Main Squeeze
July 18, 2015 - Texas League (TL1)
Midland RockHounds News Release
Midland RockHounds Pitcher Parker Frazier
(Midland RockHounds, Credit: Saydee Bailey)
Parker Frazier hurled 6.2 scoreless innings as the RockHounds recorded their Texas League-leading 11th shutout of the season by blanking the San Antonio Missions, 2-0 on Friday night at Security Bank Ballpark. (Saydee Bailey)
Friday night's game-winning run came across the plate in the third inning, when Jaycob Brugman doubled and later scored on a squeeze bunt, perfectly executed by Chad Oberacker.
The 'Hounds, after denying a major San Antonio threat in the top of the seventh, scored an insurance run in the home half of the stretch inning, and a combination of outstanding defense and pitching did the rest.
The Missions went in order against starter Parker Frazier in the first two innings, but had at least one base runner in every inning the rest of the way. The RockHounds turned a conventional double play in the fifth and went 9-3 (Matt Olson to Rangel Ravelo) on a bang-bang double play in the sixth. Olson caught Taylor Lindsey's line drive to right and threw to first, narrowly beating Jose Rondon back to the bag.
San Antonio's most serious threat came in the seventh, when Duanel Jones led off with a double and Griff Erickson followed with a single to put runners at the corners with no outs. Third baseman Renato Nuñez smothered Kyle Gaedele's would-be hit to left and caught Jones in a rundown between third and home for the first out. The play, which still left the Missions with runners at second and third and one out, was followed by a sharp comebacker by Rondon. Frazier made the tough play and trapped Gaedele in another rundown between third and the dish, resulting in the second out. Nuñez, although hitting the deck to do it, handled a wind-blown pop-up off Lindsey's bat to end the inning.
The Missions threatened one last time with back-to-back walks in the eighth, but a fly ball out to right was followed by the third 'Hounds double play of the game, this one around the horn, to end the rally. Ryan Dull walked a batter in the ninth, but struck out two, ending the game with a whiff of Rondon and earning his 11th save in as many opportunities (see below). Frazier, who went six-and-two-thirds, earned his first win.
The RockHounds
... are 14-7 in the second half and 49-42 overall (a season high seven games over .500) ... have won 5-of-their-last-6 ... have clinched the current (four-game) series with San Antonio ... lead the season series with the Missions, 15-8 (8-3 at home and 7-5 at Nelson Wolff Stadium, correcting those figures) ... are 29-16 at Security Bank Ballpark and 20-26 on the road ... are 30-25 vs. the South Division and 19-17 vs. the North.
- Texas League South: The RockHounds maintained their half-game lead over red-hit Frisco (13-7). The RoughRiders scored on a throwing error in the last of the 10th to defeat Corpus Christi, 7-6, at Dr Pepper Ballpark Friday night. Frisco has now won nine of its last 11 games. First half champion Corpus Christi (10-11) fell four games behind the RockHounds and San Antonio (8-13) is now a half-dozen back. Â
Kibbles & Bits
STAT OF THE DAY # 1: The RockHounds now lead the Texas League with 11 shutouts.
STAT OF THE DAY # 2: In the first three games of the series between the 'Hounds and Missions, the largest lead has been two runs.
- Chad Pinder extended his hit streak to 11 games, going 1-for-3 with a seventh-inning single (and a run scored). Chad is hitting .348 (16-46) in the 11-gamer and remains at .302 for the season, ranking among the league's top five hitters.
- Matt Olson went 2-for-2 (plus a hit by pitch) with his 40th RBI of the season. In his last 16 games, Matt is hitting .339 with a .409 OBP.
- When he gave up a run (his second of the season) at Arkansas, July 8, Ryan Dull's earned run average "ballooned" from 0.24 to 0.47. Friday night, he recorded his fourth consecutive save ... and fourth consecutive scoreless inning ... since that night in North Little Rock. With each of those scoreless frames Ryan has lowered his ERA by one one-hundredth of a point, now at 0.43. The right-hander from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, now shares the Texas League lead with 11 saves. He also ranks among the league's top five relievers in opponent average (.163) and in strikeouts (10.42), walks (2.34) and base runners (7.65) per nine innings pitched.
Images from this story
 Midland RockHounds Pitcher Parker Frazier (Saydee Bailey) |
Texas League Stories from July 18, 2015
- Three Homers Send Hooks to Win over Riders - Frisco RoughRiders
- Naturals Split Series with 9-5 Win in Finale - Springfield Cardinals
- Dziedzic Dazzles as Naturals Win Finale, 9-5 - Northwest Arkansas Naturals
- Riders Survive to Secure Series - Corpus Christi Hooks
- Main Squeeze - Midland RockHounds
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.
