Dodgers Subdue Chihuahuas for First Road Win

Oklahoma City Dodgers – 5

El Paso Chihuahuas – 1

Friday, April 15, 2022 – Southwest University Park – El Paso, Texas

*Game Summary: *Ryan Noda connected on a three-run homer in the first inning and starting pitcher Yefry Ramírez combined with two relievers to hold a hot El Paso Chihuahuas offense to one run and four hits, as the Oklahoma City Dodgers won, 5-1, Friday night at Southwest University Park. All five OKC runs scored with two outs throughout the night, including Noda’s team-leading fourth homer of the season in the first inning. Jake Lamb and Jason Martin added RBI singles in the fifth and eighth innings, respectively. El Paso’s lone run was on a solo homer by Luis Campusano in the fourth inning. Outside of that homer, the Chihuahuas collected just three other hits and did not have a runner advance as far as third base.

Of Note:

-Friday’s win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Dodgers and improved their overall record to 6-4. It was also the team’s first road win of the season.

-Ryan Noda went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer, extending his current hitting streak to seven games. He homered for the second time in the series and for the fourth time in his last five games. During the current hitting streak, Noda is 11-for-23 (.478) with nine RBI. The Triple-A rookie is off to a 12-for-30 (.400) start with eight walks and one HBP over his first 39 plate appearances (.538 OBP).

-Starting pitcher Yefry Ramírez threw five strong innings, allowing one run and two hits, with one walk and two strikeouts. It was the longest outing by a Dodgers pitcher in the early season and continued his trend of success against El Paso. In six starts between 2021-22 against the Chihuahuas, Ramírez is 5-0 with a 3.60 ERA and the team is 6-0 in his outings. He retired 14 of the 18 batters he faced overall, including 10 of the final 12.

-Relievers Carson Fulmer and Yency Almonte followed Ramírez and threw two innings apiece, combining to allow no runs and two hits, with one walk and five strikeouts. The trio of OKC pitchers allowed a season-low one run against an El Paso offense that had scored 24 runs on 38 hits over the first three games of the series. They held El Paso 0-for-9 with runners on base, and the Chihuahuas only had three at-bats with a runner in scoring position.

-Eddy Alvarez finished with a game-high three hits for his second three-hit game of the season. Alvarez collected singles in each of his final three at-bats, scored one run and stole a base.

-Jake Lamb reached base three times, going 2-for-4 with a RBI and walk. Following a 1-for-15 start, Lamb is 7-for-20 with seven RBI over his last five games.

-Kevin Pillar’s hitting streak came to an end at seven games, but he did walk twice and score twice. During the hitting streak, Pillar went 11-for-25 (.440) with seven RBI. He has reached base in all nine of his game so far this season and is batting .344 with a .463 on-base percentage.

-In the team’s first game with Major League Baseball’s new pace of play and pitch clock rules in effect, the game was completed in 2 hours, 26 minutes. Only one clock violation was called throughout the game – an automatic ball on OKC’s Carson Fulmer before he threw his first pitch after entering the game in the sixth inning.

What’s Next: The Dodgers will look for a second consecutive win when they square off against the Chihuahuas at 7:35 p.m. CT Saturday night. Live radio coverage of each OKC Dodgers game begins 15 minutes before first pitch on AM 1340 "The Game," 1340thegame.com and through the free iHeartRadio or MiLB First Pitch apps. All OKC Dodgers games are also available streamed live on MiLB.TV with a subscription.