Cruz Cruises to Seal Shuckers Series Win in Birmingham

BIRMINGHAM, AL– The Biloxi Shuckers (32-29) won their first series finale on the road this season with a 6-5 victory over the Birmingham Barons (24-39) at Regions Field on Sunday afternoon. Stiven Cruz (3.2ip, 0h, 0r, 4k) sat down all 11 Barons batter he faced en route to a Shuckers seven-game series victory.

The Shuckers stormed out to an early 6-0 lead through the first four innings. The scoring started with a pair of RBI-groundouts from Blake Burke and Eduardo Garcia in the first. Biloxi added another in the third with an RBI-single by Mike Boeve to make it 3-0. The Shuckers doubled that lead in the fourth with a three-run home run by Blake Burke that traveled 380 feet off the bat at 101 mph. It marked Burke’s team-leading 14^th big fly of the season. The Barons cut their deficit in half in the fifth with a pair of homers, including a Dylan Campbell solo shot, and a Grant Magill two-run long bomb. Birmingham brought home two more runs in the sixth with a Samuel Zavala RBI-single and a Colby Shelton RBI-groundout to come within one. Stiven Cruz inherited the bases loaded in the sixth but held the Barons off any bases the rest of the way for a near four-inning save.

Manuel Rodriguez (5.0ip, 8k) recorded his sixth win of the season, matching his season-high of eight strikeouts. Rodriguez has gotten the victory in his last three starts. Dylan Cumming came up with his fourth loss of the season, with the aforementioned Cruz collecting his second save of the campaign.

Four Shuckers posted multi-hit performances, including Jesús Made (2-for-5), Blake Burke (3-for-5), Mike Boeve (2-for-3) and Eduardo Garcia (2-for-5). Burke also drove in four runs, which matched his season-high set against Pensacola on April 9, 2026 during Opening Week.

The Shuckers are tied with the Montgomery Biscuits for first place in the Southern League South Division, with one week remaining in the first half. A Biscuits loss later on Sunday would mean a half-game lead for the Shuckers. Biloxi is idle Monday before it travels back home for its final series of the half when it clashes with the Columbus Clingstones (Atlanta Braves) beginning on Tuesday at Keesler Federal Park. This marks the Clingstones’ final visit to Biloxi in 2026. Fans can splash in with specialty 2-for-1 deals on merchandise, food, drinks and more as part of Twofer Tuesday, including two blended cocktails at the Corona Premier Tiki Bar for $18. The first 250 fans will also receive a themed Shuckers Schooner of Liberty T-shirt presented by Coca-Cola. Fans can purchase a 20oz souvenir tumbler for $13 with $7 refills at the first and third-base Beer Gardens as part of Brew Crew Tuesday presented by Coors Light. The first game of the series gets underway at 6:35 p.m. Coverage begins at 6:15 p.m. with the On-Deck Show on the Biloxi Shuckers Radio Network and The Hype 100.9.

Fans can save up to 50% off day-of-game pricing by securing their 2026 season membership. Season Memberships, Mini Plans and group outings are available now by visiting biloxishuckers.com, the ballpark offices and by calling (228) 233-3465. Fans can also receive more information regarding the full promotion schedule and single-game tickets on the Shuckers website.

ABOUT THE BILOXI SHUCKERS:

The Biloxi Shuckers are the Double-A Affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. The Shuckers are members of the Southern League and play at Keesler Federal Park in Biloxi, Mississippi. For more information, please visit biloxishuckers.com and follow us on Twitter @biloxishuckers and at facebook.com/biloxishuckers.

ABOUT SHUCKERS BASEBALL, LLC:

Shuckers Baseball, LLC is a MS entity owned and operated by John Tracy. Shuckers Baseball operates the Biloxi Shuckers baseball franchise, including operating Keesler Federal Park for Biloxi Shuckers minor league baseball games and other entertainment and recreational events.