Pawtucket Silences Gwinnett, 3-1

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA - For the third straight game, the Gwinnett Braves were stifled by an opposing starting pitcher. Following complete-game shutout efforts by Syracuse's John Lannan and Jeff Mandel on Saturday and Sunday, Pawtucket right-hander Nelson Figueroa worked 7.1 innings of three-hit, one-run baseball to lead the Red Sox to a 3-1 win on Monday night at Coolray Field.

Figueroa (W, 11-5) was stellar, taking a no-hit bid into the seventh inning. He'd relinquish the no-no with one out in the inning as Ernesto Mejia reached on a single past shortstop Jon Hee, but would allow just two more hits on the night over 7.1 innings.

Jair Jurrjens (L, 3-6) was a late addition to the starting role for Gwinnett. The right-hander, pitching on a rehab assignment for the Atlanta Braves, used just eight pitches to get out of the first inning. However, the Red Sox struck for two runs in the second against him as Tony Thomas walked and Dan Butler belted a two-run home run to left field. Jurrjens gave up two runs on two hits over 2.0 innings.

Newest G-Brave Daniel Rodriguez made his Gwinnett debut in the third inning following Jurrjens. The left-hander was extremely solid, allowing just one unearned run through 3.0 innings. That run came in the fourth as Thomas walked, took second and third on pickoff errors by catcher J.C. Boscan and Rodriguez himself, then scored on Butler's sacrifice fly to left. Butler's third RBI of the game raised the Pawtucket lead to 3-0.

Gwinnett, held off the scoreboard for 28.1 consecutive innings dating back to the fifth inning on Friday, scored their lone run off Figueroa in the seventh. Mejia singled and moved to third on a pair of wild pitches. Josh Kroeger, on Pawtucket's roster earlier this season, cut the deficit to 3-1 as he singled to score Mejia.

Buddy Carlyle threw 2.2 scoreless innings and Andy Russell added 1.1 scoreless innings to keep the deficit at 3-1 for Gwinnett, but the offense never scored again. Former Chicago Cubs left-hander Rich Hill worked a perfect inning and Chris Carpenter (S, 3) earned the final two outs in the ninth to seal the victory.

Butler finished 1-for-2 with the home run, his first with Pawtucket, and three RBIs. Kroeger went 1-for-4 with the lone RBI for Gwinnett.

The Gwinnett Braves (61-76) and Pawtucket Red Sox (74-63) will play the second game of the final four-game series of the season at Coolray Field on Tuesday afternoon, first pitch scheduled for 2:05 PM. The original start time of 7:05 PM has been changed due to impending rain from Hurricane Isaac. Please stay tuned to gwinnettbraves.com for updates and information concerning Wednesday and Thursday's games. G-Braves left-hander Sean Gilmartin (1-1, 3.99) will draw the start against Pawtucket right-hander Zach Stewart (3-5, 3.94) on Tuesday. The radio broadcast will air on WDUN 550 AM / 102.9 FM in Gainesville, Georgia. The television broadcast will air on CSS.

Save up to 50% off tickets by visiting GwinnettBraves.com/Tuesday on 2 for 1 Tuesday. Print your coupon from home and present it at the Box Office to redeem. It's also the sixth day of "Drive Me Crazy" as the G-Braves gather donations of canned foods, clothes, sports equipment, toys and more to restock local shelters and storage centers.

Tickets for all Gwinnett Braves home games are on sale now at the Coolray Field Box Office. Call (678) 277-0340 or visit gwinnettbraves.com for more information.