On Wednesday, the IronPigs played their second game of a six-game set against the Gwinnett Stripers at Coolray Field in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
In the first game of this series between these two teams, the IronPigs took the win on Tuesday night by a final score of 15-9 in a slugfest. Wednesday’s game ran tighter than that first game, as neither side hit any home runs. The Stripers returned the favor and beat the IronPigs by a final score of 8-4.
The Stripers were first to get a score on the board in the bottom of the first inning. There were runners on first and second when Luke Waddell approached the plate. He hit a single, allowing former New York Yankee Alex Verdugo to score while Waddell and Charles Leblanc forged ahead to second and third bases, respectively. Leblanc scored moments later after Jose Devers hit a sacrifice fly, putting the score at 2-0.
The IronPigs did their best and were able to catch up in the top of the second when Cal Stevenson hit a double, scoring Oscar Mercado. This allowed the two teams to begin battling it out on the field. When Josh Beraux came to the plate, he hit a fly ball that got Stevenson home, evening out the score at two.
In the top of the third, the IronPigs scored two more runs. Weston Wilson and Otto Kemp scored, and the IronPigs took a 4-2 lead. However, it did not stay that way for long during the third inning.
Devers returned to the plate and hit a single to right field, plating Eddy Alvarez and LeBlance tying the game up at four. Waddell scored again a few moments later, and the Stripers took the lead, making it 5-4. The IronPigs stayed where they were for the rest of the game while the Stripers moved ahead.
Cody Milligan scored in the bottom of the fourth inning after Leblanc hit a sacrifice fly to the outfield. Following that, Alvarez scored again and put the team even further ahead with a score of 7-4.
No one was able to score again, and the game got even tougher. In the bottom of the eighth, the Stripers pulled through and put one more run on the scoreboard, ending the game with a score of 8-4.
Both teams have had one win so far in this series. If the IronPigs can make it happen, they will come out on top at the end of the week.
The IronPigs will return to play the Stripers again on Thursday at 7:05 p.m. at Coolray Field.
