Gwinnett edges Jacksonville, seeks series win behind strong pitching matchup
Rowdy Tellez’s 431-foot blast flipped a 2-0 deficit, and Gwinnett now turns to Lucas Braun in a tense rematch with Jacksonville.
Rowdy Tellez broke Thursday’s opener open with one swing, crushing a 431-foot three-run homer in the seventh inning to lift Gwinnett past Jacksonville 6-5 at Gwinnett Field. The Stripers’ comeback from a 2-0 deficit pushed them to 16-8, while the Jumbo Shrimp slipped to 11-13 in a game that turned on the sort of high-leverage moment that tends to decide one-run series.
The win came in the first game of a six-game homestand for Gwinnett, which is also using its Georgia Peaches alternate identity from April 24-26. It was another sharp reminder that this matchup has already been defined by momentum swings, not comfortable margins. Gwinnett followed Wednesday’s 11-9 comeback, when it erased deficits of 4-0, 6-2 and 9-4, and the Stripers have now answered Jacksonville’s recent 7-0 win with back-to-back comeback victories. That kind of volatility makes every late inning feel like a referendum on bullpen command, defensive clean work and whether a lineup can convert traffic into damage.
Friday brings another premium pitching matchup. Jacksonville is set to start 22-year-old left-hander Robby Snelling, who entered with a 1-1 record, a 1.89 ERA, 31 strikeouts in 19.0 innings and a 0.95 WHIP. Drafted by the San Diego Padres in Competitive Balance Round A, 39th overall in 2022, Snelling has built a 25-21 career record and a 3.10 ERA in the minors, numbers that suggest he can control a game if he is sharp early. Gwinnett counters with right-hander Lucas Braun, who came in at 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA.
That sets up a rematch that should again hinge on the details that show up in narrow games: whether Jacksonville can seize spots with runners on, whether Gwinnett’s bullpen can protect a lead after the middle innings, and which club makes the cleaner plays behind its pitchers. For Gwinnett, the challenge is keeping one of Triple-A’s best starts rolling. For Jacksonville, the task is simpler and more urgent: turn a close loss into the kind of response that can stop a skid before it deepens.
This article was produced by Prism’s automated news system from verified source data, official records, and press releases, then run through automated quality and moderation checks before publishing. The system is built and supervised by the people who set the standards it runs under. Read our full AI policy.
Did this article answer your question?
