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TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Naturals Defeat Cardinals in Walk off Fashion

April 28, 2015 - Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


SPRINGDALE, Ark. - Northwest Arkansas (9-9) defeated the Springfield Cardinals (5-13) on Tuesday evening by the score of 6-5 in walk off fashion behind a RBI single in the bottom of the 9th inning by Mike Bianucci. Bianucci, pinch hitting for Santiago Nessy, delivered the game winning hit off Cardinals reliever Corey Baker scoring Bubba Starling for the game winning run.

It was a pitcher's duel early as both Naturals starter Jonathan Dziedzic and Thomas Lee of the Cardinals kept both teams off the scoreboard through the first three innings. The Naturals struck first when they touched up Lee for four runs in the bottom of the fourth. Dusty Coleman led off the inning with a single up the middle, and in the next at bat Angel Franco gave the Naturals a 2-0 with his second home run of the season. Alex Liddi collected a one out singled followed by a Hunter Dozier RBI double to centerfield to score Liddi. Balbino Fuenmayor would later deliver a two out, RBI single to score Dozier and make a 4-0 game.

Springfield closed the gap in the fifth when Starlin Rodriguez opened up the inning with a triple and Mike Ohlman followed with a RBI single to bring the score to 4-1. In the top of the sixth inning, Springfield would score two more runs to make it a 4-3 game.

The Naturals would quickly respond with a run of their own in the bottom half of the inning. Dozier and Starling would work back-to-back two out walks to set the stage for Fuenmayer who promptly drove in Dozier for the second time with another two out, RBI single to extend the lead to 5-3. Fuenmayor ended the night going 3-4 with two runs batted in; Franco also had two RBI on the night.

Springfield rallied to tie the game 5-5 after scoring two runs in the top of the ninth off Naturals reliever Aroni Nina, but Bianucci would seal the victory for the Naturals with his walk off single. Nina (1-0 4.00 ERA) took the win while Springfield's Corey Baker (1-2, 3.97) took the loss. Dziedzic (0-1, 3.93 ERA) collected a no decision, as he gave up only three runs on eight hits on 5.2 innings of work.

The four game series continues with a day game tomorrow at Arvest Ballpark as first pitch is set for 11:05 a.m. on Wednesday, April 29. The Naturals will send Benton, Arkansas-native RHP Andy Ferguson (1-0, 0.64 ERA) to the mound to face LHP Kyle Hald (0-1, 3.21 ERA) of Springfield. Gates will open to the public at 10 a.m. for our second SWEPCO School Kids Day game of the 2015 season.

Join us tomorrow morning and catch all live play-by-play action with the Voice of the Naturals Benjamin Kelly on your home for the Naturals on KQSM 92.1 The Ticket. The Indigo Sky Casino Pregame Show begins at 10:50 a.m. with first pitch set for 11.05 a.m.

Follow the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on Twitter @nwanaturals all throughout the year by using the hashtag #NaturalPastime for all of our up-to-date information on tickets, groups, promotions, roster, and team 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 April 28, 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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