Moss Halts BayBears in 2-1 Win

MOBILE, Ala. - Benton Moss (2-3) delivered six innings of one-run ball and Nick Ciuffo's fourth-inning RBI-single broke a 1-1 tie to hand the Biscuits (61-52) their first win of the season over the Mobile BayBears (53-59) on Sunday night at Hank Aaron Stadium, 2-1. The win snapped the BayBears eight-game winning streak, and nine-game winning streak at Hank Aaron Stadium.
Moss, who was making his seventh start of the season and third since coming off the disabled list with a back injury, was terrific, striking out five and walking only one in his second victory of the year. The game was scoreless through the first two innings until Michael Russell reached on a single, and a throwing error by Mobile third baseman Jose Rojas brought him to second in the top of the third.
After Russell advanced to third on another error, this one by second baseman Tim Arakawa, Grant Kay stepped up and poked one into deep left-center field off BayBears starter, Jaime Barria (1-4). The sac fly scored Russell from third, and gave the Biscuits an early 1-0 lead.
Barria, a 21-year-old out of Panama, went five innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits with two walks and four strikeouts in the defeat, but the BayBears would tie the game for him in the bottom of the third on an RBI-double by Troy Montgomery.
In the fourth, Justin Williams would reach for the Biscuits on a fielder's choice, and after a delayed steal got him to second, Ciuffo would come through with one of his many clutch hits of the second half, punching a two-out tie-breaking single into right field to put Montgomery up for good.
Mike Franco worked a flawless seventh and eighth, retiring the BayBears in order, before Ian Gibaut put them away in the ninth, keeping the Biscuits a game-and-a-half ahead of the Tennessee Smokies in the Wild Card standings. The Biscuits will try to force a rubber match against Mobile on Monday when Logan Darnell (3-1) squares off against Jesus Castillo (NR) at 6:35 PM.