Barons Muster One Run in Tough 4-1 Loss

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - A fun filled Saturday night ended sourly with the Birmingham Barons (17-25) falling 4-1 to the Mississippi Braves (19-22) at Regions Field

Leading 1-0 in the fifth, the Braves added some breathing room on a two-RBI single by Alejandro Salazar to score Ryan Casteel and Andy Wilkins and go up 3-0. It was Salazar's first RBI of the series.
It was the toughest outing for Barons starter Kyle Kubat since he joined the Barons. In five innings of work, he surrendered a season high eight hits and four runs (two earned).
Trailing 3-0 in the fifth, the Barons golden opportunity came with the bases loaded and no outs. Ti'Quan Forbes struck out swinging and Ramón Torres grounded back to the pitcher for a 1-2-3 double play to end the threat.
Kubat's counterpart Tucker Davidson had one of his best outings of the season, pitching a career-high eight innings of shutout baseball to earn his first win of the season. He lowered his already impressive ERA down to 1.65.
The Braves got on the board first in the second inning on a wacky play. A ground ball to Barons shortstop Laz Rivera resulted in a wide throw to home, trying to get the runner Riley Unroe coming home, but Unroe got home safely to make it 1-0.
Their final run came on a passed ball by catcher Yermin Mercedes that scored Luis Valenzuela from third to make it 4-0.
The lone Barons run came in the ninth with two outs, thanks to a Gavin Sheets RBI single to score Luis González. Sheet finished the day strong going 3-for-4 with three singles and the RBI, while Gonzalez notched another multi-hit game with two singles.
Kubat came into the day having allowed just one run in 21 innings with the Barons this season. In his previous six starts, dating to back to his appearances with Class A+ Winston-Salem, he had been holding opponents to a .163 batting average and a 0.24 earned run average.
The Barons will pick the series back up at 4:00 p.m. Sunday. Right-hander Blake Battenfield (1-0, 1.80) will make his second start as a Baron this season.
WJQX-FM 100.5 will be the home of the Barons on Sunday. Fans can tune into the Coca-Cola Pregame Show starting at 3:45 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