Hence Tops Drillers in Series Opener

TULSA, OK – The Tulsa Drillers opened a six-game series with the Springfield Cardinals Tuesday night at ONEOK Field, and the opener featured one of the best pitching matchups of the season. Justin Wrobleski, rated the 15th best prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers system, started for the Drillers while Tink Hence, the #1 prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals system, took the mound for Springfield. Hence was the star of the night as he turned in his longest, and possibly his best, outing as a pro to lead the Redbirds to a 6-2 victory over the Drillers.

BOX SCORE

It was a tough-luck outing for Wrobleski who was charged with four runs in four-plus innings.

The first run came in the top of the first without a hard hit from the Cardinals. Bryan Torres opened the game with a soft single to left field and Nathan Church dropped a double just inside the left field foul line to put runners at second and third. R.J. Yeager followed with a sacrifice fly to give the Cards the lead.

Tulsa tied the game in the bottom of the third when Yeiner Fernandez walked, moved to third on a base hit by Lolo Sanchez and scored on a sacrifice fly from Austin Gauthier.

It remained tied until the top of the fifth when Wrobleski walked the first batter of the inning and hit the second. Chris Rotondo bunted perfectly down the third base line for a hit that loaded the bases and ended Wrobleski’s night.

Logan Boyer came on and his first pitch was belted into left-center field for a bases-clearing double, with all three runs charged to Wrobleski.

An infield ground out plated Torres and gave Springfield a 5-1 cushion.

Hence made sure the lead held. After the third-inning run, the right-hander blanked the Drillers over the next four innings before turning the final two frames over to the bullpen.

Each team added a run in the eighth inning to conclude the scoring. Tulsa’s run came when Diego Cartaya singled and eventually scored on a sacrifice fly from Fernandez.

Hence, a native of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, worked seven innings for the first time in his career, allowing the one run on two hits. He walked two batters and struck out a career high ten.

Wrobleski was charged with four runs on four hits and walked one and struck out four. The loss leveled his record at 1-1.

INSIDE THE GAME

*The Drillers played almost the entire game without the number one prospect in the Dodgers system, Dalton Rushing. Rushing was called out on strikes in the bottom of the first inning and was ejected after returning to the dugout by home plate umpire Steven Rios.

*The Drillers were limited to a season low three hits in the game.

*Tulsa reliever Jack Dreyer delivered another scoreless outing, holding the Cards scoreless in the sixth and seventh innings without allowing a hit. Dreyer has not allowed a run this season, a stretch covering 8 games and 12.2 innings. The lefthander has walked just 2 batters and struck out 17.

*Gauthier walked to lead off the bottom of the first inning and has now reached base safely in 19 of the 20 games he has played this season.

*If pitching rotations hold, Wrobleski and Hence are scheduled to meet again in the series finale on Sunday afternoon.

UP NEXT:

The Drillers will quickly return to action Wednesday morning with the second game of their six-game series with the Cardinals. Wednesday’s game is scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m. and the starting pitchers are expected to be:

SPR – RHP Tekoah Roby (1-0, 5.68 ERA)
TUL – RHP Ben Casparius (1-1, 4.41 ERA)