Sod Poodles Let Lead Slip on Friday Night in Midland

Midland, Texas (July 28, 2023) – The Amarillo Sod Poodles dropped their Friday night game against the Midland RockHounds by a final of 10-9. The Sod Poodles jumped out to an early lead but were unable to halt a late push by their Oil Pan Cup Rivals.

Amarillo starter Yu-Min Lin had a three-run lead to work with by the time he took the mound in the bottom of the second inning. A walk and two singles in the game's opening frame gave Amarillo the early lead. Ivan Melendez was able to score Jordan Lawlar from second on a ball into right field. Another two hits in the top of the second helped to build that 3-0 lead for Amarillo.

After a RBI double allowed by Lin in the second, Amarillo jumped out even more during their third trip to the plate. Melendez scored Lawlar for the second time in the game. Following a pitching change, Deyvison De Los Santos singled to put two aboard. Neyfy Castillo then cleared the bases with his 10th home run of the year to give the Sod Poodles a 7-1 lead. A two-out RBI triple by A.J. Vukovich extended Amarillo's lead to 8-1 after the top of the fourth.

Midland began their comeback in the bottom of the fifth with Lin still on the rubber. The RockHounds loaded the bases thanks to a pair of singles and a walk. A bases-clearing double inched Midland closer. Lin responded by retiring each of the next three, including his eighth strikeout to match the single-game high by an Amarillo pitcher this year, and his second time doing so in his first three starts in Double-A.

Three more runs crossed the plate in the bottom of the sixth off Gerald Ogando. Following a pair of singles and a walk in the seventh, Amarillo made another pitching change, this time bringing on Kyle Backhus who inherited a pair of base runners. An error loaded the bases, before a single scored two more and put the RockHounds ahead 10-8.

Amarillo made a late push in the top of the ninth after Melendez started the inning with a leadoff double. A one-out single put runners on the corners and brought Castillo back to the plate. He added his third hit and fourth RBI of the game to cut it to a one score-game with the potential tying run in scoring position. A game-ending double play put an abrupt end to a potential Sod Poodles comeback as they fell into a 3-1 series hole against their Oil Pan Cup rivals.

The series will continue on Saturday night as Amarillo will look to bounce back. First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

NOTES:

CAST AWAY: Neyfy Castillo notched his fourth three-hit game of the season last night, going 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs scored, and four RBI. His four RBI marked a new season-high and his first four-RBI game since Sept. 8, 2022 when he was in Hillsboro. It was just his second career four-RBI game, one off of his career-high for a single game. His three-run home run was his 10th of the year, becoming the seventh Amarillo player to reach double-digit home runs in 2023. Friday night marked his second consecutive game with multiple hits. For the series so far, Castillo is hitting .451 (6-for-13) with a home run, five RBI, and three runs scored. To begin July, the D.R. native is hitting .357 (20-for-56) in 15 games with five home runs, three doubles, 15 RBI, and 12 runs scored.

IVAN THE GREAT: Last night, D-backs’ no. 7-rated prospect Ivan Melendez recorded his first three-hit game in Double-A, going 3-for-5 with a double, two RBI, and two runs scored. Through his first 11 games since joining Amarillo, Melendez is hitting .295 (13-for-44) with six home runs, two doubles, 11 RBI,and 12 runs scored.

D’ORAZIFOUR: After a 2-for-4 night at the plate, J.J. D’Orazio has now made it four straight games with a hit. D’Orazio currently ranks top 10 in the D-backs farm system in: doubles (21, 4th), hits (90, 6th), AVG (.309, 6th), total bases (143, 6th), XBH (33, T-6th), and SLG (.491, 7th).

ALWAYS ON BASE: All three Amarillo players who entered last night’s game with on-base streaks of at least 10 games extended. Jordan Lawlar has now made it 18 games reaching base after drawing a pair of walks and scoring two runs. Deyvison De Los Santos has reached base safely in each of his last 14 games after his 1-for-4 night. Neyfy Castillo has a streak of 12 games after his impressive night at the plate.

BACKHUS CONTINUES: Amarillo reliever Kyle Backhus has made it five straight games without an earned run allowed after going 1.2 IP in last night’s game with three strikeouts and three hits allowed. Over his last five, the left-hander has worked around six hits, and five walks to not allow an earned run. After last nights performance, Backhus carries a 2.35 ERA in 17 road games while converting on 4-of-6 save opportunities. He has been equally impressive with runners in scoring position, holding the opposition to a .189 BAA with just 10 hits in 53 at-bats. He has punched out 18 while allowing just one walk with a runner on either second or third base.

EIGHT IT GREAT: Yu-Min Lin has now struck out eight batters in two of his three starts in Double-A after his eight in last night’s game in just five innings of work. It was just the eighth time this year with an Amarillo pitcher having eight strikeouts.

*FRI-NAY: *Amarillo falls to 4-11 in Friday games in 2023.

VANISHING: The seven-run lead was the largest Amarillo has surrendered so far in 2023. The previous high was a six-run lead the Sod Poodles held over Frisco on May 20th.