17 and 1 Lead to a Doubleheader Split for the Drillers

AMARILLO, TX – The Tulsa Drillers used their biggest offensive game of the season to earn a split of a doubleheader with Amarillo Friday night. The Drillers erupted for a season high 17 runs in game one to earn a 17-4 victory, but could generate just 1 run in the nightcap, a 6-1 loss to the Sod Poodles at Amarillo’s HODGETOWN.

GAME 1 BOX SCORE

GAME 2 BOX SCORE

The opener was a nightmare for Amarillo pitchers as Tulsa hitters were issued 11 total walks, including ten through the first four innings.

Tulsa jumped ahead 2-0 in the top of the first inning, but actually had to come from behind to gain the victory. After Alex Freeland led off the game with a double, Dalton Rushing delivered a run-scoring single and Jose Ramos added the second run with a ground out.

Amarillo answered with four runs in the bottom half of the first. The first three batters to face starting pitcher Orlando Ortiz-Mayr all singled to produce the first run, and Caleb Roberts followed with a three-run homer that put the Drillers in a 4-2 hole.

They quickly dug out of it with seven runs in the second inning. With one run in and runners at second and third, Rushing struck out for the second out of the frame, but the third out would prove to be elusive for Amarillo pitchers.

The next four batters all walked to force in three more runs. A double with the based loaded from Brandon Lewis plated three runs and gave the Drillers a 9-2 lead.

Lewis struck again in a six-run fourth inning, delivering a two-run homer. Taylor Young doubled home two other runs, and Rushing doubled home one more. Austin Beck capped the big inning with a base hit that scored Rushing to up Tulsa’s lead to 15-4.

The Drillers set their season high in runs scored with an unearned run in the sixth and a solo homer from Bubba Alleyne in the seventh.

The second game had an entirely different storyline as the Drillers were held to just one run on six hits.

That one run came in the second inning and gave the Drillers a temporary 1-0 lead. Diego Cartaya drew a one-out walk and scored when Freeland followed with a double.

Starting pitcher Kendall Williams held the Sod Poodles scoreless through the first two innings before surrendering the tying run in the bottom of the third.

A four-run fourth determined the game’s outcome. Three singles loaded the bases for Amarillo and forced the Drillers to call on Jack Little from the bullpen. Jancarlos Cintron greeted Little with a two-run double, and Kevin Graham followed with a two-run single that gave the Sod Poodles all the runs they needed.

It was a case of missed opportunities for the Drillers who had the six hits and were also issued seven walks. Despite the base runners, they generated just the one run and stranded 11 runners on base.

INSIDE THE GAME

*With the split, the Drillers are now five games behind first-place five games behind first-place Springfield in the Texas League’s North Division.

*In the opener, Tulsa batted around twice in the first four innings, and leadoff batter Freeland came to the plate four times in those first four innings.

*Lewis finished with five RBI in game one, and Freeland scored four runs.

*The 11 walks for Tulsa hitters were also a season high.

*After surviving the four-run first inning, Ortiz-Mayr settled down and retired nine of the next ten batters. The right-hander worked four innings and fell three outs short of qualifying for the victory.

*Juan Morillo followed Ortiz-Mayr and pitched one scoreless inning to gain the victory that improved his record to 2-1.

*Damon Keith finished 2-3 in the second game and was the only Tulsa player with more than one hit in the game.

UP NEXT:

The Drillers will continue their six-game series in Amarillo with game five on Saturday night at HODGETOWN. Starting time is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. and the starting pitchers are slated to be:

TUL – RHP Hyun-il Choi (1-2, 7.41 ERA)
AMA – RHP Billy Corcoran (2-1, 2.95 ERA)