Space Cowboys Drop Opener In Las Vegas
The Sugar Land Space Cowboys (33-19) were unable to keep up with the hot bats of the Las Vegas Aviators (26-26) as they dropped the first of six at Las Vegas Ballpark, 9-5, on Tuesday night. After a clean first inning, RHP AJ Blubaugh (L, 3-1) put runners on second
The Sugar Land Space Cowboys (33-19) were unable to keep up with the hot bats of the Las Vegas Aviators (26-26) as they dropped the first of six at Las Vegas Ballpark, 9-5, on Tuesday night.
After a clean first inning, RHP AJ Blubaugh (L, 3-1) put runners on second and third with one out in the second frame and surrendered a single to Hoy Park to give up two runs. The inning eventually ended with a nice throw-and-swipe from César Salazar and Shay Whitcomb to catch Park stealing second base and keep the damage at two runs.
It did not take long for the Space Cowboys to come back when a lead-off double from Will Wagner brought Cooper Hummel to the plate, who mashed his second home run in as many games to tie the contest up at two.
COOP IS ON 🔥
— Sugar Land Space Cowboys (@SLSpaceCowboys) May 29, 2024
TIE GAME! pic.twitter.com/BJ3VPR8cXz
With Park up again with two men on in the fourth, he knocked another run in for the Aviators on a base-hit to break the tie and give Las Vegas a 3-2 lead on Blubaugh. An RBI single from Lazaro Armenteros tacked on one and effectively ended Blubaugh’s night. RHP Misael Tamarez took over with two inherited runners and allowed an RBI base-hit to Brett Harris and a double to Lawerence Butler that brought in two more. Tamarez was able to get out of the troubled inning with a strike-em-out-throw-em-out double play, but not without the Aviators extending their advantage to 7-2.
Sugar Land began to chip away in the sixth inning when Hummel doubled after Wagner had walked to start the inning. A wild pitch from RHP Gerson Moreno plated a run, and a Quincy Hamilton groundout added another, cutting the Space Cowboys deficit to three. However, another Park single scored a pair of runs in the seventh to bring Las Vegas’ lead to 9-4.
The Space Cowboys did not go down quietly, as they juiced the bases with one out in the top of the ninth. A balk called on RHP Dany Jiménez scored Hamilton from third base with Pedro León at the plate. However, Jiménez recovered to get the final two outs and end the game.
Sugar Land looks to bounce back against Las Vegas on Wednesday night. LHP Colton Gordon (3-2, 4.63) will take the ball for the Space Cowboys against the Aviator’s RHP Joe Boyel (0-0, -.--) for a 9:05 pm CT first pitch. The game can be heard on ESPN 92.5 FM or online here and seen on MiLB.TV, MLB.TV or Bally Live.
ABOUT THE SUGAR LAND SPACE COWBOYS:
The Sugar Land Space Cowboys are the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros and compete in the Pacific Coast League. They began play as the Astros Triple-A affiliate in 2021 and began playing under the Space Cowboys brand in 2022. The Space Cowboys play at Constellation Field, located at the corner of Hwy-6 and US-90 Alternate in Sugar Land, Texas. Follow the team on Twitter (@SLSpaceCowboys), Instagram (@slspacecowboys), Facebook (SLSpaceCowboys) and their official website (slspacecowboys.com). Fans can purchase full-season and partial-season plans, as well as single-game tickets, by visiting slspacecowboys.com/tickets.