Donatella slings, swings Generals past Mississippi, 7-3

Pearl, Miss. - The Jackson Generals, the Double-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks, took their Saturday series finale at Mississippi with a 7-3 win over the Braves.

Jackson (43-37) recovered from a no-hit effort last night with eight of their starting nine reaching base, finishing their ten-game road trip with a 4-6 mark. Mississippi (39-40) dropped to 6-4 in the Second Half, though they have won seven of ten meetings with the Generals this year.
Making his first start in almost a month, Justin Donatella (4-1, 3.92 ERA) seemed very much at home under the Trustmark Park lights. The right-hander stranded a pair of one-out singles in the first inning, retiring five men in a row before opposing pitcher Kyle Muller (5-5, 3.49 ERA) reached base on an infield error in the third. That miscue gave Mississippi a handful of unexpected opportunities, and the M-Braves capitalized quickly, using two RBI singles and an RBI groundout to take a 3-1 lead after three innings. Donatella zipped through the fourth inning and stranded three men on base in the fifth, retiring the last five men he faced to complete the sixth inning.
In 77 pitches, Donatella did not allow an extra-base hit, walking one with three punchouts. Relievers Cameron Gann, Miguel Aguilar, and Damien Magnifico each worked run-free frames, with Aguilar and Magnifico both impressing with scoreless appearances for the second night in a row.
After going nine innings without a hit on Friday, Ben DeLuzio led off with a double against Muller on Saturday, and Jamie Westbrook followed with an RBI single for a 1-0 Jackson lead. The bats went silent for the next three innings before surfacing in the fifth, as Ryan Grotjohn, and Justin Donatella came through with consecutive run-scoring hits to take a 4-3 lead.
DeLuzio drove in two men in the seventh with a double that chased Muller from the game, and Daulton Varsho tacked on a final run in the ninth by walking and advancing three bases on a pair of wild pitches. The lanky duo of DeLuzio and Grotjohn combined to go 4-for-8 with three runs scored while driving in four runs, and Westbrook added two hits with an RBI.  
NEXT GENERALS GAME:
6:05 pm CT Sunday (6/30) vs. Montgomery Biscuits
The Ballpark at Jackson - Jackson, Tenn.
RHP Kevin McCanna (3-3, 2.33 ERA) vs. LHP Josh Fleming (5-4, 3.87 ERA)
 
BROADCAST: Jackson Generals Baseball Network
UP AND COMING AT THE BALLPARK:
June 30-July 3 vs. Montgomery Biscuits (AA, Tampa Bay Rays)
…featuring Jackson's Independence Day Celebration (July 3), with a special fireworks night!
 
The Jackson Generals, a West Tennessee franchise since 1998, are the Double-A minor league affiliate of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks. The Generals play at The Ballpark at Jackson, Tennessee's 2017 & 2018 Pro Sports Field of the Year. Purchase your tickets to see the 2018 Southern League champions today by calling 731.988.5299 or visiting JacksonGeneralsBaseball.com!