Friday, Game 5 Preview vs Pensacola

June 15, 2024

PENSACOLA BLUE WAHOOS (33-27) AT BIRMINGHAM BARONS (39-22) LHP Cade Gibson (0-0, 0.00) | LHP Noah Schultz (0-0, 0.77)

Game #62 | Saturday – June 15, 2024 | 6:30 pm | Regions Field | Birmingham, AL

MILB.tv | Bally Live | WJQX 100.5 - JOX 2

Upcoming Starters in Series

DATE TIME OPPONENT BARONS STARTERS
Sun, June 16 4:00 pm vs Pensacola LHP Ky Bush (5-2, 1.98) vs LHP Luis Palacios (2-4, 6.00)
Tue, June 18 6:15 pm vs Montgomery (at Rickwood) vs RHP Jaire Iriarte (2-4, 4.02) TBA
Wed, June 19 6:35 pm at Montgomery LHP Tyler Schweitzer (1-0, 1.29) vs TBA
Thu, June 20 6:35 pm at Montgomery LHP Jake Eder (2-3, 4.26) vs TBA
Fri, June 21 6:35 pm at Montgomery RHP Mason Adams (5-3, 2,34) vs TBA
Sat, June 22 6:30 pm at Montgomery LHP Noah Schultz (0-0, 0.77) vs TBA

LAST TIME OUT: The Barons scored six runs in the first three innings as the Birmingham Barons defeated the Pensacola Blue Wahoos 6-3 before 3,835 at Regions Field on Friday night. Winning pitcher Mason Adams (5-3, 2.34) pitched five and two-thirds innings, giving up seven hits, three earned runs, and one walk with five strikeouts, getting his fifth win of the season. The Barons scored first in the game in the bottom of the first inning when Jacob Gonzalez doubled to right field, and Edgar Quero hit a home run to right field. This was the 11th home run of the season for Quero. With a home run, the Barons took a 2-0 lead. In the bottom of the third inning, Terrell Tatum doubled to right field, and Gonzalez singled to right field, and that put runners on the corners. Brooks Baldwin walked to load the bases. Quero grounded out to first base, scoring Tatum. Tim Elko doubled off the center field wall, scoring Gonzalez and Baldwin. Jacob Burke singled and scored Elko, and the Barons led 6-0. In the top of the fifth inning, Cody Morissette homered to right field, and a Paul McIntosh RBI single scored Jakob Marsee, and the Barons lead was cut to 6-3. The Barons bullpen did their job tonight. Relievers Jake Palisch, Andrew Dalquiest, and Eric Adler pitched 3.1 innings, giving up only one walk with two strikeouts in the win. With the win, the series is tied at 2-2 with Pensacola and will play game five of the six-game series at Regions Field on Saturday. LHP Noah Schultz (0-0, 0.77) will take the mound for the Barons.

SOUTHERN LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE MONTH: First baseman Tim Elko batted .337/.382/.535 and led the league in average (.337), hits (34) and total bases (54), while finishing second in RBI (19), slugging percentage (.535) and OPS (.917). He was tied for third in triples (one) and was fourth in home runs (four) and fifth in runs (16). He recorded 11 multi-hit games and hit safely in 22 of 25 games. He began the month with a six-game hitting streak before going on a 14-game streak from May 11-28. Elko, 25, was selected by Chicago (AL) in the 10^th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of the University of Mississippi.

SOUTHERN LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: C Edgar Quero was the Southern League “Player of the Week” for June 3-9, 2024. Quero was 13-of-21 for a .619 average. Quero hit three home runs with five RBIs in that span.

BARONS STARTING PITCHERS: LHP Noah Schultz (0-0, 0.77) signed in the 1^st round of the 2022 draft. The White Sox ended a 21-year span of not taking prep pitchers in the first round by selecting him 26^th overall and signing him away from Vanderbilt for $2.8 million.

LEAGUE LEADERS: Brooks Baldwin leads the Southern League with a .345 average and is second in OBP with a .421 mark. Also, he is first in hits with 77. Edgar Quero is second with 11 home runs and first in RBIs with 46. Tim Elko is third in average at .304, is second in hits with 65, and third in total basis with 99. Wilfred Veras is sixth in home runs with eight. He is 10th in SLG% with .452, tied for sixth in hits with 58, and is seventh in total bases with 94. Mason Adams is fifth in the league with 70 strikeouts and sixth in ERA with a 2.34. Jairo Iriarte (2-4, 4.02) is third in strikeouts with 73, while Ky Bush (5-2, 1.98) is fourth in ERA and tied for sixth in strikeouts with 67 in the Southern League.

PROSPECT RANKINGS: The Barons current active roster features 12 of the White Sox’s Top 30 prospects (according to MLB.com): LHP Noah Shultz (No. 2), RHP Drew Thorpe (No. 3), catcher Edgar Quero (No. 4), infielder Jacob Gonzalez (No. 7), RHP Jairo Iriarte (No. 9), LHP Jake Eder (No. 10), LHP Ky Bush (No. 17), RHP Mason Adams (No. 19), infielder Brooks Baldwin (No. 24), outfielder Wilfred Veras (No. 25), RHP Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa (No. 28), and outfielder Jacob Burke (No.30).