Bruce Zimmermann Goes Five Strong Innings in Sounds 9-5 Loss to Jacksonville

NASHVILLE – Nashville dropped their sixth-straight game on Saturday night in front of a sold-out crowd at First Horizon Park on Star Wars Night. After falling behind early, the Sounds responded to hold a brief lead before Jacksonville took command of the game in the sixth inning en route to their fifth straight win of the series. Drew Avans, Tyler Black, and Oliver Dunn each recorded multi-hit games, while Black and Eric Haase each reached base four times.

Bruce Zimmermann worked a three-up, three down top of the first inning. The start of the second was not as quick. The left-hander issued a leadoff walk before allowing a double and two-RBI single as the Jumbo Shrimp took a 2-1 lead. He then retired the next three to get out of the second and rattled off another nine straight to get through the fifth with two hits, two earned, a walk, and three strikeouts on 61 pitches.

Jeferson Quero gave the Sounds the first run of the night with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first before the Sounds were able to knot things up at 2-2 in the third. Black legged out a two-out double before later scoring on a RBI flair single off the bat of Dunn. Quero put Nashville back in front with a RBI single to score Avans in the bottom of the fifth and put Zimmermann in line for a win.

The Jumbo Shrimp sent 11 batters to the plate in the sixth and pushed across six runs on four hits aided by three Nashville walks and a hit batter as they built an 8-3 advantage.

Nashville threatened with a pair of runners in scoring position in the bottom of the seventh but left both stranded following an 11-pitch at-bat for Haase that ended with a ground out back to Jacksonville pitcher Josh White. Justin Yeager pitched the top of the eighth for Nashville. He allowed one earned on a hit with a couple of walks and two strikeouts. The run ended Yeager's streak of seven straight games to begin his Triple-A career without allowing an earned run. Nick Kahle worked a three-up, three-down top of the ninth, inducing a pair of fly outs and a ground out in the season-debut for a position player pitching for Nashville.

Haase delivered a two-out, two-RBI double in the bottom of the ninth to make it 9-5. Jared Oliva kept the inning alive, using his speed to cause the second Jacksonville miscue of the night but the Jumbo Shrimp were able to strand both as Nashville finalized their four-run defeat.

The Sounds and Jumbo Shrimp conclude their six-game series from First Horizon Park on Sunday evening. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 pm CT as the Sounds look to avoid their first ever six-game series sweep and bring an end to a season-long six-game slide.

POSTGAME NOTES:

RUN, SOUNDS, RUN!: Nashville baserunners put Jacksonville catcher Brian Navarreto to the test and swiped five bags on Saturday night, one-shy of the team's season-high. The steals were created by Drew Avans (1), Tyler Black (1), Jared Oliva (2), and Oliver Dunn (1). Saturday was Oliva's seventh game this season with two or more steals in a game. The Sounds are up to 217 steals on the year, which ranks No. 2 in the International League behind the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (225). The last time Nashville collected five steals in a game as a team was against the Charlotte Knights on July 22 at First Horizon Park. On the other side, the Jumbo Shrimp bested the Sounds in the steals column with eight, which is the most Nashville has allowed in a game since at least 2005. Nashville had previously allowed seven steals in a game, with the last coming on July 4, 2017, on the road against Colorado Springs. The other was on June 10, 2013, vs. Omaha.

ZIMMERMANN HOUR: Left-hander Bruce Zimmermann was excellent in his start against the Jumbo Shrimp on Saturday night, letting up two runs over 5.0 innings of work. Zimmermann faced the minimum in every frame excluding the second inning where he allowed two runs. The second inning has been a problem for Zimmermann this season, notching a 6.35 ERA during that frame when he starts. He also threw just 61 pitches, which is the lowest amount he has offered up in a start since tossing 57 against Norfolk on June 15. Overall, the 30-year-old has been great over his last six starts. Zimmermann has worked at least 5.0 innings over his last six outings and allowed three or less runs in five of them. During that span, Zimmermann has a 2.91 ERA with 25 strikeouts and 34.0 innings pitched.

THE AVIATOR: Sounds outfielder Drew Avans has put together really good at-bats as of late and he continued to do that on Saturday against the Jumbo Shrimp. Avans went 2-for-5 with two runs and collected his first multi-hit game since going 2-for-4 against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders in game two of a doubleheader on August 1. The two hits on Saturday extended his hitting and on-base streak to four games, which currently ties for the No. 1 spot in both categories on the team with Jorge Alfaro. Over his last 10 games, Avans has reached base in nine of them while earning a .273 batting average.

WAS FUN WHILE IT LASTED: Right-hander Justin Yeager pitched 1.0 inning for the Sounds on Saturday night. Yeager allowed an earned run over a hit, two walks, and two strikeouts. It is the first run that Yeager has allowed since joining Nashville on July 20. The 27-year-old tossed his first seven games and 7.0 innings without letting up an earned run. Over that span, Yeager allowed just two hits and earned seven strikeouts.

THE WALKING MAN: In just his third game this season with Nashville, Eric Haase tied a career-high with three walks against the Jumbo Shrimp on Saturday. The catcher has done it six other times throughout his professional career, and only once in the last five seasons. Most recently, Haase worked three walks on July 28, 2021, for the Milwaukee Brewers against the Minnesota Twins. In 2025 with the Brewers, Haase appeared in 30 games and recorded 77 plate appearances, managing just four walks over that span.

NOW PITCHING... NICK KAHLE: Sounds catcher Nick Kahle came onto pitch for the Sounds in the ninth inning of Saturday's game and tossed a scoreless frame. Kahle has recorded a 0-0 record with 1.48 ERA over seven appearances in his professional career. He was the first position player to toe the slab for Nashville since Patrick Dorrian tossed an inning against the Gwinnett Stripers on September 6, 2024. Dorrian allowed an earned run and four hits over his 1.0 frame.