Five-Run 11th Inning Sparks Soddies In Series Opener
Springdale, ARK – The Amarillo Sod Poodles were victorious in game one against the Northwest Arkansas Naturals in extra innings by a final score of 6-5. Amarillo led 1-0 entering the 9th and nine combined runs were scored in the 11th. In a pitching duel through the first six innings,
Springdale, ARK – The Amarillo Sod Poodles were victorious in game one against the Northwest Arkansas Naturals in extra innings by a final score of 6-5. Amarillo led 1-0 entering the 9th and nine combined runs were scored in the 11th.
In a pitching duel through the first six innings, Diamondbacks’ No. 6 prospect RHP Drey Jameson battled the Royals’ No. 29 prospect LHP Drew Parrish. Neither pitcher allowed a run through the first six innings and combined to allow just four hits with 15 strikeouts and zero walks.
Jameson, the April 18-24 Texas League Pitcher of the Week, was dealing on the mound once again to the tune of 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 9 K. The nine strikeouts was a team-high in 2022, and the scoreless outing extended his current scoreless streak to 16.0 innings, where he has 19 K, 6 H and zero walks in that span.
Corbin Carroll was the only Sod Poodle to get a hit off of Parrish, and Amarillo took the lead once he was relieved in the 7th. Dominic Fletcher and Ti’Quan Forbes put runners at the corners with a walk and a single with runners at the corners, and Juan Centeno made it 1-0 with an RBI single.
Blake Workman relieved Jameson and sent the Sod Poodles to the 9th with the lead. He allowed just one hit over two innings, his second consecutive scoreless outing.
Up by one in the 9th, Junior Garcia took the mound with three saves and a 3.86 ERA on the year. The first two batters were retired on balls put in play, but Garcia allowed a two-out double to put a runner in scoring position. He walked the next batter, and Sebastian Rivero tied the game at one with an RBI double to left field. Garcia walked the next batter to load the bases but escaped the jam with an inning-ending flyout. The blown save was Garcia’s first of the year.
Neither team plated a run in the 10th, with Garica allowing a single in his second inning of work. He was relieved in the 11th by Kai-Wei Lin, ending his afternoon at 2.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 0 K.
Amarillo won on a walk-off in their last game that went 11 innings, and the bats came alive in the frame today to the tune of five runs scored. Off of the left-handed Walter Pennington, Eduardo Diaz led off the inning with a double that put the courtesy runner Carroll at third. Andy Yerzy was intentionally walked, and Carroll gave Amarillo the lead by scoring on a wild pitch.
Dominic Fletcher then drew a walk to re-load the bases, and Ti’Quan Forbes made it a two-run game with an RBI single. Centeno then gave the Soddies the lead for good with a two-RBI single to make it 6-1.
The Naturals threatened in the bottom of the 11th but fell just one run shy of the comeback. Kai-Wei Lin hit a batter and surrendered a sacrifice fly to make the score 6-2. After a walk and with two runners on base, Robbie Glendinning hit a three-run home run to bring the Naturals within one. Blake Rogers relieved Lin and retired the first batter he saw to secure his first save of the season.
Seven Sod Poodles recorded a hit, led by Diaz, Forbes and Centeno with two apiece. Centeno added three RBI, his second-most in a game this year. Amarillo also stole two bases (Fletcher, Barrosa) and left eight runners on base while the pitching staff struck out nine and stranded nine Naturals.
The Soddies have now won their last three series openers, and will look to continue their winning ways in game two tomorrow, Wednesday, April 27 at Arvest Ballpark with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm. Amarillo will have RHP Slade Cecconi (0-0, 3.29 ERA) on the mound to square off against LHP Anthony Veneziano (0-3, 18.47 ERA).
Notes
Can’t Score On Drey: RHP Drey Jameson now owns a 16.0-inning scoreless streak dating back to April 14 against the Tulsa Drillers. Over the three-game stretch, the Diamondbacks’ No. 6 prospect has struck out 19 batters and allowed just six hits with no walks. His 23 strikeouts on the season now lead the Sod Poodles and he sports a 2.41 ERA. Over his three-year minor league career, the 100-MPH fastballer has a 3.96 ERA with 180 strikeouts in 141.0 innings pitched.
Centeno Joins the Streaks: With his RBI single in the 7th, catcher Juan Centeno has now recorded a base hit in his last five games. He has been torching hot over the streak, batting .428 (9-for-21) with four home runs, 12 RBI and four multi-hit games. Centeno now joins OF/1B Leandro Cedeno (7 games, .462, 12-for-26), INF Jancarlos Cintron (7 games, .344, 10-for-29) and SS Blaze Alexander (5 games, .389, 4-for-18) as the four Sod Poodles with active five-plus game hitting streaks.
Error-Free: After their second game in a row without committing an error, the Sod Poodles are now riding a season-best 22.1 consecutive innings without committing an error. The streak surpassed their 22.0 consecutive innings to open the season from April 8 to April 10, their longest error-free start in franchise history. Amarillo has a .962 fielding percentage on the year with 20 errors, the most in the Texas League.
Swipers: The Sod Poodles stole two bases today, their third straight game with multiple steals. They rank 11th in Double-A and 4th in the Texas League with 19 total stolen bases, good for 1.2 per game. The Soddies are led in steals by Corbin Carroll (5) and Nick Dalesandro (4). Since joining the team just three games ago, Jorge Barrosa is tied for 3rd with Dominic Fletcher with three swipes. Last season, the Sod Poodles ranked 4th in the Texas League with 117 steals (0.98/game).
Extra W-innings: The Sod Poodles are now 2-1 in extra-inning games this season with one walk-off win. The two wins were both 11-inning victories today and on April 22 against San Antonio, and the loss was a 10-inning defeat to the Midland RockHounds on April 10. Amarillo has out-scored their opponents 7-5 in extra innings. Last season, the Sod Poodles were 5-5 in extra-inning games and recorded five walk-off wins.
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between
Prospect Peña quietly drawing raves in Brewers' farm system
PHOENIX – Jesús Made was at the top of the Brewers’ lineup for Sunday’s 9-7 loss to the Reds in the finale of MLB’s four-day Spring Breakout, a fitting perch when you consider that the 17-year-old infielder is under a bright spotlight as MLB Pipeline’s No. 55 prospect. Made could
Brecht -- in 1st outing since '24 Draft -- wows at Spring Breakout
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Sunday's Spring Breakout showcase was the perfect unveiling for Rockies No. 5 prospect Brody Brecht. A right-handed pitcher from the University of Iowa whom the Rockies selected 38th overall last summer, Brecht had a nice collegiate resume, an interesting backstory as a former wide receiver for the
Braves prospects show promise in Spring Breakout
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- As Terry Pendleton prepared to serve as the manager of the Braves prospect team that played the Tigers prospect team in a Spring Breakout game on Sunday afternoon, he said fans should be patient with John Gil and Luis Guanipa, a pair of teenagers who have
Yanks' Lagrange flashes triple-digit heat in Spring Breakout
SARASOTA, Fla. -- There was an audible “Ooh” from the crowd at Ed Smith Stadium, and Carlos Lagrange quickly glanced beyond the right-field wall, checking the velocity of the pitch he’d just thrown in Saturday’s 5-4 Spring Breakout loss to the Orioles. It had registered in the triple digits, and
Bradfield dedicates Spring Breakout performance to late friend
SARASOTA, Fla. -- It was about more than playing in the national spotlight. More than the dinner bet placed with an old college teammate earlier in the month. More than a game. As Enrique Bradfield Jr. slid home to score a run during the first inning of Saturday night’s Spring