PCL Albuquerque Isotopes

Isotopes' Epic Comeback Bid Falls Short, 15-13

Published on April 20, 2023 under Pacific Coast League (PCL)
Albuquerque Isotopes News Release


Albuquerque, NM - The ball was once again flying out of Isotopes Park on a blustery Wednesday evening. The visiting Oklahoma City Dodgers built an 11-0 lead after three innings, but had to hold on for dear life to earn a 15-13 win over the Isotopes.

Albuquerque trailed 15-9 heading into the bottom of the ninth before scoring four runs to make it 15-13. Jonathan Morales stepped to the plate and launched a pitch that appeared headed out for a walk-off grand slam, but the wind barely held it in the park and left fielder Steven Duggar made the catch on the warning track. The wind was consistently gusting out to right field at 20-30 miles throughout the contest.

Coco Montes continued his torrid stretch at the plate for Albuquerque by driving in two more runs and extending his on-base streak to 15 games. Morales chipped in his first homer of the season while Nolan Jones contributed a two-run double.

Topes Scope: - Each team has a victory so far in the six-game set. The squads have combined for 51 runs, 62 hits, 10 errors and 27 walks in the first two nights of the series.

- Montes is slashing .410/.493/.787 with seven doubles, two triples, four homers and 18 RBI during his 15-game on-base streak with nine multi-hit contests.

- Morales homered for the first time since last Sept. 7 vs. El Paso, a span of 110 at-bats. It was his 10th long ball in an Albuquerque uniform between 2022 and 2023.

- Randal Grichuk was 0-for-3 with three walks and two RBI in the second game of his Major League rehab assignment. It was his fifth time drawing three free passes in a contest during his professional career and first since April 16, 2019 with Toronto at Minnesota.

- Brenton Doyle walked three times in a game for the second time in his career (May 8, 2021 for High-A Spokane vs. Eugene).

- Jones registered his seventh multi-hit effort of the season and second three-hit contest. In 12 games with Albuquerque, he is slashing .396/.508/.896 with three doubles, seven homers and 21 RBI.

- Connor Kaiser extended his hitting streak to seven games by going 2-for-5. It is his longest streak since eight in a row from Aug. 16-28, 2018 with Single-A West Virginia (Pirates). Kaiser has recorded multiple knocks in five of the seven contests.

- Michael Toglia doubled home a run before adding an RBI single in the ninth. Eight of his 13 hits this season have gone for extra bases.

- Over his past two starts, Jeff Criswell is 0-2 with a 32.06 ERA (19 ER/5.1 IP). Combined, he has surrendered 18 hits, five home runs and five walks during the outings.

- Tommy Doyle made his first competitive game appearance since June 24, 2021 with Double-A Hartford. He allowed two unearned runs after walking three in two-thirds of an inning.

- Albuquerque's pair of four-run innings marked the 11th time they have plated four or more in a frame this season. On the other hand, the pitching staff has surrendered four or more tallies in an inning on 14 occasions in 2023.

- The Isotopes have scored five or more runs in 10 straight games for the first time since July 14-24, 2019. Albuquerque's 185 hits as a team are 16 ahead of the next closest team (Reno) in all of MiLB.

- During the last 10 games, Albuquerque has scored 95 runs while compiling a team batting average of .337 (129-for-383) during the stretch.

- The Isotopes lost when plating seven or more runs for the first time since Sept. 18, 2022 vs. Oklahoma City, a span of 11 contests.

- The two teams combined to walk 21 batters. Albuquerque's 10 free passes issues were the second-most in a game this year (11, April 7 vs. Salt Lake) while their 11 drawn were the most in a contest since April 7, 2022 at Oklahoma City.

- Albuquerque committed three errors, a season-worst. It was the third time they had multiple miscues in a game this year. Oklahoma City also made three, errors increased the opposing total to 27 through 17 contests.

- Albuquerque's pitching staff allowed double-digits in the run column for the sixth time this season, all coming in the last 11 games. They have surrendered 137 hits during the span, an average of 12.5 per contest.

- Drew Avans scored four runs for Oklahoma City, the first opposing player to do so against the Isotopes since Luis Liberato (El Paso) last Sept. 6.

- Hunter Feduccia is 8-for-10 with a double, two homers and nine RBI over the first two nights this series.

On Deck: The Isotopes and Dodgers play game three of this series Thursday at 11:05 AM MT. Right-handed pitcher Peter Lambert will start for Albuquerque against Dodgers right-hander Tony Gonsolin, who is scheduled to pitch as part of his Major League rehab assignment. Gates open at 10:00 AM.

Check out the Albuquerque Isotopes Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from April 20, 2023


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