Dixon Williams was the headliner in the Atlanta Braves system on Saturday, as he was the first minor league player in two years to have a 10-RBI game. Eric Hartman, John Gil, Patrick Clohisy, Carter Beck, Alex Lodise, Conor Essenburg, and Luis Guanipa were also among the players to have multi-hit games as the Rome offense had a massive day.
Gwinnett Stripers 9, Norfolk Tides 6
- Patrick Clohisy, CF: 2-5, R, SB, .396/.461/.584
- Brewer Hicklen, LF: 1-4, HR, BB, 3 R, RBI, sSB, .299/.371/.527
- Drue Hackenberg, SP: 5.2 IP, 10 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 6.60 ERA
- Blake Burkhalter, RP: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 1.69 ERA
Drue Hackenberg got the start for the Stripers and was hit for six runs on 10 hits over five and two thirds innings. Hackenberg did strike out six to go with 12 swings and misses, and only walked one. Blake Burkhalter followed for the next two and a third innings, and pitched very well. Burkhalter didn’t allow and runs and only one hit and one walk as he struck out one and whiffed seven. A scoreless inning from Joel Payamps earned him the win, and Ian Hamilton picked up the save with a scoreless 10th inning.
Once again Patrick Clohisy and Brewer Hicklen were the catalysts for the Gwinnett offense. Patrick Clohisy had two more hits, stole a base, and scored a run as he brings his Triple-A average to .396. Hicklen homered for the 18th time, walked, stole a base, and scored three runs. Sandy Leon added a pair of doubles in a three-hit game, while both Jose Azocar and Cal Conley had two-hit nights in the win.
Birmingham Barons 4, Columbus Clingstones 3
- John Gil, SS: 2-3, BB, 2 R, SB, .317/.408/.390
- Eric Hartman, LF: 2-3, 2 RBI, .238/.385/.262
- Ian Mejia, SP: 4.1 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, 8.25 ERA
Ian Mejia started and lasted four and a third innings, allowing four runs on five hits and four walks. He did however strike out three and collected 10 whiffs. Blane Abeyta got the next two outs to finish off the fifth inning, before a scoreless inning from Tyler LaPorte. The final two innings went to Luis Vargas, who pitched scoreless baseball while striking out four and only allowing one base runner via a walk.
John Gil and Eric Hartman led the way for the Columbus lineup. Gil had a pair of singles and a walk, stole a base, and scored two of the three runs. Hartman also had a pair of singles and batted in a pair of runs. Will Verdung also had a two-hit night, while Owen Carey and Jordan Groshans added a single apiece, as did the recently hot Kevin Kilpatrick Jr.
Rome Emperors 19, Asheville Tourists 6
- Luis Guanipa, DH: 3-7, 2B, R, 3 RBI, .218/.232/.345
- Conor Essenburg, RF: 2-3, 4 BB, 5 R, .225/.415/.325
- Alex Lodise, SS: 4-6, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 5 R, .313/.416/.516
- Dixon Williams, CF: 4-5, 2 HR, 2B, 10 RBI, 3 R, .227/.332/.436
- Aiven Cabral, SP: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 3.38 ERA
A strong start by Aiven Cabral helped lead the way to a comfortable victory for the Emperors. Cabral got the quality start with six innings of one run ball, allowing five hits and two walks. Cabral struck out six and whiffed 13. The bullpen made this one look a little closer in the final score, as Tanner Bauman allowed three runs in his inning and Jacob Shafer allowed two in his, before Logan Samuels pitched a scoreless ninth frame to finish the game off.
Dixon Williams had one of the most impressive single game performances in the minor leagues this year – not just the Braves system, but all of baseball. He went four for five with a pair of home runs, a double, 10 runs batted in, and three runs scored. Alex Lodise had four hits, including a pair of doubles, batted in a pair, and scored five runs. Conor Essenburg also scored five times as he went two for three and walked four times. Then there was Luis Guanipa, who was three for seven with a double, run scored, and three batted in. In total eight of the nine guys in the lineup had base hits, and all nine would reach base safely. Both Colby Jones and Mason Guerra added doubles in the offensive explosion.
Charleston RiverDogs 4, Augusta GreenJackets 3
- Carter Beck, CF: 2-3, 2B, R, SB, .378/.452/.405
- Cooper McMurray, 1B: 1-3, 2B, 2 RBI, .247/.375/.397
- Cristobal Abreu, RP: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 2.42 ERA
Landon Beidelschies got the start and lasted two and two thirds, allowing a pair of runs on two hits and two walks. Beidelschies struck out three and had 10 whiffs. Cristobal Abreu went the next two and a third and would allow just one unearned run as he struck out one and had four whiffs. Logan Forsythe took the loss by allowing a run over his two innings.
Carter Beck had another strong day, getting two hits – including a double, stolen base, and run scored in the first game on Saturday. Cooper McMurray also added a double and batted in a pair of runs in the loss. Manuel Campos was hitless in two at bats, but walked and scored one of the GreenJackets runs, while Parker Brosius scored a run and Caleb Klein singled and batted one in.
Augusta GreenJackets 3, Charleston RiverDogs 0
- Carter Beck, CF: 0-2, BB, R, .359/.444/.385
- Caden Merritt, LF: 1-2, HR, R, RBI, .209/.355/.313
- Luis Arestigueta, SP: 6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K, 7.93 ERA
In the second game Luis Arestigueta went six shutout innings, allowing five hits and two walks as he struck out seven and whiffed 10. Styven Paez pitched a scoreless seventh inning to complete the combined shutout for the Jackets.
Caden Merritt’s second home run of the year with Augusta was the big part of the offense, though Cooper McMurray added a single and a pair of RBI in the win. Carter Beck didn’t have a hit in his two at bats, but walked and scored, while Parker Brosius, Juan Mateo, and Yamvier Carrero all added singles.
DSL Royals Fortuna 4, DSL Braves 1
- Jose Nelo, DH: 1-2, 2B, BB, RBI, .303/.396/.439
- Edelson Cabral, 3B: 1-2, BB, R, .237/.392/.346
- Martires Polanco, SP: 3.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 6 K, 2.89 ERA
In his last start of the season, Martires Polanco continued to show his swing and miss stuff on Saturday. He lasted three and two thirds, striking out six while giving up two runs on two hits. Command was a bit of an issue with his four walks, but that has been present all year for him. He’s got excellent stuff and this was a good first professional season for him. Yostin Pinales came in to get the final out of the fourth before Eddie Guzman came in for the final two innings and allowed two additional runs to cross.
The Braves were held to one hit, a Jose Nelo double along with one run. They did manage six walks, including ones by Nelo and Edelson Cabral, who scored the lone run of the game for the Braves, batted in by Nelo. Yasseel Pena also had a pair of walks in the loss.
DSL Royals Fortuna 9, DSL Braves 1
- Elisandro Ramirez, DH: 2-3, HR, 2B, R, RBI, .224/.337/.461
- Diego Ramirez, SP: 3 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 0 K, 9.49 ERA
The pitching struggled in the second half of the doubleheader for the Braves as Diego Ramirez got tagged for three runs in three innings. Moises Semerite followed and allowed two more runs in his two innings, then Ernesto Meza allowed two in two thirds of an inning. The final pitcher of the day was Lionel Prevosti, who gave up two more runs (one earned) in an inning and a third.
The Braves managed to get four hits with their run in this game, and half of those hits came from Elisandro Ramirez, who was the offense today. Ramirez homered and doubled, giving him three apiece on the season, to account for the lone run in the game. Luis Consoro and Osmar Torrealba each singled, while Jose Nelo was 0-2 with a walk to reach base three times between the two games.