Jacksonville’s offensive struggles lead to 4-1 loss to Gwinnett

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.– Coming off an exciting Opening Day win, the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp dropped Saturday night's showdown 4-1 against the Gwinnett Stripers at 121 Financial Ballpark in front of 8,224 fans.

With Jacksonville (1-1) leading by a run, Gwinnett’s (1-1) offense woke up in the sixth inning after being stifled through the first five. Sebastian Rivero laced a double down the right field line for the Stripers first hit of the game. Two batters later, J.P Martinez(2) launched a two-run home run to push Gwinnett ahead, 2-1. David Fletcher worked a walk and Eli White doubled to put runners on second and third with one out. Luis Liberato then knocked in Fletcher to extend the lead to 3-1.

The Stripers extended their lead in the top of the ninth. Phillip Evans (1) cracked a solo home run over the left field wall to plate Gwinnett’s fourth run of the game. The 4-1 lead was enough to secure the Stripers first win of 2024.

Jacksonville got off to a great start in the bottom of the first. Jonathan Davis singled to left and advanced to third on a two-base error from Gwinnett left fielder White. With a runner on third, Jacob Amaya brought Davis home on a groundout to second base to give the Jumbo Shrimp an early 1-0 lead.

Offense was hard to come by through the first five innings. Gwinnett starter Dylan Dodd worked around a baserunner in every inning and limited any further damage. Jacksonville righty Yonny Chirinos tossed five no-hit innings and allowed just a single batter to reach.

Jacksonville and Gwinnett wrap up their series Sunday with first pitch set for 3:05 p.m. The Stripers will hand the ball to RHP Bryce Elder (0-0, 0.00) while the Jumbo Shrimp will counter with RHP Edward Cabrera (0-0, 0.00) who will be making a rehab start. Coverage begins at 2:50 p.m. on Bally Live and MiLB.tv.

Gates open at 2 p.m. for the first Sunday Family FUNday of the season. Thanks to Baptist Health, the Jumbo Shrimp will host pre-game catch on the field for the first 20 minutes after gates open. Kids can also feel like the pros after each Sunday game by rounding the bases once the field is clear.

ABOUT THE JUMBO SHRIMP: The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins and compete in the International League. The team calls 121 Financial Ballpark home for baseball but also a wide variety of additional community focused events with a goal of providing Affordable, Family, FUN to Northeast Florida. Winners of many marketing and sales awards and recognition since the team was rebranded prior to the 2017 season, the Jumbo Shrimp continually lead the state of Florida in attendance across all minor league professional sports organizations.