Late Homer Sinks Stripers in Finale vs. Indianapolis
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – The Gwinnett Stripers (33-33) rallied back from a 3-0 deficit to tie the game in the seventh inning, but Travis Swaggerty's two-run home run in the eighth lifted the Indianapolis Indians (32-32) to a 5-3 win on Sunday afternoon at Coolray Field. Decisive Plays: Rodolfo Castro's three-run
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – The Gwinnett Stripers (33-33) rallied back from a 3-0 deficit to tie the game in the seventh inning, but Travis Swaggerty's two-run home run in the eighth lifted the Indianapolis Indians (32-32) to a 5-3 win on Sunday afternoon at Coolray Field.
Decisive Plays: Rodolfo Castro's three-run homer (5) off Kyle Muller staked Indianapolis to a 3-0 lead in the first inning, but Muller recovered to retire the next 19 batters in a row. An RBI single by Drew Waters and RBI groundout by Preston Tucker cut the deficit to 3-2 in the third, and Tucker's two-out RBI single scoring Delino DeShields Jr. tied the game at 3-3 in the seventh. In the eighth, Brad Brach (L, 3-1) served up Swaggerty's two-run clout (5) to right field, putting the Indians ahead for good.
Key Contributors: Muller struck out eight and yielded just three runs over 6.2 innings for a quality start in a no-decision. Waters finished 3-for-5 with a triple and an RBI, while Tucker went 1-for-5 with two RBIs. Castro and Swaggerty combined to drive in all five runs for Indianapolis. Indians' reliever Miguel Yajure (W, 1-1) allowed one run on four hits over 3.1 innings.
Noteworthy: Muller has logged four straight quality starts, going 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA, .179 BAA, and 36 strikeouts over 26.2 innings. DeShields has reached safely in nine straight games since June 3, batting .417 (10-for-24, 1 double, 1 homer, 9 runs, 3 RBIs, 5 stolen bases) in that span. Gwinnett has now lost six consecutive series finales (3-8 in finales overall this year).
Next Game (Tuesday, June 21): Gwinnett at Nashville, 8:05 p.m. ET at First Horizon Park. Starting pitchers for the Stripers and Sounds yet to be announced. Radio Broadcast: 7:50 p.m. on MyCountry993.com.
Next Home Game (Monday, July 4): Gwinnett vs. Charlotte, 7:05 p.m. at Coolray Field. Radio Broadcast: 6:50 p.m. on MyCountry993.com. Join the Stripers for Independence Day, featuring a special pregame BBQ (purchase online at GoStripers.com) and a patriotic Fireworks Extravaganza after the game. Stripers players and coaches will wear specialty Patriotic Jerseys, which will be available for purchase in an online auction at GoStripers.com.