Unsworth Brilliant as Generals Shut out Suns
Jackson, Tenn. - Dylan Unsworth made his first start since April 28th and dominated the Jacksonville Suns in Jackson's 5-0 win on Thursday at The Ballpark at Jackson. The righty had a no-hitter until he gave up a one-out single to J.T. Riddle in the seventh. The combined two-hit shutout was the fourth of the year for the Generals.
For the second straight night, the Generals' offense dominated the Suns' starting pitcher. A day after Jake Esch lasted just 1.2 innings for Jacksonville, Jarlin Garcia couldn't make it out of the fourth and was pulled after 3.2 innings. Meanwhile Jackson's two starters Brett Ash and Dylan Unsworth have gone six and seven innings respectively.
Jackson (17-8) quickly jumped on Jarlin Garcia (0-2, 4.80) in the first. Ian Miller walked to start the frame and quickly stole second on a pickoff attempt. Miller advanced to third on a Guillermo Heredia single before scoring on a wild pitch. After one, the Generals led 1-0.
With Zach Shank on first after a leadoff single in the third, Miller hit a ground erto short and Shank was out at second on the fielder's choice. Miller then scored all the way from first on Tim Lopes' triple. Lopes quickly scored on Heredia's sacrifice fly to put Jackson up 3-0.
The third also featured a trio of Generals' extending streaks. With two outs, Tyler O'Neill doubled to left to extend his hit streak to 10 and league-high on base streak to 24. Over that 24-game on base streak, O'Neill is hitting .385 (15-39) with four homers and 10 RBI. Meanwhile, Shank's single and Lopes' triple in the third extended both of their on base streaks to 17 games.
In the fourth Marcus Littlewood led off with a single up the middle and promptly stole his first bag of the season. The catcher scored two batters later when Benji Gonzalez doubled to left. Gonzalez scored seconds later on Shank's single up the middle to give Jackson a 5-0 lead after four.
While the offense cruised to a 5-0 lead, Jacksonville (11-16) struggled against Dylan Unsworth (2-0, 0.92). The Suns failed to put a runner on base until Cam Maron drew a two-out walk in the fifth. Unsworth struck out Yefri Perez and had a no-hitter through six.
The no-hitter didn't make it through the seventh however. With one out, J.T. Riddle and Brady Shoemaker hit back-to-back singles off Unsworth to end the no-hit bid. Riddle reached third on Shoemaker's single, but failed to score. He was the only Sun to make it into scoring position all night. Opponents are now 1-for-25 against Unsworth with runners in scoring position.
Unsworth was brilliant in his second win, giving up no runs on two hits while walking one and striking out three. He also recorded his team-high third quality start of the season giving Jackson 11 this year. The Generals had just 10 in the entire First Half (69 games) in 2015. Ryne Harper and Ryan Horstman pitched the final two innings and didn't give up any hits or runs while striking out three and walking one. The three Generals' pitchers combined to throw a two-hit shutout, Jackson's fourth of the season.
The win improves Jackson to 17-8 in 2016, good for the best record in the Southern League a half game ahead of 17-9 Biloxi. The Generals are also now 12-3 at home this year after going 12-20 in the First Half in 2015.
The Generals look to make it five in a row Friday night. Righty Edwin Diaz (2-3, 3.00) gets the ball for Jackson against the righty Austin Brice (1-1, 1.29) for Jacksonville. First pitch from The Ballpark at Jackson is slated for 7:05 pm CT, and you can listen to all the action on the TJ Network (AM 1390, FM 94.1) and online via the TuneIn Radio App starting at 6:50 pm CT with the Generals Pregame Show.
The first 10-game homestand of the season continues with Friday's game at 7:05 pm CT and it's another Chick-Fil-A Friday. Fans who arrive early can also take part in a pre-game autograph session presented by The Jackson Sun. Saturday's homestand finale is a doubleheader between the Generals and Suns and starts at 4:05 pm CT. After the twin bill there will be postgame fireworks sponsored by Jackson Energy Authority.
Get in on the fun at The Ballpark now! Give the Generals a call at (731) 988.5299, go online to jacksongeneralsbaseball.com