M-Braves "Cruz" to 10-1 victory over Shuckers on Sunday, stopping skid

PEARL, MS - Jasseel De La Cruz  (W, 2-4) struck out ten over 6.0 innings on Sunday and received plenty offensive support as the Mississippi Braves (7-11, 40-47) cruised to the 10-1 victory over the Biloxi Shuckers (9-9, 50-38) at Trustmark Park. The was was the first since June 28, stopping a season-high eight-game losing streak. 

The M-Braves pounded out a season-high 17 hits. Drew Waters  collected his fourth four-hit game of 2019 to pace the offense, scoring three runs and raising his league-leading batting average to .335. The 20-year-old leads all of Double-A baseball with 113 hits, 20 more than the next Double-A hitter. Greyson Jenista  blasted his second Double-A home run and posted a season-high four RBI. Tyler Neslony  finished a homer shy of the cycle and settled for three hits and three runs scored. 

The M-Braves got to Biloxi starter Dylan File (L, 3-1) immediately on Sunday in the first inning. Waters hit a one-out double and then moved to third base on a single by Neslony. Ryan Casteel  singled home Waters, and it was 1-0. Riley Unroe  walked to load the bases, and then Jenista brought in two runs with a single to make it 3-0. 

Mississippi added three more runs in the third inning. Neslony tripled to start the inning and scored on a one-out single by Unroe. Jenista launched a 423-foot two-run home run on top of the Farm Bureau Grill to extend the lead to 6-0. The homer was Jenista's second in five games and second at the Double-A level. 

Neslony added an RBI double in his third at-bat in the fourth inning, scoring Waters and was just a homer shy of the cycle. Neslony over his last four games is 10-for-17 with a home run, triple, three doubles, seven RBI and seven runs scored. 

Daniel Lockhart  took over for Casteel after his third-inning ejection and put the icing on the cake with a three-run double in the bottom of the sixth inning. 

Meanwhile, De La Cruz kept throwing up zeroes and secured his fifth quality start in eight tries with 6.0 innings of four-hit baseball, walking two and setting a new career high with ten strikeouts. The 22-year-old matched Joey Wentz's ten-strikeout performance on Saturday night, one-upping Tucker Davidson's nine-strikeout appearance on Friday. Andres Santiago  tacked on 2.0 scoreless innings behind De La Cruz, striking out three.

The Shuckers avoided being shutout by tallying a run in the top of the ninth inning against Braves reliever Jordan Harrison . Pinch-hitter Joantgel Segovia hit a two-out single that scored Weston Wilson to make the final score 10-1. Harrison ended up striking out the side in the ninth. Overall, M-Braves pitching struck out 16 and walked five on Sunday. 

The M-Braves will look to make it two wins in a row on Monday night at Trustmark Park in game five of the six-game set. RHP Claudio Custodio  (3-1, 2.29) makes the spot start for the Braves against All-Star RHP Trey Supak (8-4, 2.36) for Biloxi. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 pm with coverage beginning at 6:20 pm on 103.9 WYAB, TuneIn Radio and MiLB.tv (subscription required).

Monday's Promotions:
SportClips Military Monday - All members and veterans of all branches of the U.S. Military receive FREE Field Level or General Admission tickets when presenting a valid ID. One random fan, representing the military, will receive a SportClips Prize pack. All members and veterans of all branches of the U.S. Military receive $5 tickets to all other games with ID.
Nurses Night - It's National Nurses Day, so all nurses/health professionals receive $2 admission for up to 4 guests with a badge as a thank you for everything they do! Enjoy $3 domestic beers, $4 import beers and $5 wine.
Mustard Monday - Free samples of mustards from around the world. Mustard games for kids!

Visit mississippibraves.com for tickets or call 888-BRAVES4.