NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk Tides (52-73) plated a run in the bottom of the eighth inning and edged the Gwinnett Stripers (72-53) 6-5 Monday night in the first of the four-game series at Harbor Park. The Gwinnett offense was highlighted by home runs from Andres Blanco and Jack Lopez.
Scoring Recap: The Tides broke a scoreless tie with a RBI single from Zach Vincej in the bottom of the second off Gwinnett starter Kyle Wright. The lead grew to 4-0 an inning later as Dwight Smith Jr. stroked a run scoring double and Ryan Mountcastle (23) later crushed a two-run homer off Wright. An RBI double by Drew Waters in the top of the fifth off Norfolk starter Chandler Shepherd cut the lead to 4-1. However, the Tides got the run back a half inning later on a RBI single to center by Jose Rondon. The Stripers got a two-run homer to right in the sixth by Blanco (19) to cut the lead to 5-3 and then a two-run shot by Lopez (10) in the top of the eighth off reliever Dillon Tate to tie the game at five. Norfolk scored the eventual winning run in the bottom of the eighth as Smith Jr. drilled a double off Jeremy Walker, scoring Rylan Bannon from first.
Stripers Stats: Wright worked 6.0 innings with 10 hits, five earned runs and 11 strikeouts. Walker (L, 1-1) went 2.0 innings with two hits, one earned run and two strikeouts. At the plate, Johan Camargo was 3-for-4 with a run and a double. Blanco was 1-for-2 with two runs and a two-run homer. Pedro Florimon was 2-for-4 with a run.
Tides Stats: Shepherd pitched 6.0 innings with seven hits, three earned runs and six strikeouts. Tate (W, 2-0) went 2.0 innings with two hits and two earned runs. Tayler Scott (S, 6) worked a perfect ninth inning.
Postgame Notes: The 11 strikeouts by Wright was a season-high. The Stripers have now hit 186 homers in 125 games this season. The loss was only the second for Gwinnett in six games in Norfolk this season.
Next Game (Tuesday, August 20): Gwinnett at Norfolk, 7:05 p.m. at Harbor Park. RHP Touki Toussaint (1-3, 5.76 ERA) for the Stripers vs. LHP Bruce Zimmerman (0-2, 6.30 ERA) for the Tides. Radio Broadcast: 6:50 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.