Barons Blistering Offense Torches Braves

PEARL, Mis. - The hit parade was in effect early and often in the Birmingham Barons (53-64) 8-1 win over the Mississippi Braves (56-63) Tuesday night at Trustmark Park.

The top of the first saw a little bit of everything for the Barons, including some good production. Birmingham sent seven batters to the plate and notched three runs on four hits, including a single, two doubles and a triple.
Luis González led off with a double and was quickly brought in to score on a Joel Booker RBI single. With one out, Gavin Sheets doubled home Booker for his Southern League-leading 72^nd RBI. Moments later, designated hitter Damek Tomscha smacked his first triple as a Baron, a ball deep to right that brought in Sheets to make it 3-0.
Three-straight singles was how the top of the fourth got started, the last one coming in the form of an Alfredo González RBI base hit to score Columbia, Mississippi native Ti'Quan Forbes. Luis Gonzalez then grounded out to the right side of the infield, scoring Zach Remillard and making it 5-0 Barons on top.
Mississippi made some noise in the bottom of the fourth, loading the bases with no outs on Barons starter Lincoln Henzman. First baseman Jonathan Morales flew out to center field, scoring Trey Harris to make it 5-1.
Henzman hunkered down and escaped the jam, forcing a lineout and getting Alejandro Salazar to fly out to end the inning with just one run scored.
Henzman had one of his best starts of the season, going six innings, allowing just four hits and pitched to contact well. It was the first time Henzman has gone past five innings on the road since June 22^nd at Chattanooga.
The pen did their job as well, with Luis Martinez tossing two scoreless frames and Kodi Medeiros finishing off the ninth with a 1-2-3 side.
Birmingham tacked on two more insurance runs in the ninth, rallying for three hits and two runs on a Blake Rutherford sac fly to score Luis Gonzalez and Tomscha's ground out that scored Rutherford to make it 8-1.
There was no denying how strong the offense was Tuesday night. The Barons 15 hits were three shy of their season-high and six batters in their lineup recorded two hits. Every Baron in the lineup recorded at least one hit, the second time in the past three game they have done that. What was also impressive was how the Barons got the lead off batter aboard in six of the nine innings.
Forbes had a nice homecoming, going 2-for-4 with a run scored. Rutherford raised his second half batting average over .300 with his two hits and an RBI. Leadoff man Luis Gonzalez recorded two hits, both doubles and he and Booker both scored two runs.
Tomscha finished with a couple hits and three RBI on the night, continuing his hot stretch at the plate recently. Over his last 20 games, the Sioux City, Iowa native has 18 runs batted in.
Rain was a factor early, with the game starting in a minor rain delay. Instead of a 6:35 p.m. start, the first pitch was delayed 41 minutes.
With the win, the Barons improved to 5-1 against the Braves this season and 23-18 against the South division. At Regions Field from May 16^th-20^th, Birmingham took four of five against Mississippi.
Birmingham will continue their series with Mississippi Wednesday afternoon, starting at 1:05 p.m. CT. Left-hander Bernardo Flores (3-5, 3.09) will man the rubber and make his 12^th start of the season.
WJQX-FM 100.5 will be the home of the Barons on Wednesday. Fans can tune into the Coca-Cola Pregame Show starting at 12:50 p.m.
The Birmingham Barons are the proud Double-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. The Barons will open the home portion of their 2019 season, which celebrates the 25th anniversary of Michael Jordan's lone year in baseball, against the Tennessee Smokies at 7:05 p.m. April 10 at Regions Field. For ticket information, game schedule, promotions calendar or additional information about Regions Field, please visit barons.com or call (205) 988-3200.
Southern League Champions: 1906 • 1912 • 1914 • 1928 • 1929 • 1931 • 1958 • 1967 •1983 • 1987 • 1989 • 1993 • 2002 • 2013
33-Year Double-A Affiliate of the Chicago White Sox