Offense Stays Hot, Express Roll to 13-7 Victory

ROUND ROCK, Texas – The Round Rock Express (20-11) continued their explosive offensive month of May by defeating the Oklahoma City Dodgers (18-13) by a final score of 13-7 at Dell Diamond on Tuesday night.

Round Rock RHP Spencer Patton (0-0, 0.00) earned the win after throwing one scoreless inning of relief. The righty struck out two and did not allow a hit during his time on the mound. Oklahoma City starter RHP Andre Jackson (1-1, 6.14) was tagged with the loss after allowing six runs, five earned, on five hits. Jackson issued five walks and collected two strikeouts during 2.1 innings.

Along the Train Tracks:

• The Round Rock offense plated two in the first inning. With one out, CF Bubba Thompson flared a double down the right field line before LF Willie Calhoun singled through the left side of the infield to score Thompson. Calhoun advanced to second base as C Yohel Pozo earned a walk. 3B Davis Wendzel then scored Calhoun with a single for a 2-0 Round Rock lead.
• The offense extended the lead in the third inning when Pozo singled before Oklahoma City’s RHP Andre Jackson walked the next three batters he faced. DH Sherten Apostel earned an RBI on the third walk from Jackson, which allowed RF Steele Walker to score.
• 2B Nash Knight made his Round Rock debut and kept the scoring going. A broken-bat single scored two runs to give the Express a 5-0 advantage before a Josh Smith single scored Apostel to make it 6-0.
• Oklahoma City put their first run on the board when DH Jason Martin sent RF Kevin Pillar, who had knocked a leadoff single and advanced on a wild pitch, home with a base hit of his own.
• Dodgers 1B Jake Lamb singled to score CF Drew Avans in the fifth frame while SS Zach McKinstry moved to third base on the play. Pillar added another run on a ground out to first base, trimming the Express lead to 6-3.
• Oklahoma City could not contain the Round Rock offense as the E-Train scored three in the fifth inning. Walker knocked a one-out single before Knight hit a 344-foot home run and brought the lead to 8-3. The frame rolled on as Thompson reached base on a Dodgers error, stole second base, then scored on a Calhoun single.
• The Dodgers put a dent in the Round Rock lead in the sixth when McKinstry singled to score Martin. With two outs, 3B Miguel Vargas hit a three-run home run and shortened the Round Rock lead to 9-7.
• The Express added one run in the seventh inning. A fielder’s choice from Calhoun sent Smith across home plate and brought the Round Rock lead to 10-7.
• In the eighth, Round Rock added three insurance runs when a Dodgers throwing error on a pickoff attempt allowed Wendzel to score from third base. Smith then tripled off the center field wall to score DH Elier Hernandez and Knight for the 13-7 lead that held to be final.

E-Train Excerpts:

• Round Rock CF Bubba Thompson swiped two bases during the game for his 15th and 16th of the year. The outfielder currently leads the Pacific Coast League in stolen bags and Tuesday’s contest marked the fourth time that Thompson has stolen two or more bases in a game this year.
• All nine Express starters recorded a hit on Tuesday night as Round Rock finished with 13 total knocks and has now collected 10 or more hits in each of their last nine games. During that stretch, the Express have scored 9.8 runs per game.
• 2B Nash Knight hit his first home run of the season on Tuesday. He ended the night 2-4 with four RBI and two runs to go with his dinger. Knight appeared in just two games for Double-A Frisco before being promoted to Round Rock on Tuesday afternoon.
• RHP Spencer Patton made his first Major League rehab appearance and tossed a scoreless seventh inning while recording two strikeouts along the way.
• Express RHP Kohei Arihara saw his first relief appearance of the season. The righty allowed two runs on two hits and one walk during his 0.2-inning outing.

Next up: The Express and Dodgers return to Dell Diamond on Wednesday night. Round Rock LHP Jake Latz (3-3, 4.18) is scheduled to start game two against Oklahoma City RHP Mike Wright Jr. (1-2, 3.86**)**. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. CT.

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