For the fourth straight day, the Memphis Redbirds rallied back from a late deficit to beat Louisville. This time, the ‘Birds scored twice in the eighth to erase a 2-0 deficit and capped off the rally on a walk-off single in the bottom of the tenth to win 3-2. A season-high crowd of 5,156 fans at AutoZone Park watched the thrilling victory.
Early on, the story of the game was pitching. Tommy Parsons twirled a gem for Memphis (8-9), going a season-long seven innings while allowing just two runs on five hits. The right-hander struck out five Bats batters in the process, and most impressively: he did not surrender a single walk.
On the other side, the Louisville (4-12) pitching staff was even more impressive. Through the first seven innings, Braden Shipley, Edgar Garcia, Hector Perez, and Brandon Finnegan allowed just two hits while striking out five ‘Birds batters.
Then came the eighth, and the seemingly inevitable Memphis rally. Evan Mendoza singled to left field with one out and promptly scored on Kramer Robertson’s triple to the right-center field power alley. The very next batter, Lars Nootbaar, singled home Robertson to tie the game. Nootbaar has four RBIs so far in the series.
The game stayed tied until the 10th, when the Redbirds put the cherry on top of the winning sundae. As per extra-inning rules, Rayder Ascanio started at second with nobody out. After Matt Szczur dropped down a perfect sacrifice bunt, Mendoza came to the plate with a chance to play hero. He did just that, lining a sharp single into right field to send the big crowd home happy. Mendoza now has six hits in the series.
The Memphis Redbirds are the proud Triple-A Affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. Memphis has claimed four League Championships and one Triple-A National Championship since their affiliation with St. Louis began in 1998. For the latest team news, follow the Redbirds on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Ticket information can be found at memphisredbirds.com/tickets.
