TL1 Arkansas Travelers

Travs Squander Lead, Drop Third Straight

Published on June 10, 2013 under Texas League (TL1)
Arkansas Travelers News Release


Springdale, AR-Sunday night at Arvest Ballpark, the Arkansas Travelers lost to the Northwest Arkansas Naturals, 7-5. Arkansas led by three runs on two different occasions, but the Naturals responded by scoring the final four runs of the contest. With the loss, Arkansas is now tied with Springfield for first place in the North Division.

The Travelers raced out at the start of the game by scoring three runs in the top of the first inning against RH Brooks Pounders. Rolando Gomez singled to start the game, and scored two batters later when Taylor Lindsey homered to right center field. The long ball for Lindsey put the Travs up 2-0, and gave him the team lead with nine homers on the season.

Pounders followed up the Lindsey home run by hitting Randal Grichuk with a pitch. Robbie Widlansky walked, and Kaleb Cowart singled to score Grichuk to put the Travs up 3-0. After Travis Witherspoon struck out for the second out, Drew Heid singled with runners at first and second. On the play, Widlansky rounded third and was in the process of scoring when RF Yem Prades threw ahead of Cowart at third base to end the inning. Orlando Calixte applied the tag just before Widlansky scored.

Pounders needed 37 pitches to get through the first inning, and left the game after recording only three outs.

Arkansas started RH Lay Batista on the mound. Batista opened the road trip on Tuesday at Springfield by recording his third win of the season, but struggled over the first two innings on Sunday, and allowed three runs.

Batista plunked Calixte with one out, and then allowed a double to Brian Fletcher to left field. The hit plated Calixte, and cut the Travs advantage to two.

Matt Ridings came in the from the Naturals bullpen to relieve Pounders at the start of the second inning. Carlos Ramirez and Rolando Gomez greeted Ridings by hitting back-to-back doubles to start the innings. Gomez's scored Ramirez to put the Travs ahead 4-1.

However, Arkansas again missed out on the opportunity to add to the lead. After a sacrifice bunt by Jimmy Swift moved Gomez to third, Gomez tried scoring when a pitch from Ridings snuck away from catcher Manny Pina. Pina pounced on the loose ball and tossed it to Ridings covering home to tag out Gomez for the second out. Ridings ended the inning right after that sequence with a strikeout of Lindsey.

In the bottom of the second the Naturals started the inning in the same fashion as the Travs. Manny Pina and Angel Franco each slammed two-base hits off Batista, and the Travs led once again by two. After a wild pitch moved Franco to third, Alex McClure pulled the Naturals within a run on a ground out to second that scored Franco.

Arkansas scored their final run of the game in the fourth inning. Heid and Gomez each singled off Ridings, and with one out Swift walked to load the bases. That brought Lindsey to the plate. The Travs second baseman lofted a fly ball to right field that scored Heid for a sacrifice fly. Leading 5-3, the Travs still had runners at second and third with two outs as Ridings left the game in favor of Sam Runion. Runion quieted the threat by ending the inning with a strikeout of Randal Grichuk.

Arkansas led 5-3 until the bottom of the sixth inning. Lay Batista entered the sixth having struck out six of the last nine Naturals he faced, but Brian Fletcher ended that stretch by launching a lead-off home run to again slice the Travs edge to one run.

Batista retired two in the inning, but allowed a single to Yem Prades before exiting the game. He turned the game over to Michael Cisco. With runners at second and third, Cisco forced Angel Franco to hit a grounder to second that would have been the final out. However, the ball was mishandled by Lindsey, which allowed Prades to score.

With that the game was tied at five. Arkansas' offense struggled against Runion, and was retired in order in the seventh inning. The Naturals went back to work offensively in the bottom of the inning, and scored the final two runs of the game.

Alex McClure led off the seventh by hitting a bloop double into shallow right. Cisco recovered and retired the next two batters, but with two outs and McClure at third, Arkansas decided to walk Fletcher intentionally. After putting the force out at second back in place, Cisco walked Matt Fields to load the bases. That brought Yem Prades up, and Prades delivered by singling to center to score a pair of runs that gave the Naturals their first lead of the game.

Northwest Arkansas called on Edwin Carl in the eighth inning, and Zach Jackson in the ninth to record the final six outs. Only Travis Witherspoon (single) reached base for Arkansas in the final two frames.

Runion pitched 3.1 innings in relief for the Naturals and was awarded with his third win. Michael Cisco was assessed a blown save and the losing decision. Jackson earned his second save of the series.

Rolando Gomez went 3-for-5 with a double, and Taylor Lindsey drove in three runs for Arkansas.

Arkansas and Northwest Arkansas play game three of their series on Monday night at 7:05 p.m. at Arvest Ballpark. Coverage of the game begins with the Travs Dugout Show at 6:40 p.m. on Sports Animal 920.

Check out the Arkansas Travelers Statistics

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Texas League Stories from June 10, 2013


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