Barons Grab Series Win Behind Doyle's Gem
In a series that closely mirrored the 2013 Southern League Finals, the Birmingham Barons picked up a series win with a 3-0 shutout over the Mobile BayBears in front of 1,887 fans at Hank Aaron Stadium.
The Barons broke a scoreless tie in the fourth, getting a leadoff single by Trayce Thompson. Thompson would steal second, advance to third on a passed ball and score on a base hit by Josh Richmond. The RBI was Richmond's team-leading 10th of the season. Richmond then stole second and scored on a single by Michael Earley to give the Barons a 2-0 lead.
Richmond stole two bases on the night and the Barons finished with a season-high five thefts including one each by Thompson, Micah Johnson and Dan Wagner.
Thompson pushed the lead to 3-0 in the fifth, roping an RBI double to center to score Wagner. It was the second hit of the night for Thompson who finished 2-for-4.
The three runs would be all starter Terry Doyle (2-1, 3.12) needed, as he allowed just four hits and one walk while striking out five over 7.0 shutout IP.
Cody Winiarski recorded the final six outs of the game in relief of Doyle to pick up his third save of the season as the Barons won their second-straight series and improved to 8-7 on the season. The shutout was the third in the last eight games for the Barons.
Micah Johnson finished with his second three-hit game in a row, going 3-for-5, extending his hitting streak to eight games and stealing his third base of the season. In 10 career games against the BayBears, Johnson is hitting .450 (18-for-40).
The Barons return to Regions Field on Saturday to begin a five-game series against the Tennessee Smokies. The Barons will send RHP Nick McCully (2-0, 0.00) to the hill in game one against RHP Matt Loosen (1-1, 4.50). First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 PM CDT.