Tomshaw Goes the Distance in 8-1 Win

Matt Tomshaw  (W, 1-3) dominated on the mound, working a three-hit complete game while a three-run Zack Collins  homer capped the day's scoring as the Birmingham Barons (26-29) defeated the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (22-32) 8-1 on Sunday at Regions Field.

• He Said It: "It's always a great feeling to be able to finish what you started," Tomshaw said after throwing his fourth career complete game. "When you walk into the dugout after the eighth inning and your manager asks how you feel, you say 'I want to go back out.'"
• By the Numbers: Tomshaw retired nine consecutive batters to start the evening against his former club, racking up a season-high eight strikeouts and walking none to earn the win. The Birmingham starter gave up just one run on three hits. The feat marks the first nine-inning complete game thrown by a Birmingham starter this season and the first complete game since Ian Clarkin  worked seven-inning doubleheader opener on April 15.
• Quotable: "It felt weird seeing Jacksonville jerseys in the other dugout," Tomshaw said after dealing a complete game against his former teammates. "Being in the locker room for the last year with those guys, you want to root for them, but being on the other side you want to get them out. As soon as you toe the rubber, that's it. You don't think about anything but that pitch."
• Moments That Mattered: After two and a half innings of hitless baseball, the Barons' bats heated up as Bryant Flete and Tito Polo singled to put runners on first and second. Danny Medick kept the hits coming with a single on the next at bat to plate Flete, while a sacrifice fly from Collins gave Birmingham a 2-0 lead.
• Turning Point: With Jacksonville cutting the Birmingham lead to just one run in the top of the fourth, the Barons extended its lead to 5-1 with three more runs in the bottom of the frame capped by a two-run single from Polo. Collins' 414-foot, three-run bomb sealed the deal as the Barons cruised to the 8-1 win.
• Facts and Figures: Eloy Jiménez  extended his hitting streak to 13 straight games with a single in the fifth inning. Two games shy of tying his current Southern League long 15-game streak, Jimenez is batting .404 (21-for-52). Collins finished 2-for-3 with four RBIs, while Polo went 3-for-3 with a pair of RBIs.
• Up Next: The Barons and Jumbo Shrimp will face off again in the second game of the series on Monday with first pitch slated for 7:05 p.m. Right-hander Dane Dunning  (3-1, 3.03 ERA) will toe the rubber against righty counterpart Nick Neidert (5-3, 3.27 ERA). Curt Bloom will have the call on 960 WERC News Radio and the iHeart Radio app.