JACKSON, TENN. - Sunday afternoon's series finale between the Jackson Generals and Birmingham Barons played out like a wrestling match between cartoon characters, careening through a corridor, spiraling down a stairwell, and finally coming to a rest in the shadow of the scoreboard at The Ballpark at Jackson.
JACKSON, TENN. - Sunday afternoon's series finale between the Jackson Generals and Birmingham Barons played out like a wrestling match between cartoon characters, careening through a corridor, spiraling down a stairwell, and finally coming to a rest in the shadow of the scoreboard at The Ballpark at Jackson.
The Barons finished with the upper hand, landing the deciding blow with a two-run homer from Birmingham's Tito Polo in the top of the eighth inning of a 7-5 Barons win. The loss keeps the Generals in second place in the Southern League's North Division, marking the fourth time this season that Jackson has been unable to win the rubber game in a series.
The opening acts on the mound from Jackson's Jon Duplantier and Birmingham's Ian Clarkin proved to be only preludes to the drama that followed their departures. With an off day looming, the Generals made use of seven different pitchers, three of whom were unable to record outs in their appearances. Even so, the Generals were tied after seven frames when Yuhei Nakaushiro entered to pitch the eighth. Nakaushiro put two men on base before being pulled in place of Gabe Speier, who induced a seemingly miraculous double-play on a popped-up bunt by Birmingham's Casey Schroeder. Bad luck bit the Generals at the wrong moment, as Polo, hitting with two out and a man on, lifted a two-strike offering from Speier far enough down the left field line to carry just beyond the fence. The home run--the first allowed by Speier this year, and the first hit by Polo as well--put the Barons up by two with only two at-bats left for the Generals. That made for tough sledding for Shelley Duncan's offense, which wasn't able to piece together enough of a rally to win.
Held to seven hits overall, the Generals offense collected only two hits in the final three innings, though they were timely. Down by two in the seventh, Juniel Querecuto served a two-out, two-strike, two-run single into left field, tying the game at 5-5 against Birmingham right-hander Ryan Burr. The Generals got the bases loaded in the eighth with three walks from the Barons, but Galli Cribbs Jr. bounced out to first base for the inning's third out. Jackson brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth after a two-out single from Domingo Leyba, but Jamie Westbrook struck out to close the book on the series. The Generals left eight men on base in all, including six across the final three frames. The Generals are now 11-14 in May, at risk of finishing the month below .500 with three games left.
TOP PERFORMERS - Generals
RHP Sam Lewis - 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
1B Josh Prince - 2-3, R, RBI, BB, 2B
RHP Bud Jeter - 1.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
RF Jose Vinicio - 1-3, R, RBI; 2 diving catches in right field
TOP PERFORMERS - Birmingham
RHP Ian Hamilton (S, 8) - 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R1 BB, 1 K
CF Tito Polo - 2-4, R, 3 RBI, HR
2B Bryant Flete - 2-3, 2 RBI, BB
LF Eloy Jiménez - 2-4, R, RBI, 2B
NEXT GENERALS GAME:
6:35pm CT Tuesday (5/29) vs. Montgomery Biscuits
Riverwalk Stadium - Montgomery, Ala.
RHP Justin Donatella (2-2, 3.35 ERA) vs. RHP J.D. Martin (3-6, 4.02 ERA)
UPCOMING GENERALS HOMESTANDS:
June 3-7 vs. Tennessee Smokies
June 21-26 vs. Pensacola Blue Wahoos
…featuring Sarge's Carnival Weekend (June 22-23)!
Dial 731-988-5299 for tickets to see Jackson Generals Baseball, OR
log on to JacksonGeneralsBaseball.com!
