Stripers Host Knights Tuesday With Playoff Push in Full Swing at Gwinnett Field
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — The Gwinnett Stripers (67-64) welcome the Charlotte Knights (71-61) to Gwinnett Field on Tuesday night for the first of a multi-game set, with first pitch set for 6:35 p.m. ET. It's Game No. 132 of the season for both clubs and Home Game No. 64 for Gwinnett, and with September baseball underway, every matchup carries a little extra weight as both teams look to close out the regular season strong.
The Matchup on the Mound
Gwinnett hands the ball to right-hander Owen Murphy, who enters with a 5-7 record and a 3.42 ERA. Murphy, Atlanta's first-round pick in the 2022 draft out of Riverside-Brookfield High School in Illinois, has been one of the more talked-about arms in the Braves' system all year. He opened the 2026 season at Double-A Columbus before a midseason promotion to Gwinnett, and he's continued to miss bats at the Triple-A level, ranking among the top strikeout-per-swing arms in the International League this season. Murphy even got a brief taste of the big leagues in July, making his MLB debut with Atlanta before being optioned back down to continue building innings with the Stripers. His fastball sits in the low-to-mid-90s with significant vertical life, and he pairs it with a changeup, cutter, slider and curveball that give him a deep enough arsenal to work through lineups multiple times.
Charlotte counters with left-hander Noah Schultz, sporting a 3-2 record and a sharp 2.25 ERA. Schultz, Chicago's first-round pick in 2022 and one of the most talked-about pitching prospects in all of baseball, is a physically imposing presence on the mound at 6-foot-10. His route back to Charlotte has included stops in the majors this season, and he's shown flashes of frontline-starter upside when healthy, pairing deception with a power arsenal that's given International League hitters plenty of trouble. Injuries have been the main obstacle in his development path, but when he's on the mound and right, he's as tough an assignment as any hitter will see at this level.
Where Both Clubs Stand
Both teams enter Tuesday with a 29-28 mark against IL competition according to the notes heading into the series, and both have put together strong overall seasons. Charlotte sits with the better overall winning percentage at 71-61, while Gwinnett has continued to hang around the playoff picture at 67-64. With the calendar flipping to September, every game left on the schedule matters that much more for postseason positioning, and a series against a divisional-caliber rival like Charlotte is exactly the kind of test both clubs want heading down the stretch.
What to Watch For
This one sets up as a genuine pitcher's duel on paper. Murphy has shown he can miss bats in bunches when his stuff is working, and Schultz's ERA speaks for itself — when he's healthy and locating, he's been one of the tougher lefties in the league to square up. Expect a low-scoring, tightly contested game where the first team to manufacture a run or two could have the edge, especially with both bullpens likely to be on alert given the stakes of September baseball.
First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. ET at Gwinnett Field in Lawrenceville. Fans looking to catch the action in person or tune in should expect a well-pitched, playoff-atmosphere-caliber game between two clubs jockeying for position as the regular season winds down.
