TL1 Northwest Arkansas Naturals

Pina, Mertins come up big in win

Published on April 11, 2010 under Texas League (TL1)
Northwest Arkansas Naturals News Release


SPRINGDALE, AR- Kurt Mertins' two-out single in the bottom of the eighth broke a 3-3 tie and propelled the Naturals to a 4-3 victory over the San Antonio Missions on Saturday night.

Faced with a 3-2 deficit with two out in the seventh inning and Anthony Seratelli on second base, Naturals' skipper Brian Poldberg elected to pinch hit Manny Pina for backup catcher Ryan Eigsti. The move paid instant dividends, as Pina singled to left-center to bring in Seratelli and tie the game up at three apiece.

For the second straight evening Northwest Arkansas started the game down early. Starting pitcher Eduardo Paulino, making his Double-A debut, walked Missions' leadoff batter Cedric Hunter, who promptly swiped second. Mitch Canham followed and tripled into the gap in right-center to score Hunter. Former Arkansas Razorback Logan Forsythe brought home Canham with an RBI single. Paulino managed to get cleanup hitter Matt Clark to ground into a double play, and, after Derrick Robinson misplayed James Darnell's lofting fly to center, Sawyer Carroll grounded out to end the frame.

Northwest Arkansas came striking back in the bottom of the first. With two out, Clint Robinson singled and then Ernesto Mejia lifted a fly ball out into the Bud Light Bullpen Café to knot the game up at two.

In one of the more bizarre moments in Arvest Ballpark history, play came to a halt just before the bottom of the second when a seven-month old beagle involved in an on-field promotion got loose onto the field. Missions' starting pitcher Jeremy Hefner managed to corral the dog, but it got loose again just after reaching foul territory and immediately sprinted towards center field. The beagle stopped just short of Missions' center fielder Cedric Hunter and relieved itself before Naturals staff got ahold of her, carrying the wayward canine off the playing field as the crowd of 5,003 fans stood on their feet and roared with amusement.

Luis Martinez' homer over the left-center field fence in the fourth inning gave San Antonio the 3-2 lead. That appeared to be enough to back Hefner, who was pitching solidly through five innings before reaching his pitch count. He allowed four hits, two runs, and one walk while striking out six.

The Naturals tied it up in the bottom of the seventh off Missions' reliever Brandon Gomes before Bryan Oland (0-1) came on for the eighth. Oland plunked the first batter he faced, Johnny Giavotella, and then Clint Robinson moved him to second with a sacrifice bunt. After Mejia drew a walk, Tim Smith struck out but Kurt Mertins got a pitch he could handle and stroked a single to left-center for his second hit of the game which scored Giavotella.

Brandon Sisk (1-0) pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth for the win, striking out two.

The victory helped Northwest Arkansas (2-1) take their season-opening series for the first time in the club's short history. The Naturals dropped two of three to begin both the 2008 and 2009 seasons, both times on the road in San Antonio. This year, despite getting outscored 17-10 in the three games by San Antonio (1-2), the Naturals made the plays when they needed it most.

The Naturals will now welcome in the Corpus Christi Hooks for a three game series that begins with a Sunday matinee starting at 2:00 P.M. Left-hander Edgar Osuna, who was 7-10 with a 4.02 ERA last season between Advanced Class-A Myrtle Beach and Double-A Mississippi in the Atlanta Braves system, takes the hill for the Naturals opposite right-hander Jordan Lyles for Corpus Christi. The 19-year old Lyles is the second youngest starter in the Texas League this season and is ranked as the third-best prospect in the Houston Astros system by Baseball America. Last season with Class-A Lexington, Lyles was 7-11 with a 3.24 ERA in 26 starts. Osuna is ranked as the 27th best prospect in the Royals' organization by the same publication.

Check out the Northwest Arkansas Naturals Statistics

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Texas League Stories from April 11, 2010


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