Donatella, Herum deliver series victory at Tennessee

SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. - The Jackson Generals, the Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks, won a dead heat with the Tennessee Smokies on Thursday, taking the series with a 2-1 victory at Smokies Stadium.

The win means the Generals (69-60) and Tennessee (64-64) close their regular season series with 12 wins each, as Jackson won the final three meetings.
After a Jackson runner was thrown out at the plate in the third inning to keep the game scoreless, the West Tennessee squad finally broke through in the fourth. Marty Herum led off the frame with a solo home run to left field, tying Jason Morozowski for the team-high mark with three August home runs. However, the bats fell silent over the ensuing five innings, managing only an occasional single. With two outs in the eighth, Kevin Medrano whacked a double to right field to set the Generals up with a man in scoring position. Herum grounded a ball to shortstop that was ultimately ruled a hit, but Tennessee's Trent Giambrone made a mess of the throw, allowing Medrano to score from second base on the errant toss and break a 1-1 tie. It was Herum's third hit of the night, meaning he and Medrano were the only Generals to score runs and record multiple hits in the contest.
From the bump, Justin Donatella (6-8, 3.84 ERA) carried the game through the seventh inning to match his season-best mark, giving up a single run in the process. Donatella's long outing was his first seven-inning start since mid-May, and it featured three strikeouts, no walks, and more groundouts (8) than flyouts (7). After 95 pitches, Donatella departed in favor of Ryan Atkinson, who again demonstrated his effectiveness in relief by work a run-free eighth inning. Michael Blazek (S, 1) followed and picked up the save with a scoreless ninth inning, capitalizing on his first save opportunity since May 9, 2017. The Generals' bullpen closes the series on a run of ten straight innings without an earned run allowed, helping lower the team's August ERA to 3.10.
After failing to win a rubber game in their first seven tries this year, the Generals have won each of their past three, rallying to win three consecutive series after losing the opening game in each one. The win put Jackson's Second Half record at 30-30 with ten games left to play, tying them with the second-place Birmingham Barons in the North Division. Jackson travels to Birmingham on Friday to begin a five-game series at Regions Field.
NEXT GENERALS GAME:
7:05 pm CT Friday (8/24) vs. Birmingham Barons
Regions Field - Birmingham, Ala.
RHP Emilio Vargas (0-3, 6.23 ERA) vs. LHP Tanner Banks (4-4, 2.63 ERA)
Broadcast Link: Birmingham Barons Radio
UP AND COMING AT THE BALLPARK:
August 30-September 3 vs. Chattanooga Lookouts (AA, Minnesota Twins)
…featuring SEC Night (September 1)!
PLAYOFFS!
Games 1 and 2 of the North Division Series will be held at The Ballpark at Jackson on September 5 and 6. For tickets and more information about the Generals, dial 731.988.5299
or log on to our ticket page at JacksonGeneralsBaseball.com!
The Jackson Generals, a West Tennessee franchise since 1998, are the Double-A minor league affiliate of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2017, The Ballpark at Jackson was named the Professional Sports Field of the Year by the Tennessee Turfgrass Association.