Diving Heartbreak

Published on May 15, 2011 under American Association (AA)
Amarillo ThunderHeads News Release


AMARILLO, TX - The Amarillo Sox batters slammed the ball all Saturday night, but the Wichita Wingnuts did more. A late ninth inning rally was stopped by a great defensive play to end the game with the Sox falling 17-16 in front of 2,135 fans at the Amarillo National Bank Sox Stadium.

Sox reliever Brian Oliver (0-1) got his first career loss, giving up eight eighth-inning runs, while Wingnuts opening day starter Nick Singleton (1-0) got the win, pitching an inning in relief. Josh Dew got his third straight save, despite allowing three runs to score in the ninth.

The Sox got on the board first in the first inning as Matthew Tucker singled, went to second on an error and scored on a Lee Cruz RBI single. The Wingnuts responded in the second with an RBI single by Evan Button to tie the game 1-1.

Amarillo retook the lead in the second as Adam De La Garza singled with two outs. Following a Jason White walk, Fehlandt Lentini singled to score De La Garza for a one-run advantage. Wichita took their first lead in the third as Jorge Delgado hit a two-run homerun to left field. The Wingnuts added another run in the forth of an error for a 4-2 deficit.

The Sox utilized a big fourth inning to capture the lead. Kevin Butler led off with a single and remained there following a lineout. The Sox followed with the next eight batters reaching safely, highlighted by a three-RBI double by Lee Cruz to give Amarillo an 8-4 advantage.

Wichita added a run in the fifth, but Amarillo's Cyle Hankerd delivered a sacrifice fly to score Lentini from third for a 9-5 Amarillo lead after five innings. The Wingnuts followed with a big sixth inning as they brought home four runs off four hits and an error to tie the game at 9-9.

Amarillo broke through in the seventh inning as Tucker hit a one-out double and scored on a Lee Cruz two-out RBI single. Cruz would come around on a Tim Alberts RBI single for an 11-9 Sox advantage.

The Wingnuts retook the lead for good in the eighth as Edwin Bellorin hit a grand slam, following two singles and a walk. They added four more in the inning for a 17-11 Wichita lead.

The Sox brought home two runs in the eighth to pull the deficit to four. In the ninth, the Sox loaded the bases and Dew came in to face White. The shortstop singled to score Alberts, while Lentini doubled to score Butler and De La Garza and bring the deficit to one run with runners on second and third. Tucker sent a shot down the left field line, but a diving play was made by Jorge Delgado to end the game with the Sox falling by a score of 17-16.

With the loss, the Sox fall to 0-3 while the Wingnuts improve to 3-0. Sunday, Amarillo will take on Wichita for the final game of the four-game set at 6:05pm with the Aqua One Pre-Game Show set to begin at 5:50pm on Ustream via www.amarillosox.com. The game will be free of charge courtesy of Jorge's Tacos Garcia. Game time is tentative and is subject to blackout.

Season tickets are available for purchase in-person by visiting the Sox Front Offices at 801 S. Polk or over the phone by calling (806) 242-4653. For more information on tickets, game times and schedules, promotions, marketing opportunities, and everything else Sox, visit the "Official Website of the Amarillo Sox" at www.amarillosox.com.

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American Association Stories from May 15, 2011


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