder of the contest to secure a 13-5 victory.
After losing each of the first three games versus the Biscuits, it became clear that Birmingham needed a boost on offense. Thankfully for the Barons, shortstop Romy Gonzalez was ready to answer the bell.
In the first inning of game four, Gonzalez would hammer in a solo home run to help jumpstart the Barons’ offense. White Sox No. 6 prospect Micker Adolfo would follow Romy’s lead, clobbering in a solo home run of his own to give the Barons a 2-0 after one inning.
In the top of the second, Gonzalez would step to the plate once again and bang in a two-run homer to give the Barons a 4-1 lead at the end of two. Birmingham’s offense never looked back, as the Barons would coast to a 9-3 victory over the Biscuits to end their three-game slide.
Birmingham and Montgomery would split the final two games of the series, with the Biscuits winning 5-4 in game five and the Barons winning 14-8 in game six. Romy Gonzalez homered in both of these games, while Birmingham would also record 16 hits in game six of the series, their second-highest mark of the season.
Despite a slow start to the series, there is no question that the Barons had finally found some momentum, winning 2 of 3 games while outscoring Montgomery 27-16 across these contests. In these three games, Romy Gonzalez (5-for-13) and Micker Adolfo (6-for-16) were instrumental in helping Birmingham get back on track, and with another six-game road series coming up, it appeared that the Barons had found their swagger.
@ Mississippi
The Barons’ second series versus the Mississippi Braves kicked off on June 15th at 6:40 P.M. in Pearl, Mississippi. Birmingham would win game one of this series in impressive fashion, recording 11 hits in a 7-0 shutout victory.
Unsurprisingly, Romy Gonzalez and Micker Adolfo each recorded hits to help fuel the Barons’ offense, but Laz Rivera and Ti’Quan Forbes truly carried the offensive load in game one, batting a combined 5-for-8 while recording three RBIs and two home runs.
Kade McClure recorded the victory on the mound for Birmingham, striking out five batters across five innings and only allowing one hit. Relievers Jake Elliott and Zach Muckenhirn would pitch two innings each, combining for five strikeouts and only two hits.
The Barons appeared to be hitting on all cylinders following this beautiful 7-0 victory over the Braves. However, Mississippi would go on to win the final five games of this series, meaning that it has now been almost a full week since the Barons’ last victory.
Game two of this series was a pitching battle, as Birmingham would allow only three hits in a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to the Braves. Barons starter Konnor Pilkington struck out five batters across five innings, while also allowing two earned runs on three hits. Reliever Félix Paulino would strike out five batters and allow no hits or runs throughout the final three innings.
In games three and four of this series, Mississippi would take control, outscoring Birmingham 15-5 across two more victories. However, in game five, the Barons were given a golden opportunity to turn the series around.
Through the first five innings of game five, Barons right hander Jason Bilous would strike out nine batters in five innings, while not allowing a single run or hit. The Braves wouldn’t score their first run until the seventh inning, and in the bottom of the ninth inning, Birmingham and Mississippi were tied 2-2. However, Trey Harris would score on a wild pitch with the bases loaded for the Braves, helping seal a 3-2 victory over the Barons and dropping them to their fourth consecutive loss.
Birmingham had one final chance to record a win in this series on Sunday. With the score tied in the bottom of the ninth inning for the second consecutive night, Braves DH Drew Lugbauer would nail in a walk-off homer off a pitch from Félix Paulino to bury the Barons and send the club to their first five-game losing streak of the season.
Yes, the Barons have now lost five consecutive contests, but three of these five losses were one-run affairs where Birmingham’s offense simply came up short. For instance, in the first four games of this series, Romy Gonzalez hit a combined 0-for-12, while Micker Adolfo hit 3-for-20 in his five appearances. Barons DH Jameson Fisher would also struggle, finishing the series 0-15 at the plate.
At best, Birmingham’s pitching could be classified as shaky in this series. After allowing a combined two runs in games one and two versus Mississippi, the Barons allowed 15 runs across the next two games alone. Blake Battenfield allowed seven earned runs on nine hits in the Barons’ game three loss, while Emilio Vargas allowed five earned runs on four hits in game four.
In total, White Sox No. 6 prospect Micker Adolfo finished this 12-game trip batting 9-for-48. Romy Gonzalez finished 10-for-42, and Jameson Fisher 9-for-51.
Despite the Barons’ recent struggles, the team still stands at the top of the Double-A South North Division with a 23-18 record.
After recording a lousy three wins across this entire 12-game trip, the Barons will look to bounce back on Tuesday versus the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. This game, beginning at 7:05 p.m. at Regions Field, kicks off a 12-game homestand for Birmingham.
Photo credit: Caleb Probst/FutureSox
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