Sod Poodles Split Series After Dropping Finale

Amarillo, Texas (June 9, 2024) – The Sod Poodles fell in the final game of the series against the Tulsa Drillers to end the week with a split. Amarillo was held to just four hits in the 15-2 loss.

Amarillo starter Cole Percival spun a three-up, three down top of the first and then used a trio of ground outs to escape the second inning without any damage done after allowing a one-out single. The Drillers led off the third with a single before Brandon Lewis put the game's first runs on the board with a two-run home run. Percival allowed two more singles in the inning but used back-to-back strikeouts to end the half-inning without any more runs coming across.

S.P. Chen got the Sod Poodles first hit of the game and served as the first baserunner with a single of his own in the bottom of the third. Two strikeouts from Tulsa starter Jared Karros got the right-hander out of the inning. John Matthews took over on the mound for Percival after totaling 78 pitches through his first three innings of work. The Drillers used just two hits to extend their lead to 7-0. Jake Rice served as the third pitcher used by Amarillo after Matthews pitched a third of an inning. The lefty Rice kept the Drillers at bay, not allowing a hit or run over the 1.2 IP he was asked to cover. Luke Albright worked the sixth inning for the Sod Poodles. Another two hits, including a three-run home run, pushed the deficit to 10-0.

Matt Beaty drew his second walk of the game in the bottom of the sixth but Jack Little was able to work around the free pass by retiring each of the next two batters he faced. Will Mabrey was on his way towards an efficient top of the seventh after helping to sit down the first two batters he faced. A two-base throwing error and subsequent single that landed just out of the reach of a diving Kevin Graham helped to keep the inning alive and gave the Drillers an 11-0 advantage. Mabrey's second strikeout left one Driller stranded.

Graham picked up Amarillo's second hit of the night with a one-out single in the seventh. Chen gave himself a multi-hit night and picked up an RBI with a two-out double off the left-field wall. The Drillers pushed two more runs across in the top of the eighth using the third home run allowed by Amarillo pitching. A one-out walk sandwiched between a pair of strikeouts from Conor Grammes came back to hurt as Diego Cartaya made it 13-1 with the fifth home run of his campaign.

The Soddies were retired in order in the bottom of the inning before Emailin Montilla became the seventh pitcher used by manager Tim Bogar. A leadoff single was followed by a strikeout for the lefty Montilla. A ground that could have gotten the Sod Poodles out of the inning instead turned into another two runs with a double pushing the 14th run of the game across for Tulsa. Montilla picked up his second strikeout of the inning but the third hit allowed added salt to the wound from the third Amarillo error of the game to put a cap on the scoring for the Drillers. Montilla ended the inning by striking out the side.

Consecutive walks is how Amarillo started the bottom of the ninth. Tulsa's Ryan Sublette picked up his first out via a strikeout. Chen added his third hit of the ballgame and his second RBI with a two-out single into right field before the game came to an end.

Amarillo will hit the road for a six-game series against the South Division-leading Frisco RoughRiders beginning on Tuesday. First pitch in the series opener from Riders Field is scheduled for 12:05 p.m.

NOTES:

CHEN MUSIC: S.P. Chen picked up his first multi-hit game since August 17, 2023, finishing the series finale against the Drillers 3-for-4 with a double and both Amarillo RBI. It broke a spell of 37 games between multi-hit games for Chen. His three-hit game was his first as a Sod Poodle in 42 games played and first since June 10, 2023, when he was with High-A Hillsboro.

HOME ALONE: Kevin Graham provided one of the four hits Amarillo got against the Drillers on Sunday evening. The outfielder finished 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored. It comes on the tail of him breaking a multi-hit drought of his own after he collected a pair of hits on Saturday night to give him his first multi-hit performance since April 25th (22 games). Graham ended the series against the Drillers having played in four games and went 4-for-13 with two RBI, two walks, and a stolen base.

NO DAYS OFF: Amarillo used a season-high seven pitchers in the loss on Sunday. Jake Rice ate up the most by any of the six relievers, going 1.2 IP. Luke Albright, Will Mabrey, Conor Grammes, and Emailin Montilla all pitched an inning out of the bullpen.