Stripers’ Late Rally Sends Hackenberg to First Triple-A Win
NASHVILLE, Tennessee – After seeing early leads slip away the first two nights of the series, the Gwinnett Stripers (32-28) broke a 1-1 tie with a five-run seventh inning and never looked back in a 9-2 victory over the Nashville Sounds (33-25) on Thursday night at First Horizon Park. Atlanta
NASHVILLE, Tennessee – After seeing early leads slip away the first two nights of the series, the Gwinnett Stripers (32-28) broke a 1-1 tie with a five-run seventh inning and never looked back in a 9-2 victory over the Nashville Sounds (33-25) on Thursday night at First Horizon Park. Atlanta Braves’ No. 9 prospect Drue Hackenberg struck out six over 6.0 one-run innings to earn his first career Triple-A win.
Decisive Plays: An RBI single by Harold Ramirez gave Gwinnett a 1-0 lead in the first inning, but Nashville tied the game with an unearned run off Hackenberg (W, 1-0) in the fourth. That 1-1 score held until the seventh, when an RBI fielder’s choice by Luis Liberato put the Stripers back ahead 2-1 against Jacob Misiorowski (L, 0-1). Later in the frame, Nacho Alvarez Jr. laced a liner past first baseman Patrick Dorrian for an error that scored two more runs, and Ramirez ripped a two-run double to the left-center gap to make it 6-1. The Stripers tacked on three in the ninth as Drake Baldwin and Chadwick Tromp each doubled.
Key Contributors: Ramirez (3-for-4, double 3 RBIs) and Tromp (1-for-5, double, 2 RBIs) each had multi-RBI games for Gwinnett, while Alejo Lopez went 2-for-3 with three runs scored to raise his team-best average to .312. Hackenberg delivered his second straight quality start to begin his Triple-A career (6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 5 BB, 6 SO). For Nashville, Wes Clarke went 1-for-2 with a solo homer and starter Mitch White pitched 6.0 one-run innings in a no-decision.
Noteworthy: Gwinnett’s win was its’ first at First Horizon Park since May 13, 2023, ending a nine-game losing streak at the home of the Sounds. Hackenberg has a 0.75 ERA (2 R, 1 ER in 12.0 IP) over his first two starts with the Stripers. Recently-signed Tyler Matzek made his first appearance with the Stripers this season, pitching 1.0 inning (2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 HR, 0 BB, 1 SO). Andrew Velazquez went 1-for-3 to extend his hitting streak to 11 games.
Next Game (Friday, September 6): Gwinnett at Nashville, 7:35 p.m. ET at First Horizon Park. Broadcast: 7:20 p.m. ET on 1077TheBreeze.com. RHP Bryce Elder (9-4, 3.86 ERA) starts for the Stripers opposite RHP Evan McKendry (3-5, 5.42 ERA) of 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.