Trio of Home Runs Sink Space Cowboys

A trio of home runs took down the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (35-54, 2-12) in a 7-2 defeat against the El Paso Chihuahuas (4-10, 36-53) on Saturday night at Constellation Field.

El Paso struck in the second inning when Tirso Ornelas reached on a fielder’s choice, stole second and moved to third on a throwing error before scoring on a balk from RHP Ronel Blanco (L, 2-1). The Space Cowboys were able to tie the game up in the bottom of the third on singles from Quincy Hamilton and Rylan Bannon and a fielder’s choice from Jon Singleton, squaring the game at 1-1.

In the top of the fourth, Alfonso Rivas and Max Schrock each hit two-run homers, vaulting the Chihuahuas to a 5-1 lead over Sugar Land. The Space Cowboys drew a pair of walks with one out against LHP Jay Groome (W, 2-6) in the home half of the inning but Groome struck out to a pair to strand both runners.

A two-run homer from Luis Campusano ended the night for Blanco. RHP Jimmy Endersby entered out of the bullpen and hurled 1.2 scoreless innings of relief for the Space Cowboys.

Sugar Land’s best chance to score again against Groome came in the bottom of the fifth. Pedro León singled, moved to second on a walk to Singleton and the bases were loaded on a fielding error that allowed Shay Whitcomb to reach with one out. However, Groome struck out the next two hitters, leaving the bases full for Sugar Land.

RHP Shawn Dubin covered the last three innings for the Space Cowboys, giving up just one hit and a walk while striking out three in three scoreless innings of relief. Sugar Land got a run back in the bottom of the ninth on an RBI double from Shay Whitcomb, but a groundout in the ensuing at bat ended Sugar Land’s rally.

The Space Cowboys conclude their three-game series with El Paso on Sunday night. RHP Spencer Arrighetti (0-1, 4.50) is scheduled to start for Sugar Land while the Chihuahuas are set to counter with RHP Anderson Espinoza (4-2, 6.30) for a 6:05 pm first pitch at Constellation Field. The game can be heard on ESPN 92.5 FM or online here and seen on MiLB.TV.

*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.