Gordon, Dubin Combine To Blank Dodgers

The second-to-last home stand of the year for the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (53-80, 20-38) started with an emphatic 6-0 shutout victory over the Oklahoma City Dodgers (80-51, 30-28) on Tuesday night at Constellation Field.

LHP Colton Gordon (W, 3-2) got the start for the Space Cowboys and gave up a lead-off double and a walk in the first but induced a flyout from J.D. Martinez and a double play by Óscar Mercado to hurl a scoreless opening stanza.

Sugar Land’s offense gave their starter all the run support he would need in the bottom of the first inning. Corey Julks walked with one out and Joey Loperfido ripped a double to right when facing LHP Mike Montgomery (L, 3-4). Pedro León stroked a base hit to left, scoring the first run of the game, and two hitters later JJ Matijevic singled up the middle, driving in two to give Sugar Land a 3-0 advantage.

Gordon retired 11 of 12 batters faced from the second through the fifth. He surrendered back-to-back two-out singles in the fifth to bring the tying run to the plate, but a groundout by Johnny Deluca ended the Dodgers’ scoring threat. The Space Cowboys lefty hurled a 1-2-3 sixth to cap his night, tying a career high with 6.0 shutout innings and striking out two while walking just one.

In the home half of the fifth, Matijevic singled to start the frame, his third hit of the night, and Bligh Madris walked in front of Dixon Machado, who shot a single to center to load up the bases. David Hensley lashed a double to right, driving in two more runs, and a balk forced in the final run of the evening for the Space Cowboys, widening their lead to 6-0.

RHP Shawn Dubin (S, 1) entered for the Space Cowboys in the seventh and spun three perfect innings of relief, striking out three total hitters. The right-hander needed just 38 pitches, 26 strikes, to dispatch of the nine hitters he was tasked with, securing the first shutout of the season for Sugar Land and their first shutout since September 18, 2022, against Salt Lake at Constellation Field, a 1-0 Space Cowboys win in 10 innings.

The Space Cowboys continue their six-game series against the Dodgers on Wednesday night. RHP Ronel Blanco is scheduled to start for Sugar Land while the Dodgers are slated to counter with LHP Robbie Erlin for a 6:35 pm CT 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.