Dodgers and Aces Duke It Out During 14-12 Win

Oklahoma City Dodgers – 14

Reno Aces – 12

Friday, July 28, 2023 – Greater Nevada Field – Reno, Nev.

Game Summary: The Oklahoma City Dodgers hit four home runs and collected nine extra-base hits, needing all of them to get past the Reno Aces, 14-12, in another high-scoring contest at Greater Nevada Field. The Dodgers (17-8/67-31) hit their first two home runs in the first inning when Miguel Vargas and Kole Calhoun went back-to-back. Leading, 3-1, in the third inning, Calhoun blasted his second home run of the game with a three-run shot, as the Dodgers scored four runs in the inning to make it 7-1. The Aces (10-15/54-46) erupted for seven runs in the bottom of the inning, including three-run homers by Dominic Fletcher and Blaze Alexander to go ahead, 8-7. The Dodgers regained the lead quickly with a two-run homer in the fourth inning by Michael Busch. OKC added five runs sixth inning, including a RBI double by Busch and two-run single by Devin Man, stretching the lead to 14-8. The Aces scored two runs in the sixth inning, one run in the seventh inning and one run in the eighth inning, but they ended each of those innings by leaving the bases loaded. Wander Suero retired the side in order in ninth inning to finish off the game.

Of Note:

-Friday’s victory was OKC’s 12th consecutive road win, extending the team’s Bricktown era record (since 1998). The Dodgers improved to a Minor League best 37-12 on the road this season and are now 15-1 over the last 16 road games and 26-5 over the last 31 road games…OKC has won at least six straight games overall for the fifth time this season, and they started a six-game series, 4-0, for the fifth time as well…Overall this season, the Dodgers are 67-31, continuing to extend their Bricktown era record at 36 games above .500.

-For the third time in four games in Reno, the Dodgers scored at least 13 runs. They notched at least 14 hits for the third time in four games and tallied 18 hits for the second time, along with Tuesday’s series opener. Also, for the third time this series, all nine players in the starting lineup collected at least one hit. Six players finished with multi-hit games.

-The Dodgers tied their season high with four home runs, all occurring within the first four innings. The back-to-back home runs by Miguel Vargas and Kole Calhoun in the first inning were the team’s fourth of the season and first since July 9 at El Paso – also the last time OKC hit four home runs in one game…Nine of the team’s 18 hits went for extra bases, marking the third game of the season with at least nine extra-base hits.

-Michael Busch had a game-high and season-high four hits, including a home run and two doubles. On each of his doubles, Busch was thrown out attempting to advance to third base, preventing him from completing the cycle…Busch has now reached base in 23 consecutive games for the longest active streak by an OKC player and tied for the second-longest active streak in the PCL. During the streak, Busch is 30-for-96 (.313) with 14 extra-base hits, 24 RBI and 18 walks.

-Kole Calhoun hit home runs in each of his first two at-bats Friday, and homered in the three straight at-bats going back to his final plate appearance in his previous game Wednesday when he hit a grand slam. He notched three hits for a second consecutive game and is 6-for-10 with three home runs and nine RBI during that time. He became the 11th Dodger with a multi-homer game this season and the second in five games, with Michael Busch going deep twice July 23 at home against El Paso…Calhoun is now on a nine-game hitting streak, going 16-for-39 (.410) with eight extra-base hits and 12 RBI.

-David Dahl doubled twice and went 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs scored. He has now hit safely in six straight games, going 10-for-23 (.435) with five doubles and five RBI. He has also hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games, going 16-for-45 (.356) with seven doubles and a homer.

-Hunter Feduccia went 2-for-4 with a walk and is now 8-for-13 over his first three games in the current series.

-Miguel Vargas went 2-for-4 with a home run, double and walk.

-The 12 runs allowed by the Dodgers were their most in a win this season. In fact, it’s just the team’s fifth all-time win when allowing 12 or more runs during the Bricktown era (since 1998) and first since a 13-12 victory over Omaha April 16, 2019.

-Of the 13 games out of the All-Star Break, nine have been decided by one or two runs, including eight of the last 11 games.

What’s Next: The Dodgers look to keep their road winning streak alive as they take on the Aces at 8:35 p.m. CT Saturday at Greater Nevada Field. Live radio coverage of each OKC Dodgers game begins 15 minutes before first pitch on AM 1340 "The Game," 1340thegame.com and through the free iHeartRadio or MiLB First Pitch apps.