M-Braves Pitching Staff Combines for Three-Hit Shutout, Splits Doubleheader Against Montgomery

PEARL, MS – The Mississippi Braves (39-40, 6-5) split a doubleheader with the Montgomery Biscuits (42-38, 6-5) on Saturday night at Trustmark Park.

Four M-Braves pitchers combined for a three-hit shutout in game two of the doubleheader in a 3-0 win to earn a split and snap a three-game losing skid. Both clubs had to wait over two hours in between games due to rain.

Game One

The Biscuits won game one 5-2. Both teams combined for four errors, some great defensive plays and some weird hops in what turned out to be a wacky game one.

Cade Bunnell notched his 43rd RBI on a base hit that cashed in a Cal Conley double in the first. In the second, the M-Braves scored another run on two singles and an error to pull within one in 3-2. Conley went 2-for-3 with a double, his 13th double of the season.

Diego Infante hit a two-run homer to give Montgomery extend their lead to 5-2 in the fifth. Tristan Peters robbed Bunnell of a home run with a tremendous leaping grab at the wall in left field in the sixth.

Game Two

In a bullpen game, four M-Braves pitchers combined for a three-hit shutout.

Domingo Gonzalez led off game two of the doubleheader with a brilliant two innings. Gonzalez struck out five batters and improved to a 2.57 ERA this season.

All the M-Braves offense came in the first inning. Justin Dean led off with a single, and Luke Waddell and Bunnell each got on base to load the bases. Tyler Tolve then lined a two-run base hit into left center to make it 2-0. Jesse Franklin V brought in the third run of the inning with a sacrifice fly to deep center field.

Tolve went 2-for-3 with two RBI and has reached base in 23 of his last 24 games. Tolve reached base in 20 straight games from May 24 to July 2, the club’s longest on-base streak this season.

Hayden Harris picked up the win to improve to 2-0, following Gonzalez by retiring six in a row with four strikeouts. Daysbel Hernandez did the exact same thing, retiring six in a row with four strikeouts. Hernandez has yet to allow a run in 15 innings over 12 appearances this season.

Alec Barger earned his fifth save with a scoreless ninth inning.

The series finale is on Sunday at Trustmark Park. RHP Tanner Gordon (4-3, 3.14) will pitch for Mississippi while RHP Cole Wilcox (2-7, 5.32) will start for Montgomery. The first pitch is at 2:05 pm CT, with coverage starting 15 minutes before on 102.1 The Box, MiLB First Pitch App, and Bally Live.