Tyler Thornburg Fans Season-High 10 For Nashville In Defeat
Nashville, TN – Middle Tennessee native Sonny Gray threw six shutout innings to lead the Sacramento River Cats to a 5-2 victory over the Nashville Sounds in front of a near-capacity crowd of 9,201 fans on Saturday evening at Greer Stadium.
Gray (4-1), who grew up in nearby Smyrna, Tennessee and later starred at Vanderbilt, pitched as a professional for the first time in his hometown and authored a quality-start win for the third straight outing. The 23-year-old held the Sounds to three hits while striking out a season-high eight batters and walking five in his six scoreless frames.
Tyler Thornburg (0-4) matched Gray’s effort with a solid outing of his own for the Sounds. He took a hard-luck loss, however, after striking out a season-high 10 batters while limiting the River Cats to two runs on seven hits over 5 2/3 frames.Nashville batters extended a pair of significant streaks in the early going. Scooter Gennett wasted listed time pushing the PCL’s longest on-base streak of the season to 29 games, drawing a leadoff walk in the bottom of the first inning. Third baseman Stephen Parker extended Nashville’s longest hitting streak of the year to 14 games with a leadoff double to right-center in the second.
Sacramento right fielder Jeremy Barfield stifled an early Sounds’ attempt to break a scoreless tie in the bottom of the second inning when he fielded Caleb Gindl’s two-out single and fired a strike to the plate to gun down Gennett, who attempted to score from second on the play.
River Cats center fielder Michael Choice spotted the visitors a 2-0 lead in the fourth when he lifted a towering two-run homer to left-center off Thornburg. Shane Peterson, who preceded Choice with a single, also scored on the outfielder’s seventh big fly of the year.
Sacramento doubled its lead to 4-0 in the seventh with two runs against reliever Johnnie Lowe. Jemile Weeks, the younger brother of former Sound Rickie Weeks, led off with a triple to right and scored on Grant Green’s ensuing single.
The River Cats tacked on an unearned run later in the frame following a fielding error by Parker at third base. Scott Moore’s two-out RBI double to right plated Shane Peterson. On the play, right fielder Khris Davis combined with shortstop Blake Davis on a relay to the plate to nail Stephen Vogt as he attempted to score a second run on the two-bagger.
The Sounds broke up Sacramento’s shutout bid in the bottom of the eighth inning against reliever Pedro Figueroa. Caleb Gindl drew a leadoff walk and scored when Khris Davis followed with a laser RBI double to center.
Sacramento wrapped up its scoring in the top of the ninth when Green doubled and scored on a two-out Choice RBI single to center off Lowe to increase the lead to 5-1.
The teams continue the series with a 2:05pm matinee on Sunday afternoon at Greer Stadium. Left-hander Zach Kroenke (0-5, 7.30) will look to pick up his first win of the season when he takes the hill for the Sounds to face Sacramento southpaw Andrew Werner (2-5, 8.54).
Box Score
May 11th, 2013
Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sacramento River Cats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 12 | 1 | |
Nashville Sounds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 1 |
Sacramento River Cats | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Player | Pos | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
Jemile Weeks | 2B | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .291 |
Grant Green | DH | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | .302 |
Shane Peterson | 1B | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .306 |
Michael Choice | CF | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | .275 |
Stephen Vogt | C | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .348 |
Scott Moore | LF | 4 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .283 |
Jeremy Barfield | RF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .273 |
Josh Horton | 3B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .238 |
Andy Parrino | SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .141 |
Totals | 39 | 5 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 12 | .273 |
2B: Moore, S 2 (10, Thornburg, Lowe), Green, G (7, Lowe).
3B: Weeks, J (2, Lowe).
HR: Choice (7, 4th inning off Thornburg, 1 on, 0 out).
TB: Weeks, J 4; Vogt 2; Moore, S 5; Green, G 3; Choice 5; Peterson.
RBI: Choice 3 (30), Green, G (19), Moore, S (22).
2-out RBI: Moore, S; Choice.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Vogt 2; Parrino 3.
Team RISP: 3-for-13.
Team LOB: 9.BASERUNNING
SB: Weeks, J (6, 2nd base off Thornburg/Buller), Peterson (5, 2nd base off Thornburg/Buller).FIELDING
E: Gray, S (2, pickoff).
Outfield assists: Barfield (Gennett at home).
DP: (Weeks, J-Parrino-Peterson).
Nashville Sounds | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Player | Pos | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG |
Scooter Gennett | 2B | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | .336 |
Josh Prince | CF | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | .156 |
Caleb Gindl | LF | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | .252 |
Khris Davis | RF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .111 |
Stephen Parker | 3B | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .259 |
Sean Halton | 1B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .252 |
Blake Davis | SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .217 |
Hainley Statia | DH | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .128 |
Dayton Buller | C | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .333 |
Totals | 33 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 14 | .237 |
2B: Parker, S (6, Gray, S), Davis, K (1, Figueroa, P), Gennett (5, Otero).
TB: Buller; Gennett 2; Parker, S 2; Davis, K 2; Gindl; Statia 3.
RBI: Davis, K (6), Gennett (8).
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Statia; Prince 2; Davis, B; Gindl.
GIDP: Davis, K.
Team RISP: 2-for-15.
Team LOB: 10.FIELDING
E: Parker, S (6, fielding).
PB: Buller (8).
Outfield assists: Davis, K (Vogt at home).
Sacramento River Cats | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Player | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |||
Sonny Gray (W, 4-1) | 6.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 2.19 | |||
Hideki Okajima | 1.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2.16 | |||
Pedro Figueroa | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 7.20 | |||
Dan Otero | 1.0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.57 | |||
Totals | 9.0 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 5.00 |
Nashville Sounds | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Player | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |||
Tyler Thornburg (L, 0-4) | 5.2 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 5.59 | |||
Johnnie Lowe | 3.1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6.43 | |||
Totals | 9.0 | 12 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 4.61 |
WP: Gray, S.
HBP: Peterson (by Thornburg).
Pitches-strikes: Gray, S 96-55, Okajima 19-12, Figueroa, P 26-17, Otero 19-12, Thornburg 106-74, Lowe 47-32.
Groundouts-flyouts: Gray, S 6-2, Okajima 0-1, Figueroa, P 0-0, Otero 1-0, Thornburg 3-0, Lowe 5-2.
Batters faced: Gray, S 24, Okajima 5, Figueroa, P 5, Otero 5, Thornburg 26, Lowe 15.
Inherited runners-scored: Lowe 2-0.
Umpires: HP: Hal Gibson III. 1B: Brian Hertzog. 2B: Lance Barrett. 3B: Adam Schwarz.
Weather: 67 degrees, partly cloudy.
Wind: 6 mph, Out to CF.
T: 3:16.
Att: 9,201.