LAWRENCEVILLE — Gwinnett Braves’ pitchers tied a season high with 10 walks in a 5-4 loss to the Pawtucket Red Sox on Saturday night at Coolray Field.
Right-handed starter Cody Martin matched a career high with six walks in the first 6.0 innings, right-handed reliever David Carpenter walked two in the seventh, righty Ryan Kelly(L, 1-1) issued a walk in the eighth and right-hander Peter Moylan allowed the final free pass of the night in the ninth.
Kelly’s walk sparked the deciding three-run rally for Pawtucket (34-35) in the eighth inning. Garin Cecchini drew the walk with one out, moved to second on a single by Deven Marrero and scored on a double by Luke Montz to give the PawSox a 3-2 lead. Matt Spring followed with a sacrifice fly to center field to drive in Marrero, and Mike Miller doubled to right field to score Montz to extend the lead to 5-2.
The G-Braves (32-35) nearly tied the game in the bottom of the eighth. A two-run single by Adonis Garcia gave him a career-high four RBIs on the night and cut the deficit to 5-4. It also placed runners on the corners with nobody out. However, Christian Bethancourt’s ground ball back to right-handed reliever Dayan Diaz allowed the Pawtucket pitcher to cut downJoey Terdoslavich between third base and home plate. Diaz then induced a fly-out and pop-out to end the inning.
Garcia originally gave the G-Braves a 2-0 lead in the third inning with double down the left-field line to begin his 2-for-4 performance. That hit scored Jose Peraza and Terdoslavich. Peraza started the two-out rally with a triple into the right-field corner, and Terdoslavich drew his second walk of the game from Pawtucket left-handed starter Henry Owens.
Pawtucket right fielder Carlos Peguero slashed the G-Braves’ lead to one run in top of the fourth. He blasted a solo home run to center field, giving him three homers and seven RBIs through the first two games of the series.
A one-out walk to Allen Craig in the sixth inning cost Martin his second run of the night. Craig came around to score on a sacrifice fly to right field by Marrero that followed a double by Peguero. Martin finished his 6.0 innings with two runs and three hits allowed to go with five strikeouts.
Carpenter also struck out one batter in his 1.0 inning. Kelly struck out one but also gave up three runs and three hits along with his walk. Moylan gave up a leadoff double before his walk but got through the inning scoreless.
Peraza joined Garcia to lead the G-Braves’ offense. He finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored. It was his third straight multi-hit effort and team-leading 23rd multi-hit game of the season.
Owens gave up two runs on four hits and two walks with one strikeout in 6.1 innings. The hit and walk righty Matt Barnes (W, 1-0) allowed in the eighth came around to score, but Diaz (S, 1) recorded the final six outs despite a walk and hit allowed along with two strikeouts.
No hitter in the Pawtucket lineup aside from Peguero had more than one hit, although Montz, Miller and Quintin Berry each had a double.
Gwinnett and Pawtucket will conclude their three-game series with a 2:05 p.m. contest Sunday at Coolray Field. Right-hander Alex White (0-0, 0.00 ERA) gets the start for the G-Braves. Righty Jess Todd (2-2, 5.22 ERA) will start on the mound for the PawSox. Tony Schiavone has the play-by-play call on 97.7 FM and WSBRadio.com beginning at 1:30 p.m.
Fans can celebrate Father’s Day with the G-Braves on Sunday by purchasing a special $25 ticket package that includes two Infield Box tickets, two ice cream sundaes, a G-Braves hat for dad and a pre-game dugout photo opportunity. The first 2,000 fans through the gates will also receive a red bandana courtesy of the American Heroes Channel.
It’s also a “Bark in the Park” day when fans can watch the game with their dogs in the Lawn Seating area beyond the outfield wall. The G-Braves will also offer their normal “Sunday Funday” activities such as Pre-Game Catch on the Field and post-game Kids Run the Bases. To purchase tickets, call the Coolray Field Ticket Office at 678-277-0340 or visit GwinnettBraves.com/tickets.
