TULSA - The Hooks secured a road series split against the top club in the Texas League on Sunday evening as Brett Gillis spun seven shutout innings to lead Corpus Christi to a 5-0 win over the Drillers before 7,865 fans at ONEOK Field.
Gillis set down 20 of the first 22 Tulsa batters, striking out a Double-A best seven while permitting a one-out walk in the fourth and a one-out single in the fifth. The 26-year-old from Everett, Washington finished his longest pro appearance by stranding a pair of two-out base hits in the seventh.
Gillis, who delivered 57 of 82 pitches for strikes, has not yielded an earned run over his last three starts, spanning 17 2/3 innings. Notching his third quality start of the season, the University of Portland product has helped engineer both of the Hooks shutout wins on the year.
Since leading Corpus Christi to a 6-0 triumph over Midland on May 23, Gillis stands 3-1 with a 1.41 ERA over a span of six starts.
Drew Brutcher reached base three times, including a double and run scored in the first as well as an RBI single in the second.
The Hooks sent nine to the plate in the second, with two coming on a base hit by Garret Guillemette who went 2-for-4 from the nine-hole.
Gillis was aided in the early going by a sensational diving catch from Yamal Encarnacion, robbing Sean McLain of a single to center field in the third.
Julio Rodriguez blanked the 49-win Drillers in the eighth before Tulsa area native Nic Swanson struck out two in a perfect ninth.
After halting Tulsa's series win streak at five, Corpus Christi continues its two-week road trip with a June 30-July 5 series vs. the Northwest Arkansas Naturals in Springdale, AR.