RHP Ryan Weiss delivered five scoreless innings to lead the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (40-29, 72-71) past the Oklahoma City Comets (44-25,85-58) in a 5-0 shutout victory in their final road game of the regular season on Sunday afternoon at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark.
Sugar Land generated early chances in the first inning when Pascanel Ferreras doubled on the first pitch of the game but was cancelled out on a one-out fielder’s choice. Lucas Spence then started the second inning with a triple to straightaway center, however LHP Cole Irvin coaxed a pair of flyouts and a strikeout to strand Spence at third.
On the mound, Weiss allowed a lead-off single in the first but promptly got a double play and a strikeout to face the minimum. The righty then utilized another double play to work around two baserunners in a scoreless second, kicking off a string of eight-in-a-row retired by Weiss from the second through the fifth.
The Space Cowboys threatened again in the top of the fifth inning. With two outs, Jason Schiavone recorded his first Triple-A hit before Raynel Delgado worked a walk to put two runners on for Sugar Land. However, a groundout ended the inning, stranding both runners.After Weiss stranded a pair of base runners in to bottom of the fifth inning to complete five scoreless frames, Sugar Land finally broke through in the sixth inning. Joey Loperfido singled with one out off RHP Edwin Diaz before Collin Price worked a walk to put two runners on. Spence then connected on an RBI single to plate the first run of the game. Zach Dezenzo followed with a walk to load the bases before Schiavone was hit by a pitch to score another run. Delgado then worked a base on balls to bring home another run and Ferreras completed the rally with a two-run single to give Sugar Land a 5-0 lead.
The Space Cowboys bullpen carried on the shutout after Weiss departed. RHP Nic Swanson got a pair of groundouts but walked three, bringing in RHP Logan VanWey, who struck out the first batter he faced to strand all three runners. VanWey went on to throw a perfect seventh inning, working 1.1 scoreless innings while striking out two. RHP Kai-Wei Teng followed with a perfect eighth inning, retiring the side in order for his fourth consecutive scoreless appearance with Sugar Land.
Ryan Fitzgerald hit a one-out single in the bottom of the ninth inning, but RHP Roddery Muñoz bounced back with two consecutive strikeouts, striking out the side to seal the Space Cowboys’ win.
NOTABLE:
- RHP Ryan Weiss worked 5.0 scoreless innings while allowing just three hits and two walks and striking out five. His 5.0 innings marked his longest outing since July 27, when he went 7.0 scoreless innings against Nashville in game one of the double header.
- Sugar Land registered their seventh shutout of the year on Sunday afternoon and their fifth of the second half. It was just the second time Oklahoma City has been shutout all season, and the first time OKC has been shutout at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark since May 26, 2024, a span of 199 games.
- Joey Loperfido went 3-for-5 with a run scored in Sunday’s series finale, recording his second straight multi-hit game and his first three-hit performance since September 5 against Reno.
- Jason Schiavone went 1-for-2 with an RBI, a walk and a run scored on Sunday afternoon. His fifth-inning single was his first career hit in Triple A.
- Pascanel Ferreras went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI in Sunday afternoon’s series finale, extending his on-base streak to 11 consecutive games. His double was his 23rd of the season, which ranks third in the Pacific Coast League since June 1.
- RHP Logan VanWey delivered 1.1 scoreless innings on Sunday afternoon earning his Triple-A leading 14th hold of the season.
- Lucas Spence went 2-for-5 with a triple, an RBI and a run scored in the series finale. Spence has now reached base safely in 12 consecutive games and is 12-for-39 with two doubles, a triple, five home runs, 11 RBI, eight walks and 10 runs scored over that span.
After an off day on Monday the Space Cowboys will return home to Constellation Field for their final homestand of the season against the Las Vegas Aviators. Both teams have yet to announce a starting pitcher with first pitch at 7:05 pm CT on Tuesday evening. The game can be seen on the Bally Sports Live app and MiLB.TV and can be heard online anywhere at SLSpaceCowboys.com/Listen.
ABOUT THE SUGAR LAND SPACE COWBOYS:
The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros and compete in the Pacific Coast League. They began play as the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate in 2021 and began playing under the Space Cowboys brand in 2022, winning their first Triple-A title in 2024 by clinching both the Pacific Coast League Championship and Triple-A National Championship. The Space Cowboys play at Constellation Field, located at the corner of Hwy-6 and US-90 Alternate in Sugar Land, Texas. Follow the team on Twitter (@SLSpaceCowboys), Instagram (@slspacecowboys), Facebook (SLSpaceCowboys) and their official website (slspacecowboys.com). Season ticket plans for the 2027 season are available now and can be purchased at slspacecowboys.com/tickets.