Henry Tosses Five Scoreless In 4-1 Win Over Riders

Thursday, August 26, 2021 vs. Frisco RoughRiders [TEX]

Frisco RoughRdiers (56-42) | Amarillo Sod Poodles (45-53)

Amarillo, Texas — Amarillo picked up their second straight win over the Frisco RoughRiders on Thursday night. Amarillo scored a run in the first inning and held that advantage throughout. A three-run sixth inning provided the insurance runs necessary to walk away with the win.

The Sod Poodles had their first two batters of the game reach on singles, giving Amarillo runners on the corners right off the bat. A double play took at least one runner off the base path but scored the runner from third giving Amarillo the lead through one inning of play.

Left-hander Tommy Henry allowed a leadoff double in the top of the second inning but worked around it, striking out the side and leaving two Frisco runners stranded after a two-out walk. He retired 10 in a row after the walk in the second to keep the RoughRiders off the scoreless through five innings of work. Henry added to his league lead in strikeouts by fanning eight on Thursday night and now has 121 on the season.

Amarillo had the leadoff batter in each of the first four frames reach base but were unable to add any insurance runs. A hit batter with two outs in the fifth kept the inning alive but still did not produce a run for Amarillo.

Jeff Bain replaced Henry in the top of the sixth inning. A leadoff double put the second Frisco batter of the game in scoring position. A single followed, giving the Riders runners on the corners with nobody out. A ground ball to Buddy Kennedy was tossed over to second base to get the force out but then second baseman Jancarlos Cintron fired the ball to home plate to force a run down between home and third. The unconventional 5-4-2-6 double play kept the RoughRiders off the scoreboard and kept the Soddies one run lead intact.

Geraldo Perdomo reached on a fielding error to begin the bottom of the sixth ahead of Kennedy. Amarillo's third baseman hit his second home run of the series and 12th in Double-A for a 3-0 advantage. Dominic Fletcher doubled with one out before Frisco pitching walked three straight batters and subsequently the fourth run of the game.

In Bain's second inning of work he struck out the first two batters he faced and got out of the inning on a ground ball.

The third arm of the night for the Soddies was Mitchell Stumpo. He came into the game with 12 scoreless appearances in his 14 games played since his promotion to Double-A in late June. Like they did last night, Frisco ended Amarillo's shutout bid with a solo home run in the eighth inning. A double made things a little more interesting but Stumpo dug in and struck out the next three batters in order.

The game headed to the ninth when the Soddies went down in order in the bottom of the eighth. Blake Rogers came into the game for his eighth save opportunity of the season. Rogers walked the first batter he faced but was also assisted by a great defensive play behind him. A leaping Andy Yerzy at first base hauled in the line drive, tagging the runner off first base in one motion on his way down for a quick two outs. Frisco singled but had the door slammed on a comeback bid when Josh Stowers grounded out to Kennedy to end the game.

Game four of this series continues tomorrow with LHP Kenny Hernandez (1-2, 6.50 ERA) getting the start for Amarillo. Hernandez is coming off his last start where he picked up his first Double-A win this past Saturday in Midland. Amarillo will face RHP Ronny Henriquez (4-3, 4.93 ERA) who gets the start for Frisco. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM with gates opening at 6:00 PM.

Notes:

The Blast That Lasts: Buddy Kennedy's 12th home run in an Amarillo uniform put the Sod Poodles up 3-0 in the bottom of the sixth. The two-run home run proved to be the game-winning runs for Amarillo. Kennedy's 17th home run for his 2021 campaign puts him in a tie for the second most in the D-backs' farm system this year behind Eduardo Diaz (18). He is tied with two other players including fellow teammate Andy Yerzy (17). Since his promotion to Double-A in late June, only Diaz has more home runs as a Diamondbacks minor leaguer.

If You're Not Closing Deals: Right-hander Blake Rogers picked up his seventh save of the year since being assigned to Amarillo on June 17th. He has converted on 7-of-8 save opportunities since being signed by the Diamondbacks from the Fargo-Morehead RedHawks, an Independent League team. Rogers was a part of the 2019 Texas League Championship team when was in the Padres farm system but then released in 2020. His seven saves this year are tied for the second most in the D-backs' farm system this year, trailing Miguel Aguilar (15) with Triple-A Reno.

We're Just Looking For A Fourth: Amarillo made it a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. After Kennedy's homer, D-backs' No. 19 rated prospect Dominc Fletcher doubled. Three straight walks by the Riders walked in the fourth run of the game. Amarillo is now 37-18 when scoring 4+ runs in a game. Dating back to 2019, the Sod Poodles are 97-40 when scoring at least four runs.

A Michigan Left: Left-hander and Portage, Michigan Native Tommy Henry had his best Double-A outing. In his 20th start of the year Henry tossed five scoreless innings and added eight strikeouts without just one walk. After surrendering a hit in the first and double in the second, Henry would not allow another hit. A two-out walk in the second proved to be the final man Henry allowed on base. He retired 10 in a row before his night came to an end. Henry leads the Double-A Central in strikeouts and now has the third most in the D-backs' system at the conclusion of Amarillo's game. His 121 strikeouts currently trails fellow Sod Poodles pitchers Brandon Pfaadt (136) and Ryne Nelson (135) who sit 1-2 among Arizona minor league arms.