Smith-Shawver Strikes Out 11, but Stripers Fall 6-2 to Sounds

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – AJ Smith-Shawver carved up Nashville batters for most of the night on Saturday as he struck out 11 over 7.0 innings, but a grand slam by Wes Clarke in the fourth gave the Sounds (34-26) a 6-2 victory over the Gwinnett Stripers (33-29) at First Horizon Park.

Decisive Plays: Nacho Alvarez Jr. ripped a one-out triple and scored on a two-run home run by Drake Baldwin (11) to right field as the Stripers opened up a 2-0 lead in the first inning. That lead held until the fourth, when Smith-Shawver (L, 2-6) encountered his first rough spot of the night. Two walks and a single loaded the bases, and Clarke hammered a grand slam to left field to put Nashville up 4-2. Smith-Shawver held the Sounds off the board over the next three innings, but Gwinnett never scored again. Two runs off Huascar Ynoa in the eighth made it a 6-2 final.

Key Contributors: Smith-Shawver tied his career high for innings and fell one strikeout shy of his career high (7.0 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 11 SO). Alvarez (1-for-4, triple, run), Baldwin (1-for-4, homer, 2 RBIs), and Luis Liberato (1-for-3, double) had the Stripers’ three hits. For Nashville, Easton McGee (W, 2-2), Shane Smith (H, 1), and Ryan Middendorf combined on 5.0 scoreless innings in relief and Clarke (2-for-4, homer, 4 RBIs) drove in the decisive runs.

Noteworthy: Smith-Shawver’s 7.0 innings tied his career high set on May 25, 2023 with Gwinnett vs. Durham. His career-high 104 pitches were the most thrown by a Striper this year. He also tied Gwinnett’s single-game strikeout mark for the season, most recently tied by Bryce Elder the night prior (fanned 11 over 6.0 IP in a win on Friday).

Next Game (Sunday, September 8): Gwinnett at Nashville, 3:05 p.m. ET at First Horizon Park. Broadcast: 2:50 p.m. ET on MyCountry993.com. RHP Hurston Waldrep (1-1, 4.50 ERA) for the Stripers opposite RHP Chad Patrick (12-1, 3.24 ERA) for the Sounds.

Next Home Game (Tuesday, September 10): Gwinnett vs. Buffalo, 7:05 p.m. ET at Coolray Field. Broadcast: 6:50 p.m. ET on MyCountry993.com. It's Coolray T-Shirt Tuesday at Coolray Field, as the first 500 fans to the ballpark will receive a T-Shirt shirsey of current Atlanta Braves' third base coach and former Gwinnett manager and player Matt Tuiasosopo.