Riders surge early but fall 5-4 to Missions

SAN ANTONIO, Texas (May 11, 2017) - Despite taking an early lead, the Frisco RoughRiders, the Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers, fell to the San Antonio Missions 5-4 Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series at Nelson Wolff Municipal Stadium.
BIG MOMENTS

• Alberth Martinez scored from third base on a wild pitch from Riders reliever Sam Wolff , breaking a 4-4 tie in the bottom of the eighth to complete the comeback. The Missions tied the game in the seventh on a RBI triple from infielder Noah Perio.
• Leading 2-1 after two innings, the Riders tacked on two more runs in the third. Eric Aguilera homered and Isiah Kiner-Falefa singled in a run off of Missions starter Enyel De Los Santos , making it 4-1 Riders.
• San Antonio's Nick Torres blasted a three-run home run in the bottom of the fourth off Riders starter David Ledbetter , cutting the Frisco lead to one run.
• Frisco pitching stranded 10 runners Thursday, including Adam Loewen's escape from a bases-loaded jam in the fifth to preserve a 4-3 lead at the time.

KEY RIDERS PERFORMERS

• Juremi Profar: 3-4
• Eric Aguilera:  1-4, home run, RBI, run
• Scott Heineman: 2-5, run, stolen base

NEWS AND NOTES

• Following Thursday's decision, each of the nine head-to-head meetings between the Riders and Missions have been decided by three or fewer runs, including four one-run affairs.
• Luke Tendler broke an 0-23 skid with an RBI double in the first.
• Juremi Profar recorded his team-leading 12^th multi-hit game of the season, tallying his first three-hit game of the season. He is 5-8 in his last two contests after going 2-4 Tuesday in Midland.

WHAT'S NEXT
RoughRiders at San Antonio, Friday, 7:05 p.m.
Probables: LHP Yohander Méndez (1-2, 3.72 ERA) vs. RHP Brett Kennedy (2-1, 4.94 ERA)
Video: MiLB.tv
Audio: RidersBaseball.com, TuneIn Radio App, MiLB First Pitch App
About the RoughRiders
The Frisco RoughRiders are the Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers and play their games at beautiful Dr Pepper Ballpark in Frisco, Texas. The team was founded in 2003 and has finished first among all Double-A franchises in attendance in each of the last 12 seasons (2005-2016). In August 2014, the RoughRiders were purchased by an ownership group led by Chuck Greenberg. The new ownership group, together with the city of Frisco, has spearheaded numerous major franchise improvements over the past two seasons, investing nearly $8 million in a wide array of facility upgrades and improvements, including a new state-of-the-art HD video board, sound system, Bull Moose Saloon, InTouch Grille, Riders Outpost Team Store, and the newest and biggest creation, the 174-foot Choctaw Lazy River. The upgrades made prior to the 2015 season earned the Riders and the City of Frisco "Best Ballpark Renovation" of 2015 by Ballpark Digest. The same publication also honored the Choctaw Lazy River as the best ballpark improvement over $1 million for the 2016 season. More than 140 former RoughRiders players have gone on to play Major League Baseball, including All-Stars Chris Davis, Adrián González, Ian Kinsler, and Nelson Cruz, as well as current Rangers stars Elvis Andrus, Rougned Odor and Nomar Mazara. For more information on the Frisco RoughRiders and Dr Pepper Ballpark, please visit RidersBaseball.com or contact Art Garcia at [email protected] or Ryan Rouillard at [email protected].
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