TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Naturals Fall to Hooks in Series Finale, 3-2

Published on June 5, 2016 under Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


SPRINGDALE, Ark. - The Northwest Arkansas Naturals (27-28) played another tightly contested game but ultimately fell to the Corpus Christi Hooks (34-21) by the score of 3-2 on Sunday in front of a crowd of 4,535 at Arvest Ballpark. Even though they lost the series to Corpus, the Naturals finished the six game homestand with a winning record of 4-2.

The Naturals and Hooks seem to find themselves in close battles so far this season as four out of their six games have been decided by one run. In the early stages of the game, it seemed as if Corpus Christi was going to distance themselves as they took an early lead. Derek Fisher opened the scoring with a RBI single in the third to score Nick Tanielu for a 1-0 lead. The Hooks then added a couple of more runs in the fourth behind a solo home run by outfielder James Ramsay and a RBI single to left by Alejandro Garcia that plated Alfredo Gonzalez for a 3-0 advantage against RHP Ashton Goudeau.

The Corpus Christi starter Brian Holmes (4-2, 3.59) was effective all games at attacking the Naturals hitters. He went 5.0 scoreless innings and struck out eight on only 64 pitches with 50 of those being strikes. The Northwest Arkansas offense came to life when Cy Sneed came on in the sixth as the Naturals scored their first run on a Frank Schwindel two-out, RBI single. Trailing 3-1 in the seventh, the Naturals used singles by Jack Lopez and Mauricio Ramos to plate their second run as Lopez reached third on the infield single by Ramos then came in to score on an error by shortstop Alex Bregman.

RHP Pedro Fernandez had a nice outing out of the Northwest Arkansas bullpen to keep the team close as the right-hander from the Dominican Republic threw 3.2 innings allowing only one hit while striking out four. The Naturals outhit the Hooks 10-to-7 with Ramos, Schwindel, and Corey Toups all recording multi-hit games.

Today's game concluded the Naturals six game homestand against the Missions and Hooks. Following a league-wide off day, the Naturals will hit the road on Tuesday for a trip that will see them play nine games in eight days with five against Tulsa and another four against the Arkansas Travelers. The key North Division run will begin with a doubleheader against the Texas League North Division leading Tulsa Drillers (Double-A Los Angeles Dodgers) on Tuesday, June 7 at 4:30 p.m.

The Naturals will send LHP Eric Skoglund (3-2, 4.02 ERA) to the mound in Game 1 while RHP Alec Mills (1-2, 2.25 ERA) is scheduled to throw Game 2. Catch all the live play-by-play action with the Voice of the Naturals Benjamin Kelly on your home for Naturals baseball on KQSM 92.1-FM The Ticket at 4:10 p.m. for the Indigo Sky Casino Pregame Show.

Follow the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on Twitter @NWANaturals all throughout the year by using the hashtag #NaturalPastime and #CrowntoCrown for all of our up-to-date information on the Season Nine of Naturals Baseball, tickets, groups, promotions, roster, season standings, player statistics, and updates on Naturals alumni in the Major Leagues.

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

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Texas League Stories from June 5, 2016


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.

OurSports Central