Jacksonville wins on Opening Day in front of sellout crowd

Jumbo Shrimp edge Stripers 5-4

Marty Costes drove in the eventual winning run in Jacksonville's 5-4 Opening Day win against Gwinnett. (Wyatt Lucovsky/Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp)

March 29, 2024

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.– In front of a sellout crowd of 8,786 fans, Marty Costes reached base three times and drove in the go-ahead run as the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp took a 5-4 Opening Day win over the Gwinnett Stripers Friday night at 121 Financial Ballpark. With the game knotted up at

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.– In front of a sellout crowd of 8,786 fans, Marty Costes reached base three times and drove in the go-ahead run as the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp took a 5-4 Opening Day win over the Gwinnett Stripers Friday night at 121 Financial Ballpark.

With the game knotted up at three, Jacksonville (1-0) pushed across the eventual winning run in the eighth. With one out, Griffin Conine blasted a double and two batters later, Jose Devers walked. In the ensuing at-bat, Costes laced a base knock up the middle, scoring Conine to give the Jumbo Shrimp a 5-4 advantage they would not relinquish.

The Stripers (0-1) got to work early in the top of the first. J.P. Martinez led off with a double and scored three batters later on a double from Luis Liberato.

Gwinnett added to their lead in the top of the third. Martinez (1) continued his great day with a solo blast to put the Stripers up 2-0.

Jacksonville’s offense woke up after being held without a hit through the first three innings. Tristan Gray singled with one out and Will Banfield walked. With runners on first and second, Conine doubled in Gray to cut the deficit to 2-1. Banfield advanced to third and scored on a base hit from Jacob Amaya, knotting the score at two. With a runner at third, Devers knocked in Conine with a sac fly, breaking the tie for a 3-2 advantage.

Trailing 3-2, Gwinnett quickly responded in the top of the fifth. Luke Williams (1) launched a solo home run two batters in to the fifth to tie the game at three.

Gwinnett regained the lead in the top of the seventh. Williams reached on a fielder’s choice and advanced to second on a ground out by Andrew Velazquez. Martinez worked a walk and David Fletcher reached on an error that scored Williams from second to put the Stripers ahead 4-3.

Mental errors from Gwinnett kept Jacksonville in the game, the biggest occurring in the bottom of the seventh. WIth one out, Costes singled and Jonathan Davis was hit by a pitch. With two runners on, Troy Johnston walked to load the bases and a balk two batters later plated Costes as the tying run.

Jacksonville and Gwinnett continue their series Saturday with first pitch set for 6:35 p.m. The Stripers will hand the ball to LHP Dylan Dodd (0-0, 0.00) while the Jumbo Shrimp will counter with RHP Yonny Chirinos (0-0, 0.00). Coverage begins at 6:20 p.m. on Bally Live and MiLB.tv.

Gates open at 5 p.m. for the first Saturday giveaway of the season. Thanks to VyStar Credit Union and Atlantic Self Storage, the Jumbo Shrimp will be giving away an Opening Weekend shirt. Make sure to stay after the game for some Saturday Night Fireworks, presented by VyStar Credit Union and Atlantic Self Storage.

ABOUT THE JUMBO SHRIMP: The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp offer affordable family fun at 121 Financial Ballpark. Their inaugural season garnered the Southern League’s Don Mincher Organization of the Year, Promotional Trophy and Jimmy Bragan Executive of the Year, won by general manager Harold Craw. The club added its second Promotional Trophy in three years following the 2019 season. The 2021 season marked the return of Triple-A baseball in Jacksonville. To experience the excitement with the terrific value of ticket and group options, call the Jumbo Shrimp at (904) 358-2846 or visit www.jaxshrimp.com.