COLUMBUS, OH – The Columbus Clippers (60-44) beat the Gwinnett Stripers (62-43) by a 7-3 score on Saturday night in game two of a three-game series at Huntington Park. Rafael Ortega and Alex Jackson each homered to raise the Stripers’ season home run total to 162, a new record for an Atlanta Braves Triple-A club. The previous record of 161 homers was set by the Richmond Braves in 1993.
Scoring Recap: Columbus took a 1-0 lead in the second inning as Bobby Bradley scored from third on a force play. In the third, RBI doubles by Mark Mathias and Bradley pushed the Clippers’ lead to 3-0. A solo homer in the fourth from Ka’ai Tom (1) made it 4-0. The Stripers got on the board in the sixth as Ortega (20) hit a two-run homer to left to cut the deficit to 4-2. In the bottom of the sixth, a two-run homer by Ryan Flaherty (16) and a solo shot by Eric Haase (24) widened the gap to 7-2. Jackson (23) closed out the scoring with a long line-drive homer to center in the ninth.
Stripers Stats: Kolby Allard (L, 7-5) was tagged for 10 hits and seven earned runs in 5.2 innings. Ben Rowen worked the final 2.1 innings with one hit and two strikeouts. Offensively, Ortega was 1-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs, and Jackson was 1-for-3 with a homer and one RBI.
Clippers Stats: Danny Salazar, pitching on a rehab assignment for the Cleveland Indians, worked 4.0 scoreless innings with one hit and five strikeouts. Cam Hall (W, 3-0) gave up the two-run homer to Ortega in 2.0 innings of work. Josh Smith allowed the Jackson homer in the top of the ninth. At the plate, Yu Chang was 3-for-4, and Bradley was 2-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI. Tom and Flaherty each went 1-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs.
Postgame Notes: Ortega is the fourth Stripers player to reach the 20-homer mark this season, joining Adam Duvall (29), Jackson (23), and Travis Demeritte (20). Ortega has scored in 53 of Gwinnett’s 105 games this season. Despite the loss, Gwinnett maintains the International League’s best record at 62-43 and holds a 1.5-game lead over Durham for first place in the IL South Division.
Next Game (Sunday, July 28): Gwinnett at Columbus, 4:05 p.m. at Huntington Park. RHP Bryse Wilson (5-7, 4.30 ERA) for the Stripers vs. RHP Michael Peoples (7-4, 4.77 ERA) for the Clippers. Radio Broadcast: 3:50 p.m. on 97.7 and 93.5 FM “The Other Side of the River.”
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The Gwinnett Stripers are the Triple-A International League affiliate of the Atlanta Braves, playing their 11th season at Coolray Field in Lawrenceville, Ga. For tickets, team merchandise or more information, visit GoStripers.com. Follow the Stripers on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at GoStripers.