Memphis, TN – The Nashville Sounds crushed the Memphis Redbirds in a 17-3 victory Saturday night at AutoZone Park. The 17 runs were fueled by Akil Baddoo’s seven RBI on the night, including his second grand slam of the week, while Tyson Hardin recorded another quality start en-route to his third win of the season for the Sounds.
The Sounds opened the game with a leadoff home run by Tyler Black, his second long ball of the season, into right field and secured the 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Hardin made his seventh start of the season for the Sounds and kept the lead to one run after he tossed back-to-back 1-2-3 innings in the bottom of the first and the second.
Nashville extended its lead to 2-0 in the top of the third inning as two straight one-out singles by Luis Matos and Luke Adams set up Jeferson Quero to hit a soft blooper just past shortstop into left field and scored Matos for the two-run lead. Memphis answered right back and cut the Sounds lead with a leadoff home run by Colton Ledbetter in the bottom of the third inning before Hardin worked around a single to get out of the inning.
In the top of the fourth inning, the Sounds took a large 7-1 as Brock Wilken crushed a leadoff homer to begin the frame into left field, his fourth long ball of the season. After Eduardo Garcia drew a walk, Black hit a single, and Luke Adams drew the second walk of the frame to load the bases.
Baddoo obliterated his second grand slam of the week, his seventh blast of the season, into center field and grew the Sounds early lead to six runs. Hardin continued his stellar pitching in the bottom of the fourth, working around a leadoff single to get out of the frame. However, Memphis cut into the Sounds lead as Hardin allowed an RBI-single for the 7-2 lead still in favor of Nashville.
The Redbirds continued to cut into the Sounds lead in the bottom of the seventh inning as they crossed just one run with an RBI-single off of Hardin. He ended his night tossing his fourth quality start of the season for the Sounds before he was relieved for Easton McGee with two outs in the frame. Quero caught Ledbetter stealing for second base to get out of the inning for a 7-3 lead.
Nashville poured on the second six-run inning of the week in the top of the eighth, drawing four consecutive walks by Garcia, Black, Matos and Adams for an 8-3 lead. The Sounds offense blew the game out of proportion with Baddoo ripping a bases-clearing double down the first base line, his, extending the large lead to eight runs. Quero followed with a two-run homer to left field, his eighth of the season, for the 13-3 lead.
Nashville added four more insurance runs in the top of the ninth inning as a Matos single, an Adams double and hit by pitch at Quero, loaded the bases. Eddys Leonard ripped the Sounds second bases-clearing double of the game, scoring Matos, Adams and Quero for the 13-run lead. Wilken added the cherry on top with an RBI-single into left field and drove home Leonard for the 17-3 lead, the most runs the team has scored this season. Jared Koenig and JB Bukauskas each tossed a scoreless inning in the eighth and the ninth to hold on to a 17-3 Sounds win.
The Nashville Sounds and Memphis Redbirds conclude the first half of the season on Sunday with first pitch scheduled for 1:05pm. Nashville will look to spoil the Redbirds chances at the first half International League title with a series finale win.
