Flores Tosses Gem as Barons Down Jumbo Shrimp

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Bernardo Flores tossed eight scoreless innings and Zach Thompson sealed the shutout as the Birmingham Barons (6-7) topped the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (5-8) by a 5-0 final Wednesday night at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville.

Flores (W, 1-1), who has made consecutive quality starts since his fog-shortened 2019 debut, needed just 81 pitches to work through eight innings. The left-hander allowed three hits (all singles) and struck out three to earn the win.
Thompson struck out two as part of a shutdown ninth to close out the victory.
TheBaronsstruckfirstintheopeningframewhen Luis González deposited a solo shot to right for his first home run of the season.
Joel Booker continued his hot start to the 2019 campaign with a three-run blast in the fifth. The 25-year-old outfielder collected three base knocks for his seventh multi-hit effort of the season. Booker's .409 clip at the plate leads the Southern League through 13 games.
While Gonzalez and Booker set the tone on the offensive end, Flores continued his impressive display on the mound. The southpaw cruised through the Jumbo Shrimp lineup and tied his career-long outing of eight innings - April 27, 2017 with Kannapolis and May 31, 2018 with Winston-Salem).
Alfredo González put the game out of reach with a ninth-inning RBI-double.
Jumbo Shrimp right-hander Robert Dugger (L, 0-3) suffered the loss.
The Barons and Jumbo Shrimp will continue their five-game series Thursday as Birmingham right-hander Felix Paulino (1-0, 1.54) opposes Jacksonville right-hander Jorge Guzman (0-1, 2.45). First pitch is set for 6:05 p.m. CT.
Coverage of Thursday's game will begin at 5:50 p.m. on WJQX-FM 100.5 with the Coca-Cola Pregame Show.
- BARONS -
The Birmingham Barons are the proud Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. The Barons will open the home portion of their 2019 season, which celebrates the 25th anniversary of Michael Jordan's lone year in baseball, against the Tennessee Smokies at 7:05 p.m. April 10 at Regions Field. For ticket information, game schedule, promotions calendar or additional information about Regions Field, please visit barons.com or call (205) 988-3200.
Southern League Champions: 1906 • 1912 • 1914 • 1928 • 1929 • 1931 • 1958 • 1967 • 1983 • 1987 • 1989 • 1993 • 2002 • 2013
33-Year Double-A Affiliate of the Chicago White Sox