Zavolas And Brown Combine To Blank Wahoos 4-0

Two pitchers combined to throw the fourth shutout of the year as the Biloxi Shuckers (31-51) blanked the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (41-41) 4-0 on Friday night at MGM Park.

A pair of errors by the Blue Wahoos set the stage for the Shuckers to score in the bottom of the first inning. With one out, Garrett Mitchell hit a bouncer to short and Demetrius Sims sailed the throw over the head of the first baseman and into the stands, allowing Mitchell to advance to second on the error. Mitch Longo followed with a routine bouncer to second base that was misplayed, placing runners on the corners with only one out. Alexander Palma lined the first pitch from LHP Jake Eder (L, 3-5) into left field, driving in Mitchell to give the Shuckers 1-0 lead.

On the mound for the Shuckers, RHP Noah Zavolas (W, 3-6) worked around walking the bases loaded in the top of the first inning to keep the Blue Wahoos off the board. Zavolas allowed a lead-off double in the top of the second inning but retired the next eight batters and 13 of the next 15 he faced. Over seven scoreless innings, the righty allowed just five hits and did not walk a batter after the first while striking out seven.

The heart of the order helped the Shuckers add on another run in the bottom of the sixth inning. Mitchell and Longo both singled to left field with one out and Palma sliced a single to the right-field gap, driving in Mitchell for a second time to give the Shuckers a 2-0 lead.

A two-out rally put the game out of reach in the home half of the seventh inning. Ryan Aguilar singled to left and David Hamilton launched a home run that clanged off the right-field foul pole, doubling the Shuckers lead to 4-0.

RHP Zack Brown came in and pitched the final two innings, tossing two perfect frames while striking out three to lock down the shutout for the Shuckers.

With the series even at two games apiece, the Shuckers continue their six-game set against the Blue Wahoos on Saturday night. RHP Carlos Luna (1-1, 2.45) toes the slab for the Shuckers opposite Wahoos’ LHP Will Stewart (4-5, 4.22) for a 6:35 pm first pitch. The game can be heard locally on Cruisin’ WGCM AM 1240/FM 100.9.

Individual tickets are on sale for all 2021 Shuckers home games and promotions for August can be found here. Full Shuck Nation Memberships and 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.