Gonzalez burns Biscuits with game-winning RBI double

JACKSON, Tenn. - The Jackson Generals, the Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks, played one of their tightest games of the year on Friday at The Ballpark at Jackson, snatching a 2-0 victory from the Montgomery Biscuits.

The win for the Generals (65-58) brings the present series even at 2-2, setting up a rubber game on Saturday with Montgomery (69-55).
Jon Duplantier worked his magic in the early innings, stranding seven Montgomery runners on base with the help of some outstanding defensive plays. After coming off the disabled list earlier in the afternoon, center fielder Ben DeLuzio made a lunging grab to rob Nick Solak of a base hit to record the game's first out. With the bases loaded, left fielder Kevin Medrano caught a fly ball from Brett Sullivan, and he rifled it home to nail Nathan Lukes at home plate, ending the first inning with a double play and his second career outfield assist.
In the second inning, Duplantier loaded the bases again with one out by allowing a double and two walks, but the defense came to his aid once more. Marty Herum dove headlong to his left and snared a frozen rope at third base to retire Lukes for the second out of the inning, and a grounder to the right side ended the frame with the game still scoreless. Duplantier helped his own cause in the third, getting the second out of the inning by snagging a hip-high rocket off the bat of Brett Sullivan to his glove side. Duplantier was his own advocate again in the fourth, picking off Thomas Milone at first base after issuing a lead-off walk.
With one out and a man on in the fifth, Tyler Mark (2-0, 2.45 ERA) took Duplantier's place, giving up a single to put two men on before collecting consecutive strikeouts to end the inning. Mark's 1-2-3 sixth inning featured another great catch by DeLuzio, and passed the baton to Michael Blazek for the seventh. The 29-year-old Blazek pitched a scoreless frame and in turn gave the wheel to Kevin Ginkel (S, 2) who stifled the Biscuits across four batters in the eighth.
The ninth was a challenge, with Ginkel putting the potential game-tying run at second by loading the bases. However, the 24-year-old right-hander found a way through the maze, helped by another outstanding diving grab by DeLuzio, a strikeout of Michael Brosseau and a game-ending groundout by Sullivan. In total, the Generals staff left 14 Montgomery runners stranded, striking out ten in the contest.
The Jackson offense came all at once in the fourth inning. After collecting the first two outs, Montgomery starter Benton Moss (6-5, 3.14 ERA) allowed a pair of singles to Rudy Flores and Josh Prince, bringing Jay Gonzalez to the plate. The Jackson right-fielder lasered a double off the top of the right-field wall, scoring the Generals' only two runs of the evening. Gonzalez finished 2-for-4 with the game's only RBI hit, while Herum went 2-for-4 to extend his league-best hitting streak to 18 games.  
NEXT GENERALS GAME:
6:05 pm CT Saturday (8/18) vs. Montgomery Biscuits
The Ballpark at Jackson - Jackson, Tenn.
RHP Barry Enright (1-1, 5.29 ERA) vs. RHP J.D. Martin (7-9, 4.34 ERA)
Broadcast Link: Jackson Generals Baseball Network
UP AND COMING AT THE BALLPARK:
August 14-18 vs. Montgomery Biscuits (AA, Tampa Bay Rays)
…featuring Shark Week Night (August 18)!
August 30-September 3 vs. Chattanooga Lookouts (AA, Minnesota Twins)
…featuring SEC Night (September 1)!
PLAYOFFS:
In 2018, manager Shelley Duncan and the Generals won the First Half North Division title, assuring them of a bid to the Southern League playoffs in September. Games 1 and 2 of the North Division Series will be held at The Ballpark at Jackson on September 5 and 6. For tickets and more information about the Generals, dial 731.988.5299
or log on to our ticket page at JacksonGeneralsBaseball.com!
The Jackson Generals, a West Tennessee franchise since 1998, are the Double-A minor league affiliate of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2017, The Ballpark at Jackson was named the Professional Sports Field of the Year by the Tennessee Turfgrass Association.