Walker Leads Round Rock to 14-3 Victory

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The Round Rock Express (29-18) defeated the Albuquerque Isotopes (20-27) on Saturday night at Isotopes Park by a final score of 14-3. The win guarantees Round Rock at least a series split heading into the series finale tomorrow night.

Round Rock starter RHP A.J. Alexy (3-1, 6.39) collected the win after a 5.1-inning performance. He allowed three earned runs on five hits with two walks and five strikeouts. Albuquerque RHP Zach Neal (4-4, 7.12) earned the loss after 5.0 innings and six earned runs on nine hits. He issued one walk and struck out five.

Along the Train Tracks:

• The Express led 1-0 in the first inning. A double for CF Josh Smith led the inning off. LF Steele Walker grabbed his first double of the night to put Round Rock on the board.
• Round Rock plated two more in the third inning. A leadoff single for SS Ryan Dorow was followed by a triple for Smith. RF Leody Taveras earned a sacrifice fly to score Smith and extend the lead to 3-0.
• Smith added another run in the fourth inning. 3B Nick Tanielu singled and moved to second base on a flyout. Smith singled to score Tanielu and the lead was 4-0.
• Albuquerque scored all three of their runs in the fourth inning. Back-to-back home runs for C Carlos Perez and 2B Coco Montes trimmed the lead to 4-3.
• Walker led the fifth inning off with a double for Round Rock. 1B Zach Reks hit a two-run home run and the Express led 6-3.
• In the sixth inning, Walker drove home two runs on his third double of the evening. DH Nick Solak hit a two-run home run and extended the lead to 10-3.
• C Yohel Pozo led off the E-Train seventh inning with a single. Dorow hit a double to score Pozo and scratch another run across. The Round Rock lead was 11-3.
• In the ninth inning, the E-Train rolled on for three more runs. Tanielu and Dorow scored on a double from Smith. Taveras capped off the scoring with an RBI single to score Smith. Leading 14-3, RHP Jesus Tinoco threw a scoreless ninth inning for the win.
• E-Train Excerpts:
• LF Steele Walker went 5-for-6 with three doubles and three RBI. It’s the second time this month a Round Rock player has collected five hits in a game. C Meibrys Viloria had five hits at Reno on May 6.
• 3B Josh Smith went 4-for-6 with four RBI. It’s the first time Smith has recorded four hits or four RBI this season. It was just the second time Smith has recorded four hits in a game in his career. His only other four-hit game came on June 27, 2021 with High-A Hudson Valley. Saturday was the first four RBI game of his career.
• SS Ryan Dorow had a 3-for-4 night with three runs scored and one RBI. Dorow also had a double and walk.
• The Round Rock bullpen of RHP Josh Sborz, RHP Jason Bahr and RHP Jesus Tinoco did not allow a run over 3.2 innings. Sborz tossed 1.2 frames while Bahr and Tinoco each handled 1.0-inning of work

Next up: Round Rock will play game six of the series on Sunday night against Albuquerque from Isotopes Park. Express LHP Kolby Allard (0-1, 3.97) is slated to take the mound against Isotopes RHP Riley Smith (0-0, 6.00). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CT.

Single game tickets as well as full season and mini season membership plans are on sale now. For more information about the Express, visit RRExpress.com or call (512) 255-2255. Subscribe to the E-Train email newsletter and keep up with the Express on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!