TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Naturals Fall in 3-2 Loss at Tulsa

Published on April 24, 2015 under Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


TULSA, Okla.- A lead-off home run by Angel Franco kicked off the offense in the right direction; but the Tulsa Drillers (9-5) stymied the rest of the bats for Northwest Arkansas (6-8) in a 3-2 defeat on Friday night at ONEOK Field. Dusty Coleman extended his hitting streak to nine games with a 2-for-3 showing on Friday.

For the second straight night, Northwest Arkansas struck first against the host Drillers with Franco's first home run of the season; but the Drillers tied the game off starter Andy Ferguson with a solo home run in the third by Peter Lavin.

The Naturals gave the lead back to Ferguson in the top of the fifth capitalizing on Coleman's infield single and a costly error by Drillers' third baseman, Daniel Mayora to take a 2-1 lead. But, an error in the home half by the Naturals allowed for the Drillers to tie it up, once again.

Tulsa took the lead for good off reliever Malcom Culver (1-1) who worked a difficult sixth inning against the middle of the order. Culver wiggled his way out of what could have been larger damage by striking out the side - all looking - to end the frame. Culver took the loss in the game.

Reliever Reid Redman pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth innings and fanned four batters in his fifth appearance on the season.

Coleman - who added another game to hitting streak with a single in the third - ended his night 2-for-3 with a pair of singles and a walk. The former Texas League All-Star is now hitting .462 (18-for-39) during the stretch. Franco ended his night 2-for-4.

The Naturals second run came with two outs making it 15 of the last 22 runs over the past five games have come with two outs.

Tomorrow, Northwest Arkansas will send right-hander J.C. Sulbaran (0-2, 5.40) to the hill against right-hander Matt Shelton (1-0, 5.00) for game three of the four game series.

Tune in to the Indigo Sky Casino Pregame Show at 6:50 with the voice of the Naturals, Benjamin Kelly, on AM-1030 KFAY leading up to the first pitch.

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.

Check out the Northwest Arkansas Naturals Statistics

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Texas League Stories from April 24, 2015


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