Chris Ellis spun six no-hit innings, but an elevated pitch count prompted Triple-A Gwinnett to turn to the bullpen.
Despite the effort from the 23-year-old, Gwinnett lost 2-1 to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday night as the International League Finals evened up at a game each.
Ellis, the Braves' No. 16 prospect, lost each of his final three starts of the regular season, but he has been nearly unhittable in the postseason.
Ellis threw just 54 of his 104 pitches for strikes, but he struck out five in six scoreless frames. In his first start of the playoffs, the right-hander gave up just three hits in seven scoreless innings.
"My fastball command was kind of hit or miss, so I had to rely on some breaking stuff," Ellis told MiLB.com. "I had a couple nice plays behind me, so I was kind of just relying on my defense, relying on pitching inside and getting some weak contact."
Six no-hit innings are always impressive, but even moreso when Ellis' history is considered. The Braves prospect had struggled against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in the past, giving up 13 runs on 11 hits in four innings over his prior two starts against the team.
The rest of the best performances from top prospects Wednesday:
• Padres prospects Manuel Margot (Padres' No. 2, No. 27 overall) and Carlos Asuaje (Padres' No. 20) led the way offensively as Triple-A El Paso topped Oklahoma City and took a 2-0 lead in the Pacific Coast League Finals. Margot, who finished 3-for-5 with an RBI, tripled and scored in the first to jump-start the scoring. Meanwhile, Asuaje joined the party a little later with a solo homer in the fifth and a sacrifice fly in the sixth. Asuaje finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs.

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• Francisco Mejia (Indians' No. 4, No. 88 overall) provided all of Class A Advanced Lynchburg's offense, but it was not enough as his club fell to Myrtle Beach in the Carolina League championship. Mejia doubled in the first and homered in the third, finishing a strong season with a 2-for-4, three-RBI night.
• Richie Martin (Athletics' No. 6) isn't known for his power, (three homers in 91 games during the regular season) but the 21-year-old shortstop flashed some pop in Game 2 of the Texas League Finals. Martin hit a solo blast and also added a sac fly as part of a 1-for-3, two-RBI night.

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• Yairo Munoz (Athletics' No. 7) went 2-for-5 as Double-A Midland took a 2-0 lead in the Texas League Finals. Munoz drove in a run with an RBI single in the fifth and has three RBIs through the first two games of the series.
• Donnie Dewees (Cubs' No. 11) scored the go-ahead run in Class A Advanced Myrtle Beach's title-clinching win. Dewees went 3-for-5 in the game, capping a playoff run in which he hit .423 with hits in five of six games.
• Kyle Farmer (Dodgers' No. 24) put together another multi-hit game for Triple-A Oklahoma City. In Game 2 of the series (El Paso leads 2-0), Farmer went 3-for-5 with an RBI. Farmer has hits in all six playoff games he's played in and has at least two hits in four of the games.
• Rob Kaminsky (Indians' No. 17) led Double-A Akron to a commanding 2-0 series lead with 6 2/3 solid innings in Game 2 of the Eastern League Finals. Kaminsky was knocked around a bit in his semifinals start, but he commanded the zone well in the finals. The lefty fired 68 of his 99 pitches for strikes, fanning eight and giving up two earned runs on seven hits.
• Nellie Rodriguez (Indians' No. 24) gave Kaminsky some run support, going 1-for-3 with two RBIs in Akron's 4-2 win over Trenton. Rodriguez, a first baseman, played in 132 games for the RubberDucks this season, hitting .250 and collecting 85 RBIs.

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• Luis Liberato (Mariners' No. 19) put together a three-hit night a Class A Clinton jumped out to a 1-0 series lead in the Midwest League Finals. After hitting .258 in 100 games during the regular season, the 20-year-old hit a pair of doubles and went 3-for-5 with an RBI in Game 1.
• Ryan O'Hearn (Royals' No. 8) put together eight three-hit games during the regular season and added another in Game 2 of the Texas League Finals. The left fielder went 3-for-4 with an RBI in Double-A Arkansas' loss.
• Billy McKinney (Yankees' No. 15) continues to hit well, but it has not been enough as Double-A Trenton finds itself on the brink of elimination in the Eastern League Finals after another loss. McKinney went 2-for-4 with a double and a triple and is now hitting .500 (10-for-20) in the postseason.