St. Paul’s Late Homers Lead to Sweep of Stripers

Gwinnett sees 4-0 lead disappear in 6-4 loss, finishes series 0-6

Allan Winans was in top form over 5.0 no-hit innings before rain brought a premature end to his outing. (Ismael Caro)

By Dave Lezotte (@DaveLezotte)

July 3, 2023

St. Paul, MN – The Gwinnett Stripers (33-48) held a 4-0 lead midway through the sixth inning in St. Paul (49-31), but after a one-our rain delay the tide turned in a 6-4 loss to the Saints on Monday night at CHS Field. Gwinnett went 0-6 in the series and

Decisive Plays: Jesus Aguilar gave the Stripers their first lead since Wednesday with a two-run double in the fourth inning, establishing a 2-0 advantage. Braden Shewmake’s two-out seeing-eye single to center scored Joshua Fuentes for a 3-0 lead in the fifth. In the sixth, shortly before a rain delay, Joe Dunand crushed a solo home run (13) to left field to make it 4-0. Unfortunately, St. Paul tied it in the sixth on an RBI single by Trevor Larnach and three-run homer by Kyle Garlick and went up 6-4 on Larnach’s blast in the eighth.

Key Contributors: Allan Winans tossed 5.0 no-hit innings, walked two, and struck out seven before being chased by the rain. Aguilar (2-for-4, double, 2 RBIs), Dunand (2-for-4, double, homer, RBI), and Shewmake (2-for-4, RBI) all had multi-hit games for the Stripers. For St. Paul, both Larnach and Garlick had three RBIs apiece.

Noteworthy: Winans lowered his International League-leading ERA to 2.78 with the scoreless outing. Forrest Wall saw a nine-game hitting streak snapped as he went 0-for-5. Gwinnett has not won on the road since beating Norfolk 16-0 on June 2 at Harbor Park.

Next Home Game (Tuesday, July 4): Gwinnett vs. Omaha, 7:05 p.m. ET at Coolray Field. Broadcast: 6:50 p.m. on MyCountry993.com and Bally Live. It’s an Independence Day celebration at Coolray Field. Watch the Stripers, clad in special Patriotic Jerseys for the occasion, and stick around after the game for a July 4 fireworks extravaganza.

Allan Winans