DURHAM, North Carolina – The Gwinnett Stripers (15-13, 53-39) scored four runs in the first inning on the way to a 7-3 win over the Durham Bulls (18-9, 47-55) in game one but saw a 4-0 lead slip away in a 5-4 walk-off loss in game two on Wednesday night at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The series is tied at 1-1.
Decisive Plays (Game 1): The Stripers stormed out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning on RBI singles from Sean Murphy and Carlos Santana and a two-run double from Andrew McCutchen. Durham immediately cut it to 4-3 in the bottom of the first on an RBI single by Logan Driscoll and two-run single by Tatem Levins. Gwinnett pushed the lead to 6-3 in the third on another RBI double from McCutchen and RBI single from Kyle Farmer. In the fourth, Patrick Clohisy’s solo shot to center (3) extended it to 7-3, the final.
Key Contributors (Game 1): Starter Herick Hernandez (W, 1-0) worked past a rocky first inning to go 5.0 frames (5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 6 SO) for his first Triple-A win. Blake Burkhalter pitched the final 2.0 innings (2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 SO). McCutchen (3-for-4, 2 doubles, 3 RBIs), Murphy (3-for-4, RBI), Clohisy (2-for-4, double, homer, RBI), and Farmer (2-for-4, RBI) all had multi-hit games for the Stripers. Levins went 1-for-4 with two RBIs for the Bulls.
Decisive Plays (Game 2): Gwinnett scored in the first inning again in the nightcap, getting a 428-foot solo shot from Rowdy Tellez (13) to go up 1-0. An inning later, a two-run double by Cal Conley made it 3-0 Stripers. In the third, Brett Wisely lifted a solo homer (7) to boost the lead to 4-0. Durham scored the final five runs of the game, however, winning it in the bottom of the seventh inning on a one-out single by Austin Slater.
Key Contributors (Game 2): Left-hander Austin Gomber stepped in on short notice to start game two for the Stripers and went 4.0 innings (3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO) in a no-decision. Conley (2-for-3, double, 2 RBIs), Wisely (2-for-3, homer, RBI), and Tellez (1-for-4, homer, RBI) combined to drive in the four runs. For the Bulls, Slater went 2-for-2 with the game-winning RBI.
Noteworthy: Murphy and Ha-Seong Kim (1-for-4, run, steal) both played in game one as they continued rehab assignments for the Atlanta Braves. Burkhalter has not allowed a run over his last 13 appearances (16.0 IP) between Double-A Columbus and Gwinnett. Through six games with Gwinnett, McCutchen is batting .400 (8-for-20, 3 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 SB, 1.100 OPS).
Next Game (Thursday, July 30): Gwinnett Stripers at Durham Bulls, 6:45 p.m. ET at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Radio Broadcast: 6:30 p.m. on MyCountry993.com. Live Video Stream: Bally Sports Live.