Greg Ross allowed 6 unearned 1st inning runs, leading to Danville losing their playoff series, Ed Lucas hit a pair of homers that were the difference in Mississippi's win, and seldom used catchers Ryan Query and Ryan Delgado had big days.
Gwinnett Braves - Suspended 2nd Inning
The G-Braves game in Charlotte was suspended in the middle of the second inning due to rain. Durham won their game, which won them the South Divisoin title. Lehigh Valley also won their game, which gave them a half game lead over Gwinnett in the wild card. Saturday evening, Gwinnett and Charlotte will resume the suspended game, and then follow it with a 7 inning game.
Mississippi Braves 7, Carolina Mudcats 2
- Myke Jones CF 2-4, 2 2B, BB, .261 AVG
- Ed Lucas SS 2-5, 2 HR (5, 6), 4 RBI, .267 AVG
- Ernesto Mejia 1B 1-4, HR (23), RBI, .294 AVG
- Donell Linares 3B 2-5, 2B, .275 AVG
- Zeke Spruill 6 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, 6 H, 2 BB, 3 K, 3.20 ERA
- Yeliar Castro 1.2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 3 K, W (2), 3.38 ERA
- Benino Pruneda 1.1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K, 3.55 ERA
Ed Lucas crushed out a pair of home runs, giving him 3 homers in the last 2 games. His first homer tonight was a 3 run shot that broke a 2-2 tie. In his last 4 games he's gone 6-17 with 3 homers and 7 RBI. Ernesto Mejia also homered, and it was his 143rd hit of the year, tying as Mississippi team record. His 23 homers and 92 RBI are also single season Mississippi record. Myke Jones continued his hot streak, rapping out 2 doubles and working a walk. In his last 5 games he's gone 6-20 with 4 doubles, 5 walks, and 2 stolen bases. Zeke Spruill had another solid start, allowing 2 runs, 1 earned, over 6 innings. In his last 3 starts, he has a 1.23 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP. He put together a fine season, with a 10-11 record, a 3.19 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP, 6 complete games, and 1 shutout in 174.2 innings between Lynchburg and Mississippi.
Luis Avilan will take the mound Saturday as the M-Braves look for their fifth straight win.
Lynchburg Hillcats 3, Potomac Nationals 7
- Andrelton Simmons SS 2-4, .305 AVG
- Ryan Query DH 2-3, 3B, 2 RBI, BB, .308 AVG
- Caleb Brewer 5.2 IP, 4 R, 3 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 4 K, 5.14 ERA
- Ryan Buchter 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K, 3.76 ERA
Andrelton Simmons had a pair of singles, and with 3 games left in the season, he's got the batting title locked up, with a .305 average because Wilmington's Carlo Testa is a distant second with a .287 average. Ryan Query had 2 hits, including a triple, and the 24 year old catcher has peformed well in limited, sporadic duty this year, hitting .291 with a .881 OPS, 9 doubles, 2 homers, and 17 RBI in 86 at bats between Danville, Rome, Lynchburg, and Mississippi. Caleb Brewer had another tough start, allowing 4 runs, 3 earned, in 5.2 innings. Despite being a South Atlantic League All-Star, is wasn't a statistically impressive year for the 22 year old righty, with a 6-11 record, a 5.29 ERA, a 1.47 WHIP, 5.3 BB/9, and 1.3 BB/9 in 151.1 innings between Rome and Lynchburg.
Gary Moran will take the mound Saturday night as the Hillcats start their final series of the season.
Rome Braves 4, Augusta GreenJackets 7
- Ryan Delgado DH 2-4, 2B, 3B, 3 RBI, .266 AVG
- Dan Jurik 4.1 IP, 4 R, 3 ER, 8 H, 3 BB, 4 K, 4.20 ERA
- Jarrett Miller 2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 3 K, 4.30 ERA
Ryan Delgado doubled, tripled, and drove in 3 runs, continuing a hot stretch that's seen him go 5-12 with 2 doubles, a triple, a homer, and 6 RBI in his last 3 games. Since August 1st, the 23 year old catcher is hitting .309 with a 945 OPS, 3 doubles, 2 triples, 2 homers, and 11 RBI. Dan Jurik's last 2 games have been rough, as he's allowed 8 earned runs in 11 innings. The 24 year old righty finishes the year with a 2-3 record, a 3.69 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP between Danville, Rome, and Lynchburg. Jarrett Miller racked up 3 more strikeouts in 2 scoreless innings, and for the year he has 54 strikeouts in 35 innings between Danville and Rome, a 13.9 K/9 rate.
Willie Kempf will make his final start of the season tomorrow night.
Danville Braves 1, Johnson City Cardinals 10
- Kyle Kubitza DH 3-4, 2 2B
- Brandon Drury 3B 0-4
- William Beckwith 1B 2-4, HR, RBI
- Greg Ross 0.2 IP, 6 R, 0 ER, 6 H, 0 BB, 0 K
Errors by William Beckwith and Greg Ross led to 6 unearned 1st inning runs that led to Danville's elmination from teh Appy League Playoffs. Ross didn't make it out of the 1st and Danville's offense never go going, with the team's only run coming off a 7th inning homer by Beckwith. Even Brandon Drury, who had hit in 20 straight games, was held hitless.