M-BRAVES SPOIL SMOKIES COMEBACK WITH WALK-OFF HOME RUN
Hill, Maldonado reach four times each, Myers drives in tying run in loss
PEARL, MS – The Tennessee Smokies (15-29) lost 4-3 Friday night at Trustmark Park to the Mississippi Braves (28-18). Down 3-2 in the ninth, Connor Myers hit an RBI single to tie the game at three. In the bottom half, M-Braves catcher Carlos Martinez ended the game with a walk-off solo home run.
Darius Hill and Carlos Sepulveda opened up the night with back-to-back singles in the first. Hill then scored the game’s first run on Tyler Payne’s RBI groundout. Martinez’s RBI double in the second tied the game. Braden Shewmake’s two-run double in the third put the M-Braves in front for the first time.
Nelson Maldonado led off the seventh inning with a solo home run, his second of the season, to cut the Smokies deficit to 3-2. Maldonado led off the ninth with a single and scored the game tying run on Myers’s RBI single. After RHP Cayne Ueckert (L, 1-1) retired the first batter in the bottom half, Martinez ended the game with a solo home run to left field.
RHP Javier Assad had six strikeouts in four innings. He allowed three runs on four hits and three walks. LHP Bryan Hudson and LHP Wyatt Short combined to toss three scoreless innings in relief. Hill finished 2-for-3 with two walks, Maldonado was 3-for-3 with a home run and two runs, he was also hit by a pitch. Myers was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk.
The Smokies and M-Braves continue their series at Trustmark Park Saturday night, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 PM ET. Fans can hear all Smokies games by going to https://www.milb.com/tennessee/fans/audio-listen-live.
The Smokies return home on Tuesday June 29 to begin a six game series with the Rocket City Trash Pandas. Tickets are available and can be purchased online, over the phone, or by visiting the box office.
ABOUT THE TENNESSEE SMOKIES
The Tennessee Smokies are the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. Members of the eight-team Double-A South League, Smokies baseball has been entertaining families and fans of America’s national pastime in the East Tennessee region for over 100 years. To learn more about the Tennessee Smokies, visit www.smokiesbaseball.com.
