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TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Fuenmayor Belts Two Home Runs in Naturals 5-3 Win

May 11, 2015 - Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - A pair of long home runs by Balbino Fuenmayor and 5.0 shutout innings from starter Miguel Almonte helped the Northwest Arkansas Naturals (20-11) beat the Arkansas Travelers (18-12) 5-3 on Monday night at Dickey-Stephens Park. The win puts Northwest Arkansas a game and a half up in the Texas League North Division standings.

Before Almonte even took the mound, Fuenmayor made sure the 22-year old right-hander had a lead. Mike Bianucci extended the inning with two-outs against the Travelers starter Nate Smith (3-3, 3.72) with a single to left to bring the Venezuelan first baseman to the plate. On a 1-1 pitch, Fuenmayor pounded it over the left field wall to give the Naturals a 2-0 lead.

Jorge Bonifacio added to the lead with a solo home run off Smith in the third and Fuenmayor, again, in the sixth inning hit a long ball across the street in left field to make it a 4-0 lead. Meanwhile, Almonte dominated.

The Dominican hurler retired 13 of the final 15 batters faced and did not allow a man to reach second base in his outing. He worked five innings, scattered two hits, two walks and three strikeouts to earn his third straight win on the season. Almonte has not allowed a run in 11.0 straight frames dating back to his May 1 start against Tulsa.

The Travelers made it interesting in the bottom of the eighth plating three runs highlighted by a two-run double by Wade Hinkle to cut into the lead, 4-3. But Hunter Dozier delivered a two-strike, two-out single to score Angel Franco from second base to make it a 5-3 game.

Right-hander Malcom Culver earned his second save working 1.1 innings and struck out two in his appearance. Mark Peterson notched 2.0 scoreless innings while all three Travelers runs were charged to Ali Williams in the outing.

Fuenmayor finished 2-for-4 and now has six home runs on the season while Bianucci was among three other Naturals to record two-hit games. Ethan Chapman, Alex Liddi and Bonifacio were the other.

Northwest Arkansas looks for their third series sweep of the season on Tuesday morning in the final game of the series and of the eight-game road trip. Left-hander Brandon Finnegan (0-1, 3.86) will make his third start of the season and his first since April 18. He will counter against right-hander Kyle McGowin (3-1, 7.01) with an 11:10 a.m. first pitch.

Tune in with Benjamin Kelly for the 10:55 a.m. Indigo Sky Casino Pregame Show on the flagship station of the Naturals, 92.1 the Ticket.

Follow the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on Twitter @nwanaturals throughout the year by using the hashtag #NaturalPastime for all of our up-to-date information on tickets, groups, promotions, and team-related information.

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Texas League Affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. The Naturals play at state-of-the-art Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, Ark. For more information including statistics, ticket options, and more, please visit NWANaturals.com, and follow us on Twitter @NWANaturals and Facebook.com/Naturals.

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Texas League Stories from May 11, 2015


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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