Louisville Hands Stripers 4-0 Loss in Rain-Shortened Opener

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Louisville Bats (20-25) raced out to a four-run lead and let Mother Nature play the role of closer on Tuesday night at Louisville Slugger Field, sending the Gwinnett Stripers (20-26) to a 4-0 loss in a rain-shortened five-inning contest. Ronald Acuña Jr. continued his rehab assignment for the Atlanta Braves and went 1-for-2 as the designated hitter.

Decisive Plays: Louisville took a 1-0 lead in the second inning as Edwin Rios doubled and scored on a single by Jack Rogers. In the third, Blake Dunn and Francisco Urbaez both singled and Rios followed with a three-run home run (7) to center for a 4-0 lead. All four runs were allowed by Bryce Elder (L, 0-2) in his first Triple-A start since being optioned by Atlanta on May 16.

Key Contributors: Acuña and Eddys Leonard (1-for-1, walk) were the only Stripers to reach base against rehabbing Cincinnati Reds starter Wade Miley (W, 1-0), who tossed a 5.0-inning complete-game shutout. Rios went 2-for-2 with a double, homer, and three RBIs for the Bats.

Noteworthy: The loss was Gwinnett’s first at Louisville Slugger Field since August 22, 2021, snapping a six-game winning streak. Carlos Rodriguez went 0-for-2 to snap a 13-game on-base streak.

Next Game (Wednesday, May 21): Gwinnett at Louisville, 12:05 p.m. at Louisville Slugger Field. RHP Hurston Waldrep (4-2, 5.77 ERA) starts for the Stripers opposite RHP Randy Wynne (1-4, 5.18 ERA) of the Bats. Radio Broadcast: 11:50 a.m. on MyCountry993.com.

Next Home Game (Tuesday, May 27): Jacksonville at Gwinnett, 7:05 p.m. at Coolray Field. The first 500 fans to the ballpark will receive a T-shirt modeled after the No. 50 jersey of Stripers manager Kanekoa Texiera (size XL only). Radio Broadcast: 6:50 p.m. on MyCountry993.com.