Barons Blank Biscuits, 3-0
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Biscuits (52-46) were shut out for just the fifth time in 2021, falling in game three of their six-game series to the Birmingham Barons (53-45), 3-0, on Thursday night at Regions Field. The Biscuits are back in third place in the Double-A South, a game behind
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Biscuits (52-46) were shut out for just the fifth time in 2021, falling in game three of their six-game series to the Birmingham Barons (53-45), 3-0, on Thursday night at Regions Field. The Biscuits are back in third place in the Double-A South, a game behind the Barons, with 21 games to play.
Blake Battenfield started on the hill for the Barons, and the right-hander worked a one-two-three top of the first, striking out Greg Jones and Jonathan Aranda—both swinging—to end the first half-inning. Jayden Murray (1-2) started on the other side for the Biscuits, and the righty walked the first batter of the game, Yoelqui Cespedes, on four pitches, but then retired the next three batters in a scoreless bottom of the first.
The Biscuits used a pair of Battenfield walks and a Mitch Roman error at third to load the bases in the top of the second, but could not cash in. Murray pitched a clean bottom of the second, striking out his first two batters of the game in Craig Dedelow and Ian Dawkins, back-to-back.
Battenfield kept the Biscuits off the board in the top of the third, striking out batters four and five, and then did the same in the top of the fourth, picking up strikeouts six and seven. Murray struck out four in a row between the second and third and retired 16 in a row after walking the first batter of the game, and took a no-hitter into the sixth inning before it was broken up by a Jagger Rusconi single to right. Yolbert Sanchez eventually brought Rusconi home with an RBI-single to right, and the Barons led 1-0 at the end of six.
Declan Cronin (1-0) pitched a scoreless sixth for the Barons, and Jake Elliott did the same in the top of the seventh and the top of the eighth. Justin Sterner came on for Murray and pitched a scoreless bottom of the seventh, striking out two. Tanner Dodson came on for Sterner in the eighth and the right-hander loaded the bases before walking in two runs with two outs to make it 3-0 Birmingham. Caleb Freeman closed things out in the ninth to earn his first save of the season.
The Biscuits will try to rebound on Friday night when Easton McGee (4-1) takes on the Barons again at 7:05 PM CT.
The Biscuits will return to Riverwalk Stadium for a six-game series against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos starting on a Golden Biscuits Tuesday, on August 31 at 6:35 PM CT.
The rest of the series will include a Military Wednesday presented by WOW! on Wednesday, September 1; Board Game Night with a T-Shirt Giveaway on Thursday, September 2; HBCU Night on Friday, September 3; Take Me Out to the Ballgame Night with MAX Fireworks on Saturday, September 4; and Lil' Crumbs Kids Club presented by Go Fish Alabama & Bark in the Park on Sunday, September 5.