Early Runs Help Express Stay In Front of Sugar Land

Three first-inning runs helped the Round Rock Express (29-25) defeat the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (24-30) 8-4 on Thursday night at Dell Diamond.

Elier Hernandez reached on an infield single in the bottom of the first and Justin Foscue tripled to left to bring in the first run of the game. Sam Huff then connected for a two-run homer to center, his eighth of the year, to make it 3-0 Round Rock. RHP Misael Tamarez (L, 0-1) allowed just one base runner during the remainder of his outing, throwing 3.2 innings and retiring 10 of the last 11 hitters he faced including the final seven straight.

Sugar Land broke up the shutout in the top of the fourth. Pedro León led off with a double and Joe Perez walked before Alex McKenna singled to load up the bases with no outs. RHP Cole Winn got a double play ball but León raced in to score and bring the Space Cowboys within a pair at 3-1.

A solo home run by Yoshi Tsutsugo in the fifth pushed the Express back up by three, and a pair of runs scored in the bottom of the ensuing frame widened the Round Rock lead to 6-1.

In the top of the seventh, Luke Berryhill singled off LHP Josh Dye (W, 1-1) and Jackson Loftin followed with a double to left, the first Triple-A hit for the Spring, TX native, putting two men in scoring position. Back-to-back ground outs by Bligh Madris and David Hensley drove in both runners, moving Sugar Land within three at 6-3. The Express countered with a run in the home half of the seventh on a fielder’s choice.

León launched a solo home run in the top of the eighth, his seventh of the year and second in as many games, but Round Rock once again scored in the last of the seventh, giving the Express their 8-4 margin.

With the series even at two games each, the Space Cowboys and Express continue their seven-game series on Friday night. Sugar Land is set to send RHP Jairo Solis (0-1, 7.16) to the bump while Round Rock is scheduled to counter with RHP Kyle Cody (0-4, 7.32) for a 7:05 pm first pitch. The game can be heard on ESPN 92.5 FM or online here and seen on MiLB.TV.

*ABOUT THE SUGAR LAND SPACE COWBOYS: *

The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros and compete in the Pacific Coast League. They began play as the Astros Triple-A affiliate in 2021 and began playing under the Space Cowboys brand in 2022. The Space Cowboys play at Constellation Field, located at the corner of Hwy-6 and US-90 Alternate in Sugar Land, Texas. Follow the team on Twitter (@SLSpaceCowboys), Instagram (@slspacecowboys), Facebook (SLSpaceCowboys) and their official website (slspacecowboys.com). Fans can purchase full-season and partial-season plans, as well as single-game tickets, by visiting slspacecowboys.com/tickets.