Hensley's Slam Not Enough To Bring Space Cowboys Back
The Sugar Land Space Cowboys (55-85, 22-43) traded grand slams in the fifth inning with the Sacramento River Cats (62-77, 28-37) in an 11-5 loss on Wednesday night at Sutter Health Park. Corey Julks notched a one-out single in the first and advanced to second on a ground out but
The Sugar Land Space Cowboys (55-85, 22-43) traded grand slams in the fifth inning with the Sacramento River Cats (62-77, 28-37) in an 11-5 loss on Wednesday night at Sutter Health Park.
Corey Julks notched a one-out single in the first and advanced to second on a ground out but was left stranded by RHP Miguel Yajure (W, 2-5). David Villar then hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the first inning to give Sacramento a 2-0 lead.
In the top of the second, César Salazar and Rylan Bannon worked back-to-back free passes, but a fielder’s choice and a double play stranded a runner at third. RHP Spencer Arrighetti (L, 2-5) gave up two runs in the bottom of the second on a solo home run and a bases-loaded walk but left the bags full and limited the damage with a flyout and a strikeout.
The River Cats added on three more in the home half of the third on a two-RBI double and a single inside of third base, widening their advantage to 7-0 after three frames.
The Space Cowboys pulled within striking distance in the top of the fifth inning. Bannon reached on a fielding error and Dixon Machado laced a single up the middle to put two men on base before Marty Costes reached on the second fielding error of the inning by the River Cats. David Hensley worked a 3-0 count and cranked a grand slam over the left-field wall, his sixth home run of the year, to make it a 7-4 contest. Julks followed with a deep drive to left that was caught at the wall and Yajure struck out the final hitter of the fifth to stem the Space Cowboys’ rally.
Sacramento responded by immediately putting men on the edges thanks to a single and a fielder’s choice with a throwing error. RHP Rhett Kouba struck out the next two hitters but a walk loaded up the bases and Trenton Brooks hit a two-out grand slam, once again giving the River Cats a seven-run advantage at 11-4.
Sugar Land was able to scratch across a run in the top of the ninth inning, loading up the bases on singles from Machado and Costes before Hensley worked his second free pass of the night. Shay Whitcomb pushed a two-out single to left, driving in his 97th overall RBI of the year, but LHP Erik Miller entered and recorded the final out for Sacramento to end the contest.
With the series level at one game each, the Space Cowboys and River Cats continue their six-game series on Thursday night. Sugar Land is scheduled to throw RHP Brandon Bielak while Sacramento is set to send RHP Sean Hjelle to the hill for a 8:45 pm CT first pitch. 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.