Corpus Christi, TX – The Tulsa Drillers opened a six-game road series with the Corpus Christi Hooks at Whataburger Field on Tuesday night. The Drillers trailed for most of the opener but scored a tying run in the top of the ninth to send the game into extra innings. Unfortunately, Tulsa failed to score in the top of the tenth to set up Corpus Christi for the walk-off win when the placed runner came home on a base hit and an error to hand the Drillers a tough, 8-7 loss.
The defeat was the third straight for the Drillers. It also dropped their record against the Hooks this season to just 3-4.
More importantly, it dropped Tulsa four games behind the first-place Springfield Cardinals in the second-half standings of the Texas League’s North Division. Springfield has won nine of its last ten games, and on Tuesday, added five players to its roster who are ranked among the St. Louis Cardinals’ Top 30 minor league prospects by MLB Pipeline.
It took just one pitch in Tuesday’s series opener for Josue De Paula to give the Drillers the lead. De Paula belted the first pitch of the game for an opposite-field home run.
The Hooks went in front in the second inning when five straight singles helped them to produce three runs and take a 3-1 lead.
They scored a fourth run one inning later when Walker Janek led off with a single and eventually scored on Jason Schiavone’s double.
The Drillers cut the deficit to 4-3 in the fourth when Kole Myers doubled home catcher Frank Rodriguez who had opened the inning with a single. Myers later scored himself on a ground out from Joe Vetrano, who had been activated from the Injured List earlier in the day.
The Hooks answered with another three-run inning in the bottom of the fourth. Yamal Encarnacion singled home one run and Janek plated another two with a base hit to give Corpus Christi a 7-3 lead.
Tulsa began its comeback in the sixth as the first three hitters reached to load the bases for De Paula who drove in Taylor Young with a single. A force out at second base produced Tulsa’s second run of the inning, and a passed ball provided the third as the Drillers cut their deficit to 7-6.
Tulsa pushed across the tying run in the top of the ninth. Myers started the inning with a leadoff walk and stole second base to move into scoring position. Vetrano brought him home with a one-out single to right that tied the game at 7-7.
The Drillers kept Corpus Christi from scoring in the bottom of the ninth as reliever Kelvin Ramirez retired the Hooks to send the game to extra innings.
Jose Izarra began the top of the tenth at second base, and the Hooks elected to intentionally walk De Paula. Jake Gelof’s fly ball to deep right advanced Izarra to third but a foul out and a strikeout ended the threat with the game still tied.
Ramirez returned to the mound for the bottom half of the tenth and struck out the first hitter he faced before Alejandro Nunez singled home the placed runner from second base to give the Hooks the win.
GAME NOTES
*The defeat marked just the eighth time the Drillers have lost when scoring first on the road this season.
*Ramirez was charged with his second loss but was not charged with an earned run as the placed runner is automatically an unearned run. He now has a 5-2 record with a 2.12 ERA for the season.
*Coming off his eight-inning performance on July 29, Payton Martin struggled in his second start against Corpus Christi this season. Martin pitched 3 1/3 innings and was charged with 7 runs on 11 hits, while recording 3 strikeouts in what was his 20th start of the year.
*De Paula’s home run was his 21st of the season which matches Jake Gelof for the team lead. He has now homered in four straight games with a total of five home runs in the streak.
*Patrick Copen followed Martin on the mound and kept the Hooks off the scoreboard for 3 2/3 innings, allowing just one hit and three walks while striking out eight.
*Tulsa made a series of roster moves before the game. Pitcher Antonio Knowles was transferred to Triple-A Oklahoma City, and Kendall George and Roque Gutierrez were placed on the Injured List. Vetrano was activated from the Injured List and played in his first game since June 28. Infielder Logan Wagner was also added to Tulsa’s roster from Great Lakes, and pitcher Jacob Kmatz was placed on the Drillers roster from the Montgomery Biscuits. Kmatz was traded to the Dodgers from the Tampa Bay Rays organization on Monday in the deal that also brought former Drillers catcher Hunter Feduccia back to the Dodgers and sent outfielder Jack Suwinski to the Rays.
UP NEXT
The Drillers will continue their series with the Hooks on Wednesday night at Whataburger Field with game two of the six-game set. Starting time is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. and the pitching matchup is expected to be:
Tulsa – LHP Adam Serwinowski (8-4, 5.23 ERA)
Corpus Christi– RHP Cole Hertzler (1-1, 2.88 ERA)