Walk This Way - Shuckers Draw 16 Walks In 14-6 Rout of Barons

A historic top of the 6th inning in which the Biloxi Shuckers (1-2) drew 13 walks against the Birmingham Barons (2-1) propelled Biloxi to a 14-6 victory on Thursday night at Regions Field. The Shuckers drew a total of 16 walks, the most in a single game in franchise history.

Trailing 2-1 going to the sixth, Ryan Aguilar and Gabriel Garcia drew back-to-back walks against RHP Alec Hansen (L, 0-1). Hansen was able to strikeout Cam Devanney on a 3-2 pitch, but Jesus Lujano and Tristen Lutz followed with a pair of free passes to tie the game at 2-2. Brice Turang then connected for the lone hit of the inning, a single to right that scored two, putting the Shuckers up 4-2. After an Alexander Palma sacrifice fly, the next six consecutive Shuckers drew walks from a combination of RHP Luis Ledo and LHP Anderson Severino. Lutz was hit by a pitch before the next three hitters drew consecutive walks, pushing the Shuckers in front 14-2 in the 12-run frame.

On the mound, RHP Bowden Francis (W, 1-0) didn’t allow a hit through his first three frames and carried a 1-0 lead to the fourth thanks to an RBI single by Devanney in the top of the second inning. Birmingham touched the Shuckers’ starter for two runs on a solo home run and an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth, but Francis struck out the side and faced the minimum in the fifth en route to his first win of the season.

RHP Robbie Hitt, LHP Nathan Kirby and RHP Jake Cousins all made their Double-A debuts for the Shuckers out of the bullpen, with Kirby and Cousins each tossing a scoreless frame. It was the first time on the mound for Kirby since September 3, 2018 with the Carolina Mudcats.

In game four of their six-game series, the Shuckers are scheduled to send LHP Ethan Small (NR) to the mound for his Double-A debut on Friday night. He’ll be opposed by Barons RHP Emilio Vargas. The game can be heard locally in Biloxi on Cruisin’ WGCM AM 1240/100.9 FM, online here or on the MiLB app.

Biloxi opens up their 2021 home schedule on May 11 at 6:35 pm against the Mississippi Braves at MGM Park. Individual tickets are on sale now and promotions for May can be found here. Full Shuck Nation Membershipsand Half Shell Shuck Nation Memberships, flex plans and group outings are available by calling 228-233-3465 and selecting Option 3.

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 and are members of the Double-A South. For more information, please visit biloxishuckers.comand follow us on Twitter @biloxishuckers and at facebook.com/biloxishuckers.