In front of a packed house of nearly 5,000 fans at Keesler Federal Park, former Mississippi State pitcher Tyson Hardin had a dazzling debut with the Biloxi Shuckers on Wednesday night.
Hardin struck out five over six innings of work, allowing four hits in the 6-2 win over the Knoxville Smokies. The Shuckers win clinched the Milwaukee Brewers AA team a first-half title in the Southern League. The division title marks Biloxi’s first since 2019 and clinches a playoff title for the second year in a row.
Hardin (1-0) was called up from High-A Wisconsin on Tuesday as he continues to work through the system in hopes of making his MLB debut sooner than later. He was selected by the Brewers in the 12th round of last year’s draft.
Biloxi fell behind in the first inning on a Corey Joyce RBI single. Hardin settled and worked out of the early jam with two strikeouts. In the second, the Shuckers struck back on a wild pitch with the bases loaded, tying the game at 1-1.
Shorly after, Biloxi outfielder Bladimir Restituyo smashed a three-run home run over the left field wall. His second long ball of the season made the score 4-1 before the Shuckers stretched their lead to 5-1 off a Luis Lara RBI single in the third inning.
The Smokies made it 5-2 in the fourth when a solo home run came off the bat of BJ Murray, Jr. Biloxi made up for the run in the seventh when Mississippi native Cooper Pratt hit into a double play that scored Luke Adams.
The series between Biloxi (40-25) and Knoxville (30-34) will continue on Thursday with another former Bulldog set to take the mound for the Shuckers. K.C. Hunt (4-4) will look to return to the win column when facing off against Knoxville’s Nick Dean (1-1).
