Biloxi Bested Because of Four-RBI Night by Jimenez

Two swings of the bat by Eloy Jimenz were the difference as the Biloxi Shuckers (14-9) fell to the Birmingham Barons (11-12) 4-2 on Saturday night at Regions Field.
Birmingham got to Shuckers starter RHP Wuilder Rodriguez (L, 0-1) in the first inning. Tito Polo tripled to the left field gap, and following a walk to Zack Collins, scored on a fielder's choice by Jimenez. Rodriguez would dance out of a jam in the second with the help of his defense, getting a lineout from Keon Barnum with runners on first and second that turned into a double play. The righty induced a fly ball from Danny Mendick to end the inning.
In the third, Polo started the frame with a bunt single and advanced to second on a throwing error. Collins singled to right field, putting men on the corners for Jimenez. The right fielder worked a 3-1 count against Rodriguez before hitting a home run to centerfield, his third of the season, giving the Barons a 4-0 lead.
Biloxi answered with a pair of runs in the fifth. Jake Hager rolled a one-out single to left, and the Shuckers loaded the bases on a pair of walks to Clint Coulter and Wendell Rijo. Following a strikeout of Corey Ray, Troy Stokes Jr. smacked a hard-hopping ball towards Barons third baseman Matt Rose that bounded off the lip of the grass and ricocheted off his glove, allowing two runs to score and halving the deficit to 4-2. Birmingham starter RHP Jordan Stephens (W, 1-0) forced a fly out in foul ground from Lucas Erceg, ending the Shuckers threat. 
The Shuckers best opportunity to tie the game came in the seventh inning. With two outs, Ray doubled over the head of the centerfielder Polo, and Stokes Jr. walked to put men on first and second. Erceg roped a ball the opposite way to left, but Jameson Fisher chased it down as he bounced into the wall, retiring the side and stranding a pair. Barons reliever RHP Ian Hamilton (S, 4) shutdown the Shuckers in the eighth and ninth, retiring the all six batters that he faced.
Shuckers lefty Nick Ramirez kept the score close with a stellar outing. After a leadoff walk in the sixth, Ramirez struck out the next six batters in order, and forced a groundout from Collins to close out his night. Josh Uhen finished off the eighth with a strikeout of Jiminez and a bounce out from Seby Zavala.
Game four of a five-game series is on Sunday afternoon at 3:00 pm CT. Biloxi will send RHP Zack Brown (1-1, 5.14) to the bump against Barons LHP Jordan Guerrero (1-1, 7.20). The game can be heard locally on Cruisin' WGCM AM 1240/FM 100.9, on TuneIn Radio or the MiLB First Pitch App.  
Single game tickets for the Biloxi Shuckers 2018 season are on sale now and can be purchased at the MGM Park box office or over the phone through Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Season tickets, flex plans and group outings are also available and can be reserved by calling 228-233-3465 or visiting www.biloxishuckers.com.
ABOUT THE BILOXI SHUCKERS:
The Biloxi Shuckers are the Double-A Affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. The Shuckers play at MGM Park in Biloxi, Mississippi. For more information please visit biloxishuckers.com and follow us on Twitter @biloxishuckers and at facebook.com/biloxishuckers.com.