Stripers Ride Nine-Run Sixth to 12-5 Rout in Nashville

Nick Solak’s grand slam caps giant frame as Gwinnett evens series at 1-1

Eli White blasted his fourth leadoff homer already this year, part of a 3-for-4 effort on Wednesday in Nashville. (Josh Conner)

By Dave Lezotte (@davelezotte)

May 10, 2023

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Gwinnett Stripers (13-21) snapped a 3-3 tie with their largest scoring inning of the year, plating nine runs in the sixth to hand the Nashville Sounds (18-16) a 12-5 loss on Wednesday night at First Horizon Park. Nick Solak’s grand slam capped the six-hit sixth inning,

Decisive Plays: Eli White led off the game with a solo home run (6) 435 feet to center field on the first pitch from Nashville starter Janson Junk (L, 2-2). Two innings later, White singled and scored on a two-out double by Vaughn Grissom to give Gwinnett a 2-0 lead. The Sounds responded with three runs in the bottom of the third to go up 3-2, but the Stripers tied it up in the fourth on a sacrifice fly by Charlie Culberson. In the sixth, RBI singles by Joe Hudson, Culberson, and White established a 6-3 lead. Forrest Wall’s bases-loaded walk and a catcher’s interference error plated two more runs, and Solak’s 406-foot grand slam (4) to left-center broke the game open at 12-3.

Key Contributors: Solak tallied a game-high four RBIs, going 1-for-5 with the homer. White (3-for-4, homer, 3 runs, 2 RBIs), Grissom (1-for-4, double, run, 2 RBIs), and Culberson (1-for-4, 2 RBIs) also had multi-RBI efforts. Jared Shuster (W, 2-0) held Nashville to four runs on seven hits and struck out six over 5.2 innings. For the Sounds, Brian Navarreto went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple, and one RBI.

Noteworthy:White now has four leadoff homers in just 14 games this year, already tied for second-most in Gwinnett career history. Solak’s grand slam was the Stripers’ second this season, first since Wall’s on April 12 vs. Memphis. The nine-run sixth was one run shy of matching Gwinnett’s largest scoring inning in history (10 runs in 6th inning on April 17, 2011 at Durham).

Next Game (Thursday, May 11): Gwinnett at Nashville, 7:35 p.m. ET at First Horizon Park. RHP Michael Soroka (0-1, 5.23 ERA) for the Stripers vs. TBD for the Sounds. Broadcast: 7:20 p.m. on MyCountry993.com and the Bally Live app.

Next Home Game (Tuesday, May 23): Gwinnett vs. Durham, 7:05 p.m. ET at Coolray Field. Broadcast: 6:50 p.m. on MyCountry993.com and the Bally Live app. It’s Family Value Tuesday, presented by Coolray Heating & Cooling, with hot dogs for $2 and desserts for $1.