Bird rips game-winning double, Eveld strands winning run in 8-5 win
Lawrenceville, Ga. – The Jumbo Shrimp let a 5-1 lead in the eighth inning slip away, but clutch pitching and timely hitting helped Jacksonville prevail in a thriller over Gwinnett by a score of 8-5 in 11 innings at Coolray Field.
Jacksonville (18-11) has now won three straight games and claims their fourth series win in five matchups so far this season. Gwinnett (15-14) stranded 11 men on base, going just 1-for-16 with runners in scoring position.
With Gwinnett down by two runs and down to their final out in the ninth inning, Cristian Pache lined a two-run double down the right field line to score Ryan Goins and Orlando Arcia to tie the score against Brett Eibner. Two batters later, Eibner left the game with an injury, and Tommy Eveld (win, 1-0) entered with the winning run on third base, but he struck out Johan Camargo to send the game to extras tied at five.
Eveld flirted with danger in the tenth inning, but the right-hander came up big on the mound. He struck out the side to again strand the winning run at third base, and strand the bases loaded, after he intentionally walked a pair in the frame.
The Jacksonville offense took advantage in the 11th inning. With Bryson Brigman starting the frame at second base, Corey Bird ripped a double to the gap in right-center to score him and put the Shrimp back in front, 6-5. Lewin Díaz then followed with a two-run homer, his second longball in as many days, to push the lead to 8-5.
Eveld then retired the side in order in the 11th to seal the victory, capping his extraordinary performance in relief. He finished by working 2.1 scoreless, striking out five to match a career-high, and stranding six men on base.
The Stripers struck first in the ballgame, scoring in the first inning against Jordan Holloway, who made the rehab start for Jacksonville. Pache and Jason Kipnis opened the frame with back-to-back singles, and Pache scored on a double-play ball one batter later to make it 1-0 Gwinnett.
Jacksonville tied the score in the second. Díaz doubled down the left field line to lead off the inning, and with two outs, Holloway singled through the left side to score him and make it 1-1. Jumbo Shrimp pitcher now have four hits in the series.
Holloway tossed 2.1 innings allowing one run, on two hits, walked one, and struck out two. He threw 43 pitches in the outing. Josh A. Smith followed Holloway by firing the next 4.2 innings scoreless, allowing just two baserunners, and striking out six. Smith has now gone 11.2 consecutive innings without allowing a run.
The Shrimp surged ahead in the third. After Brigman reached on an error to begin the inning, Jesús Sánchez blasted his eighth home run of the season to center field to put Jacksonville in front, 3-1. Later in the frame, after Díaz walked, Chad Wallach followed with another two-run blast to push the advantage to 5-1. Díaz reached base four times in the contest.
Gwinnett trimmed the deficit to two in the eighth inning against Alexander Guillen, using an RBI groundout and a wild pitch to plate a pair, before they tied the game in the ninth.
The two teams will face off in the finale tomorrow with first pitch in Lawrenceville set for 1:05 p.m. The broadcast will begin at 12:50 p.m. on ESPN 690 and online on the ESPN 690 Facebook page and on MiLB.tv.
ABOUT THE JUMBO SHRIMP: The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp offer affordable family fun at 121 Financial Ballpark. Their inaugural season garnered the Southern League’s Don Mincher Organization of the Year, Promotional Trophy and Jimmy Bragan Executive of the Year, won by general manager Harold Craw. The club added its second Promotional Trophy in three years following the 2019 season. The 2021 season marks the return of Triple-A baseball in Jacksonville. To experience the excitement with the terrific value of ticket and group options, call the Jumbo Shrimp at (904) 358-2846 or visit www.jaxshrimp.com.
