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TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Naturals Fall in the Finale, 9-6

April 11, 2019 - Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


SPRINGDALE, Ark - Northwest Arkansas collected 10 hits on Wednesday night including two more by outfielder Khalil Lee but it wasn't enough as the Naturals (4-3) fall in the series finale to the Arkansas Travelers (6-1) by a 9-6 final. The victory completes the 3-game sweep for the Travelers and moves them 2.0 games clear of the Naturals and Tulsa in the North Division standings.

Arkansas used the first two hitters of the game to race out to a quick lead as Jake Fraley tripled and then scored on a Chris Mariscal RBI groundout. The 1-0 lead would stay until the fourth when they stretched it out to 5-0. The first two batters of the inning reached via errors before Logan Taylor plated Kyle Lewis with a run-scoring double. After Joe DeCarlo brought home Dom Thompson-Williams on a fielder's choice, Donnie Walton doubled home Taylor. Two batters later, Aaron Knapp completed the scoring with a sacrifice fly to left field to score DeCarlo and stake the visitors to a commanding five-run lead.

Northwest Arkansas would begin to fight back in the home half of the fourth as Lee and Emmanuel Rivera started the inning off with back-to-back singles. Lee eventually scored on a RBI groundout by Gabriel Cancel before Taylor Featherston brought home Rivera with a sharp single to left-center field. The veteran Featherston is off to a torrid start to his Naturals career as he picked up two more hits on Wednesday night and is currently leading the team with a .429 average to go along with six RBI.

The game remained 5-2 until the Travs broke it open again in the sixth. North Little Rock only had one hit in the frame, which was a two-run double by Fraley but also took advantage of a hit by pitch, a passed ball, and three walks to plate the four runs.

However, the Naturals wouldn't quit as they added a run in the sixth on a Travis Jones RBI double and another in the seventh when D.J. Burt led off the inning with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly by Rivera. In the ninth, Northwest Arkansas scored two more on a single by Meibrys Viloria but that would be all as Wyatt Mills (S, 1) got the final two outs to preserve the win.

Ricardo Sanchez (W, 2-0) earned his second win of the season for Arkansas after tossing 5.2 innings of three-run baseball. He scattered seven hits, walked three and struck out five on the night. His counterpart, right-hander Jace Vines (L, 0-1) was tagged with the loss after giving up five runs, only one earned, through 5.0 innings of work. He struck out five and walked only one.

The bullpen combo of Franco Terrero and Gabe Speier proved to be a bright spot for Northwest Arkansas as they combined to throw 2.0 shutout innings where they allowed just two hits and struck out four with Speier striking out the side in the ninth.

Tonight's game against the Arkansas Travelers (Double-A Seattle Mariners) concluded the opening homestand. Northwest Arkansas will hit the road tomorrow to begin a 7-game road trip to Springfield and then to North Little Rock. The Naturals will face the Cardinals (Double-A St. Louis) in a 4-game series before the Travelers in a 3-game series at Dickey-Stephens Park. Northwest Arkansas will return to Arvest Ballpark for a 3-game series from Thursday, April 18 through Saturday, April 20.

Catch the live play-by-play action of the road opener in Springfield on Thursday night with the Voice of the Naturals Benjamin Kelly on KQSM - 92.1 The Ticket starting at 6:55 p.m. for the Indigo Sky Casino Pregame Show leading to first pitch at 7:10 p.m.

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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