Sod Poodles Route RockHounds 12-3

Midland, Texas (June 8, 2023) – Amarillo ran away from Midland in the later innings to win their third straight over their Oil Pan Cup rivals. Entering the seventh inning up by just a run, the Sod Poodles exploded for eight runs in the last three innings and collected 18 hits to win their third straight.

After having to wait for their first run until at least the fourth inning through the first two games of the series, Amarillo wasted no time on Thursday night. Ryan Bliss singled to start the game and was followed aboard by Jordan Lawlar. Two batters later, Seth Beer put the Sod Poodles on the board with a RBI single.

Bliss collected his second hit of the night to lead off the third, and the next two behind him also singled to load the bases. Beer once again delivered, this time scoring two to extend the Sod Poodles lead. The fifth straight Amarillo single made it a 4-0 game as Adrian Del Castillo picked up his fourth RBI of the series.

Right-hander Chad Patrick had no trouble through the first two innings, sending each of the six Midland hitters back to their dugout in order. A walk and single to begin the bottom of the third provided the first bit of trouble. A fielder's choice groundout gave Patrick the first out of the inning but left runners on the corners. Two singles sandwiched an infield fly but the singles were enough to cut the Sod Poodles' lead in half.

After a quiet fourth inning for both teams, Beer picked up his third hit of the game with another single into right field in the fifth. Unfortunately, the third double play hit into by Amarillo made it another quick trip to the plate for the Soddies. Midland inched closer after a one-out triple with a single to follow to make it a one-run game after the fifth. The Sod Poodles bats were held in check in the top of the sixth as the game remained 4-3.

Conor Grammes was the first man out of the 'pen for Amarillo. A leadoff single was quickly removed from the base path on a caught stealing to send the RockHounds down in order.

Lawlar notched his third hit of the night with a two-hit single in the top of the seventh. A balk and wild pitch helped advance Lawlar to third where he was waiting to score as A.J. Vukovich drove him in with a RBI single. Beer reached for the fourth time after wearing a pitch to put two on base for Del Castillo. The Sod Poodles backstop cleared them with his sixth homer of the year and extended the Amarillo lead to 8-3.

Grammes once again was aided by his defense, working around a one-out single and a walk to escape the inning unscathed as the defense turned a double play. The Sod Poodles added another two runs on as many hits highlighted by a Neyfy Castillo triple and Bliss RBI to make it 10-3.

Camden Duzenack got in on the hit parade, making the most of his lone hit on the night as he drove in the final two runs of the game for Amarillo to make it 12-3.

Christian Montes De Oca closed out the game, spinning the final two innings of the game for Amarillo. The right-hander did not yield a hit to the RockHounds to secure the team's third straight win.

Winners of nine of their last 11, Amarillo will go for their second consecutive series win when they take the field tomorrow in game four of the series. RHP Deyni Olivero (2-4, 7.78 ERA) will take the mound at Momentum Bank Ballpark on Friday night with first pitch scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

NOTES:

HOLY HITS: The Sod Poodles tied their season-high with 18 hits on Thursday night, having done so two other times so far in 2023. Eight of the nine starters collected at least one hit, with six of the nine notching a multi-hit performance. Thursday marked the 21st time this season that Amarillo picked up at least 10 hits in a game. With the offensive outburst, Amarillo has hit their way into a tie for second place in the Texas League, hitting .257 on the year as a team. Midland still sits atop the league, hitting .261 through 54 games this year.

TOP HEAVY HITTERS: Each of the first five in the Sod Poodles lineup had at least two hits on Thursday night, going a combined 14-for-24 (.583) with nine RBI.

CRAW CHAD: Chad Patrick picked up his third win in his last four starts, dealing 5.0 IP, and allowing three runs on five hits. Patrick has been stellar on the road so far this year, picking up all three of his wins in road ballparks. Over 29.1 IP on the road this year, Patrick has surrendered just nine earned runs, good for a 2.78 ERA in road starts.

YO! ADRIAN:Adrian Del Castillo continued his tear in Momentum Bank Ballpark after a 2-for-4 night with four RBI that included a three-run homer and two runs scored. Playing in all three games so far, Del Castillo is 5-for-12 (.417) with a home run, double, seven RBI, two walks, and two runs scored.

MMMM, BEER: Seth Beer tallied his second four-hit night in a Sod Poodles uniform, going 4-for-4 with three RBI out of the cleanup spot for Amarillo. In just his 14th game played, Beer already has more four-hit games than anyone else for Amarillo. Roby Enriquez and A.J. Vukovich are the only others that have turned in a four-hit night this season for Amarillo. In the series, Beer is hitting .500 (6-for-12) with five RBI, and has done all of his damage with singles.

COMIN' FOR THE CROWN? DON'T BLISS: One night after being held hitless for just the sixth time this season, Ryan Bliss exploded with three hits, going 3-for-6 with two runs scored and a RBI. Bliss raised his average to .368, tied for the third-best among all full-season minor leaguers so far this year. He is tops in the Texas League in the category, and ranks second-best among all Double-A players, trailing only Cesar Prieto (Bowie, Double-A Baltimore) who is hitting .374 in 50 games.

OIL PAN CUPdate:Amarillo has taken the series lead over the RockHounds, winners of five of the nine games played so far in 2023. Amarillo has won two of the three season-series so far, only dropping the 2021 season to the RockHounds.