ROCHESTER, NY – The Rochester Red Wings (58-56) clipped the Gwinnett Stripers (66-47) 8-3 Tuesday night in the first of the three-game series at Frontier Field. Drew Waters was 3-for-5 with an RBI in his Triple-A debut, Cristian Pache, also playing in his first Triple-A game was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Ian Anderson pitched 3.0 innings in his first Triple-A start.
Scoring Recap: The Red Wings took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first as Alejandro De Aza walked with the bases loaded. Gwinnett scored two runs in the top of the third on RBI singles by Waters and Andres Blanco to give them a 2-1 lead. A grand slam by De Aza off Anderson in the bottom of the third gave the Red Wings the lead right back at 5-2. Pache delivered an RBI single to left in the fifth to trim the lead to 5-3. But a two-run double in the sixth by Ramon Flores made it 7-3. In the eighth, Flores (1) gave Rochester an 8-3 lead with a solo homer to center off Corbin Clouse.
Stripers Stats: Anderson (L, 0-1) was tagged for five earned runs in 3.0 innings of work with six hits and five strikeouts. Patrick Weigel entered in the fourth and worked 2.0 scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Wes Parsons gave up two runs in 2.0 innings and Clouse pitched the bottom of the eighth with two hits and one earned run. At the plate, Waters led the way with three hits and an RBI. Pache went 2-for-5 with an RBI and Ryan LaMarre went 2-for-5 with a triple.
Red Wings Stats: Sean Poppen started and lasted 3.2 innings with six hits, two earned runs and six strikeouts. Preston Guilmet (W, 2-6) pitched 2.0 scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Offensively, Flores was 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs. The grand slam by De Aza was his only hit in three at-bats, he finished with five RBIs.
Postgame Notes: The three hits by Waters gave him 137 on the season between Gwinnett and Double-A Mississippi. Rafael Ortega picked up his International League leading 34th double. He is now one off the Gwinnett record of 35 doubles held by both Freddie Freeman (2010) and Ernesto Mejia (2013). The triple by LaMarre is his league leading 8th of the season. Despite the loss, the Stripers maintain a 2.5 game lead in the International League South standings.
Next Game (Wednesday, August 7): Gwinnett at Rochester, 7:05 p.m. at Frontier Field. RHP Kyle Wright (9-4, 4.54 ERA) for the Stripers vs. LHP Lewis Thorpe (5-4, 5.02 ERA) for the Red Wings. 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.