The Nashville Sounds stranded 11 runners on base and went 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position on Friday night, falling 6-1 to the New Orleans Baby Cakes on Friday night in the opener of a three-game series at the Shrine on Airline.
Sounds starter Esmerling Vasquez tossed three perfect innings before departing in his first start since July 7, and New Orleans scored at least one run against each of the four relievers the Sounds used. Wei-Chieh Huang took the loss, yielding two runs in the fourth as New Orleans grabbed a lead it never gave back.
The Sounds’ only run came in the sixth inning. They loaded the bases with no outs against Cakes starter Joe Gunkel, and Eli White delivered a sacrifice fly off Tyler Kinley to cut the deficit to 2-1. The Sounds stranded multiple runners on base four times, and twice had two on with no outs and did not score. Miguel Del Pozo, Joe Barlow and Reed Garrett combined to allow four runs over three innings for the 6-1 final.
The three-game series continues Saturday night at 6:00 CT. Tim Dillard (6-8, 5.28) is scheduled to oppose Mike Kickham (3-4, 4.37).
Post-Game Notes
Ronald Guzman went 1-for-3 with 2 walks in his Sounds debut after being optioned by the Rangers
Scott Heineman went 2-for-4, moved his hitting streak to 8 games, and started at first base for the third consecutive game and sixth overall in his career
Zack Granite snapped a 10-game hitting streak, his third streak of 10-plus games this season
With the loss, the Sounds record is now 43-61
The 2019 season is the 42nd in Nashville Sounds franchise history and first as the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. Single-game tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.
