North Little Rock, AR – The Tulsa Drillers entered Saturday’s matchup with the Arkansas Travelers carrying a two-game losing streak. They were able to end the skid, but they had to survive a tense final inning to do it.
The Drillers held a four-run lead entering the bottom of the ninth, and the Travs staged a rally without getting a hit. They plated two runs before a game-ending ground out with the bases loaded gave Tulsa a nerve-racking 5-3 victory.
The win allowed the Drillers to keep pace with first-place Springfield. The Cardinals also posted a win on Saturday and remain one game in front of Tulsa in the Texas League’s North Division standings.
The Travelers took an initial lead over the Drillers in Saturday’s matchup, scoring the game’s first run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The run came via Hunter Fitz-Gerald’s solo homer, his 23rd of the season.
It was the only blemish on Tulsa starting pitcher Christian Zazueta’s line. Zazueta worked four complete innings and allowed the one run on two hits and one walk with 7 of the 12 outs he recorded coming on strikeouts.
The Drillers tied the game with their first run of the night coming in the top of the sixth. With one out, Josue De Paula tripled, and Mike Sirota followed with a base hit that made it 1-1.
The game remained tied until Tulsa pushed across its second run in the eighth. Kendall George singled and De Paula walked. After a double steal, an intentional walk to Kole Myers loaded the bases before Taylor Young worked another walk to force home the go-ahead run.
The Drillers padded their lead with three more runs in the top of the ninth. Jose Izarra led off with a blooped single to right field. He stole second base and moved to third on a throwing error from Travs’ catcher Josh Caron.
With the infield playing in, George grounded a base hit into right field that plated Izarra with Tulsa’s third run. Following another stolen base and throwing error from Caron, Sirota drew a walk to put runners at first and third.
After Sirota swiped second base, Jake Gelof delivered a two-run single that gave Tulsa a 5-1 lead.
The hit would prove to be vital because the Travelers made things interesting in the bottom of the ninth, scoring two runs without recording a hit.
After two walks and a hit batter loaded the bases, another walk from reliever Antonio Knowles forced home a run.
Christian Suarez replaced Knowles, and with the bases loaded and the dangerous Charlie Pagliarini at the plate, the lefthander got what would have been a game-ending strikeout, but the pitch alluded catcher Frank Rodriguez. The wild pitch gave the Travelers another run that cut Tulsa’s lead to just 5-3.
With the bases still loaded, Suarez ended the threat on the very next pitch when he got Fitz-Gerald to hit a soft grounder to Izarra a short who stepped on second base to end the rally and the game with Tulsa claiming a two-run victory.
GAME NOTES
*The Drillers now have a 4-4 record on their extend road trip that began with a three-game series at Frisco. They will wrap up the trip with the series finale Sunday afternoon against the Travelers.
*Relievers Carson Hobbs and Kelvin Ramirez set up Tulsa’s win with stellar work out of the bullpen. Hobbs allowed one hit and one walk in two shutout innings in relief of Zazueta. Ramirez followed Hobbs and did not allow a hit and just one walk in his two scoreless innings.
*Antonio Knowles replaced Ramirez for the ninth inning, and he struggled through a rare off night. Knowles issued three walks and hit a batter before departing with two outs in the ninth.
*After the strikeout and wild pitch, Suarez needed just one pitch to retire Fitz-Gerald and record his first save of the year.
*Tulsa out-hit Arkansas 9-3 in the game.
*George and Gelof led the attack with two hits each.
*The five Tulsa pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts in the game.
UP NEXT
The Drillers will wrap up their long road trip and their six-game series with the Travelers on Sunday afternoon at Dickey-Stephens Park. First pitch is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. and the starting pitchers are expected to be:
Tulsa – RHP Aiden Foeller (3-1, 3.46 ERA for High-A Great Lakes)
Arkansas – RHP Adam Leverett (3-4, 4.83 ERA)