Gwinnett Braves: 5 vs. Norfolk Tides: 4
- Phil Gosselin, 3B: 1-4, E (1, throwing), .452
- Tommy La Stella, 2B: 0-3, BB, .250
- Ernesto Mejia, 1B: 2-3, .325
- Mark Hamilton, DH: 2-2, 2 BB, ..267
- Christian Bethancourt, C: 2-4, .214
- Sean Kazmar, SS: 2-3, 3B (1), K, .333
- Zach Stewart: 5 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 3 K, 1 BB, 5.40 ERA
- Wirfin Obipso: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 3 K, 1 BB, 0.00 ERA
- Pedro Beato: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 K, 0 BB, 0.00 ERA
- Ryan Buchter: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 K, 1 BB, 7.94 ERA
Gwinnett won the first game of a brief 2-game set against the Orioles' AAA affiliate on Monday evening 5-4. Zach Stewart had a fairly unimpressive start for Gwinnett, as Norfolk teed off on him for 9 hits and 4 runs (3 earned) in 5 innings' work. Fortunately, Wirfin Obispo, Pedro Beato, and Ryan Buchter were fantastic in relief, combining for 4 innings of work with only one hit surrendered with 7 strikeouts and 2 walks. Christian Bethancourt had a pair of singles to raise his batting average over the Mendoza Line, and reserve infielder Sean Kazmar had Gwinnett's sole extra base hit, a triple in the bottom of the sixth that led to the game's winning run, which was scored on a Norfolk error. The Braves took advantage of sloppy play by the Tides, as they committed three errors that helped Gwinnett pull out a tight victory. Gwinnett's Cody Martin will square off against highly-touted Orioles prospect Kevin Gausman tomorrow at Coolray Field.
Mississippi Braves vs. Huntsville Stars: PPD
The M-Braves' game against the Stars at Trustmark Park was postponed due to inclement weather and will be made up tomorrow as part of a doubleheader.
Huntsville Stars at Mississippi Braves rained out Monday. A doubleheader will be played Tuesday - two 7-inning games
— Sun Herald (@sunherald) April 14, 2014
Lynchburg Hillcats: 5 @ Frederick Keys: 4 (12 innings)
- José Peraza, 2B: 1-6, SB (5), 2 K, .271
- Kyle Wren, CF: 2-5, RBI (4), .273
- Kevin Ahrens, 3B: 1-4, HR (1), .216
- Edison Sánchez, 1B: 3-5, 2B (4), RBI (4), .341
- Tyler Tewell, C: 2-5, 2 RBI (3), .211
- Daniel Castro, SS: 1-5, E (2), .273
- Lucas Sims: 6 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 4 K, 1 BB, 4.20 ERA
- Nate Hyatt: 2 IP, 2 H, 3 K, 0 BB, 1.80 ERA
The Hillcats improved to 7-4 on the young season with a 12-inning victory over the Frederick Keys on Monday evening. Top prospect Lucas Sims took the mound for Lynchburg and pitched fairly well, yielding 3 earned runs on a 2-run homer and a solo shot, while striking out 4 and walking 1. Despite the two long balls, according to Baseball Prospectus' Tucker Blair, who tweeted Sims' start, his stuff looked fine, sitting in the low-90's with his fastball and commanding his fastball and changeup well. He didn't throw many curveballs, but one particularly impressed Blair:
<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Lucas Sims just threw a CV that dropped off the earth. Tight, plus spin. Best pitch of the night. Holy cow if he can consistently throw that</p>— Tucker Blair (@TuckerBlairON) <a href="https://twitter.com/TuckerBlairON/statuses/455861024898686976">April 15, 2014</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></center>
Nate Hyatt picked up the win and relief and pitched well, scattering two hits over two innings of work while striking out three and walking none. Kevin Ahrens went deep for the Hillcats. Kyle Wren, Edison Sánchez, and Tyler Tewell also had nice offensive games for Lynchburg, while José Peraza swiped a bag despite reaching base safely only once in six plate appearances. Daniel Castro committed the game's only error on a botched grounder to short. Lynchburg will return home to face Wilmington in a three-game midweek set starting tomorrow.
Rome Braves: 0 vs. Lexington Legends: 17
- Joey Meneses, 1B: 1-3, 2B (3), 2 K, .270
- Victor Reyes, RF: 1-3, .279
- Mikey Reynolds, 2B: 1-4, .184
- Blake Brown, LF: 1-3, .233
- Victor Caratini, C: 0-3, K, .211
- Johan Camargo, SS: 0-4, .179
- François Lafrenière: 2.1 IP, 7 H, 8 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 7.07 ERA
- Rafael Briceno: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 9.64 ERA
- Michael Swanner: 2.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 0.00 ERA
My mother once told me not to say anything if I didn't have anything nice to say, so I won't spend much time recapping this horrid affair. Lexington beat up on Rome's pitching staff, and Rome's offense could get nothing going (they combined for 3 hits) against starter Jake Junis and the Legends' bullpen. Rome only managed one extra base hit in Joey Meneses' double, and Victor Caratini, Johan Camargo, and Victor Reyes went a combined 1-10 with a measly single. This is a young team that's going to have some struggles this season, so just don't expect too much out of Rome in 2014.