Durham Bulls Lose 4-0 To Gwinnett Braves

[Via email from the Durham Bulls' broadcaster Neil Solondz.]

Mitch Talbot allowed two runs in the first, and that was enough for the Braves on Monday afternoon in a 4-0 Bulls loss to Gwinnett. Talbot allowed a leadoff single to Gregor Blanco, and then Diory Hernandez grounded out to first, with Blanco advancing to second. Talbot, who walked four, then walked the next two batters to load the bases. Talbot then allowed a sac fly to right to Van Pope, and J.C. Holt followed with an RBI infield single off Talbot's glove for a 2-0 lead.

That was enough for Kris Medlen (5-0), who now has a league-best 0.96 ERA after pitching 6.2 scoreless innings. Medlen allowed only two hits, back-to-back in the fourth, but got John Jaso to hit into an inning-ending double play with runners at the corners. Medlen has pitched scoreless ball over three straight starts, covering 19.2 innings.

Gwinnett tacked on single runs meanwhile in the third and seventh. In the third Brandon Jones singled to left, scoring Diory Hernandez, who had doubled to right on a 1-2 pitch from Talbot. In the seventh the Braves took advantage of a leadoff walk, as Brooks Conrad singled home Wes Timmons from third with two out.

Durham collected three hits, two by Ray Sadler. Joe Bateman pitched a 1-2-3 eighth with two strikeouts in his Bulls debut.

The Bulls, 3-3 on a six-game road trip and 18-13 on the year, open an eight-game home stand on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. against Louisville. David Price starts for Durham. Coverage begins at 6:45 on 99.9 the Fan HD2. Tickets are available at www.durhambulls.com.