Jackson Holliday belted his first home run of the International League season’s second half, leading the Norfolk Tides to a 3-2 victory over Durham before 4,379 at Harbor Park.
The Tides (39-42, 3-3 in the second half) were playing their only Monday game of the season, the opener of a three-game series.
It was tied at 1 in the eighth inning before Holliday took an Enmanuel Mejia change-up and lifted it well beyond the right-field fence, seemingly bouncing into the Elizabeth River. It was the eighth Triple-A homer of the year for baseball’s former No. 1 overall prospect.
Chayce McDermott provided one of the Tides’ best starts of the season, striking out a season-best 12 in a season-high seven innings and giving up just three hits and three walks. Durham left-hander Tyler Alexander matched him, giving up five hits and a run in seven innings.
Norfolk reliever Trey McGough (2-0) escaped a bases-loaded predicament in the eighth for the victory.
The Bulls (38-44, 2-5), Tampa Bay’s top affiliate, went ahead 1-0 in the fifth when Jake Mangum scored on Curtis Mead’s pop-up single to right field.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Tides’ Terrin Vavra laced a tying RBI double, bringing home Billy Cook, who left the game after 6 1/2 innings with right hamstring tightness.
Kyle Stowers, who unofficially became the Tides’ all-time leader in home runs Sunday, made it official with a two-out blast to center field off Mejia in the eighth. Counting the one he hit in Sunday’s suspended tie game against Charlotte, it was his 54th with Norfolk.
Leading 3-1, McGough ran into trouble in the ninth, sandwiching two outs around two singles. Tides manager Buck Britton brought in Nolan Hoffman, who gave up an RBI single to Mead and walked Ronny Simon to load the bases. But Hoffman got his first save of the season by striking out Austin Shenton.
Before the game, the parent Baltimore Orioles optioned left-handed reliever Matt Krook back to Norfolk as ace Corbin Burnes returned from the paternity list.
At 6:35 p.m. Tuesday, the Tides plan to start right-hander Carlos Tavera (1-1, 7.36) against righty Shane Baz (3-3, 4.12).
