Parke, Booker Thrust Barons to Series Win

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - A great day of pitching and good all-around hitting got the Birmingham Barons (42-52) a 4-2 Friday night victory over the Tennessee Smokies (43-54) from Regions Field.

Joel Booker had his most productive day since returning to the Barons from Triple A Charotte on June 21^st. Booker singled in his first two at bats, each time plating runs, and finished the contest 3-for-4 with three RBI. It was Booker's fifth three-hit game of the season.
For the second straight night, the Barons cracked the scoreboard first. After White Sox No. 4 prospect Nick Madrigal led off with a double, he scored on a throwing error to first from Smokies starting pitcher Ben Hecht. Luis Basabe attempted a bunt on the play and advanced to second after the errant throw.
A second consecutive leadoff double from Ti'Quan Forbes one inning later came to fruition. Booker's first hit was a single that brought home Forbes to make it 2-0. In the third inning, Booker would come up big again with a two-out, two-RBI single to score Gavin Sheets and Forbes and go up 4-0.
John Parke earned his second win of the season, notching his third quality start in his fifth outing with Birmingham. In six solid innings, he only allowed two hits, zero runs, one walk and worked the zone with multiple off-speed breaking balls.
The Smokies got on the board later to prevent the shutout. Third baseman Gioskar Amaya singled home Zach Davis in the seventh to break the mulligan. Jhonny Pereda blooped a single to right-center in the eighth to plate one more run at 4-2, but that's as close as it would come.
After Parke, a three-man relief effort bent but didn't break in holding the lead and securing the victory. After Vince Arobio's seventh inning, Alec Hansen earned his fourth hold of the season and Hunter Schryver locked down his third save.
What killed Tennessee were early mistakes, as they committed an error in each of the first three innings. After the Hecht throwing error, shortstop Vimael Machin dropped a grounder as he charged in to make a play for the second error in the second inning.
With Sheets' single in the third, he extended his on base streak to 32 consecutive games. The streak is the longest such from a Barons player since 2005.
Leading the way offensively were Booker and Forbes, each with three hits and six of the 11 Barons hits. For Forbes, it was his fourth three-hit game of the season.
With the win, the Barons snapped their five-game losing streak. After losing the final game against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos on July 9^th, Birmingham dropped the only three games in their rain-shortened road series against the Jackson Generals.
The Barons will pick up their Tennessee series at 6:30 p.m. Saturday night. Right-hander Blake Battenfield (2-2, 5.18) will start and make his 11^th appearance with the Barons.
WJQX-FM 100.5 will be the home of the Barons on Thursday. Fans can tune into the Coca-Cola Pregame Show starting at 6:15 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