TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Big Inning Propels Naturals' Comeback

Published on August 7, 2011 under Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


SPRINGDALE, AR - 13 men came to the plate during a six-run sixth inning to help the Naturals overcome a deficit as they rolled over the Travelers by an 8-5 final Sunday evening at Arvest Ballpark.

Down 5-2, Wil Myers walked to start the sixth inning off Travelers' starter Andrew Taylor. Nick Francis followed and launched his third homer of the season to cut the Travs' lead to 5-4. Mario Lisson followed with a single to put the tying run aboard as that spelled the end of the day for Taylor.

In came 7-foot-1 Travelers' reliever Loek Van Mil (3-5). Lisson immediately took off for second base, but Travs' catcher Orlando Mercado's throw went into shallow center field as Lisson took third. Theriot fanned for the first out, and then Derrick Robinson singled Lisson home to tie the ballgame. Christian Colon followed with a chopper to shallow right to put runners at the corners.

Northwest Arkansas (23-20, 58-52) elected to test the fielding prowess of Van Mil next as they unsuccessfully executed a safety squeeze. Jeff Bianchi dropped the bunt near Van Mil at the mound and he recovered it just in time to get the speedy Robinson coming in to try and score for the second out of the frame. Jamie Romak followed and grounded to shortstop as the Travs' Darwin Perez dropped the ball allowing Romak to reach safely. Anthony Seratelli then followed with a two run single to shallow center before Myers, representing the tenth man to bat in the frame, got plunked by a Van Mil fastball to load the bases. Francis then followed with an RBI single, driving in his third run of the frame for an 8-5 lead.

The game seem poised to be a back-and-forth, low scoring affair at the start. Mario Lisson's RBI groundout plated the first run of the game, and the Travelers (19-24, 55-55) answered back with a run in the fourth off an RBI single by cleanup hitter Luis Jimenez. Ben Theriot hit an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to put the Naturals up 2-1.

But North Little Rock scored the game's next four runs, getting a three-run homer from Orlando Mercado in the fifth to go up 4-2 and adding a run in the sixth when Chris Pettit hit an RBI double.

The game was marked by a couple of great defensive plays by the Naturals. Mario Lisson barehanded a ball to nail a runner at first base, and the middle infield turned two spectacular double plays keyed by shortstop Christian Colon.

Andrew Dobies (1-1), who relieved Naturals' starter Mario Santiago in the sixth and yielded the double to Pettit but recorded two outs to limit the damage in the frame, notched the win after the offensive outpouring in the bottom half of the sixth. Santiago was charged with all five Traveler runs in 5 1/3. He allowed six hits, walked one, and fanned three.

Blaine Hardy allowed just two baserunners, a hit and a walk, in three innings of scoreless relief of Santiago and Dobies to get his fourth save on the season for the Naturals.

The series concludes with a rematch of the Naturals' Jul. 19 no-hitter, as southpaw Will Smith (10-8, 4.52) meets Travs' righty Matt Shoemaker (10-2, 2.47). Overshadowed by Smith's seven hitless frames, Shoemaker allowed only an unearned run in a complete-game effort in their last meeting. Game time is 7 P.M, and the broadcast can be heard on ESPN 92.1 The Ticket. Tomorrow's broadcast will also be available on MILB.TV (subscription required) and also broadcast on Jones TV (Channel 22 on Cox Cable in Northwest Arkansas) as well as on Time Warner Cable Metro Sports throughout the Kansas City metro as well as portions of Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa.

Check out the Northwest Arkansas Naturals Statistics

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Texas League Stories from August 7, 2011


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