Too Little Too Late Again for the Missions

MEMPHIS--The San Antonio Missions losing streak stretched to a season-high three games as they fell short to the Memphis Redbirds, 7-6, Wednesday night at AutoZone Park.
San Antonio had to go with a pitching-by-committee game plan after their scheduled starter, Aaron Wilkerson, was recalled by the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday. Manager Rick Sweet employed six different pitchers to navigate through eight innings, with reliever Brad Kuntz taking the loss in his 2019 season debut.
Missions left-fielder Tyler Saladino continued a torrid stretch. Saladino missed a cycle by a triple but extended his RBI streak to seven games with sixth inning homerun. The blast was his sixth of the season and fifth in his last six games, putting him more than a third of the way from his career high of 16 homers, established in 2011 in Single-A with the White Sox.
San Antonio connected for a total of three homers on the night for the second straight game.
Mauricio Dubón connected for his second big fly in as many nights and Jacob Nottingham slugged his first of the season.
The Missions never led after falling behind 3-0 by the end of the third inning.
Nottingham briefly knotted the score when he crushed a game-tying three-run blast in the fourth frame that hit the back wall of the Redbirds bullpen on the fly in left-center field.
Memphis quickly responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning courtesy of Jon Nogowski's two-run blast to left off Kuntz, giving the Redbirds a lead they would not relinquish. 
The loss dropped the Missions to 7-7 on the season and put them two games back of first-place Round Rock in the American Southern Division.
NOTES: The Missions have surrendered 25 runs during the current three-game skid after allowing the same run total in the previous five games....Keston Hiura extended his hitting streak to a season-high six games but saw his RBI streak end at five games...Catcher David Freitas walked in his only plate appearance in his Missions debut....Outfielder Corey Ray was placed on the injured list (finger) prior to Wednesday's contest...The loss was the club's seventh one-run decision and fourth one-run defeat thru the first 14 games.
Thursday: RH Burch Smith (1-0, 0.82) vs. RH Alex Reyes (1-0, 0.00) 7:05 PM
KONO 860 AM