Pitching, Zabala Lead Drillers to Fifth Straight Win
May 30, 2021 - Texas League (TL)
Tulsa Drillers News Release
North Little Rock, AR - The Tulsa Drillers matched a season high Sunday afternoon with their fifth straight win, and it came courtesy of a strong pitching performance from a group of five hurlers. Drillers' pitchers combined to limit Arkansas to just four hits, and Juan Zabala's first-ever Double-A home run proved to be the difference in a 2-1 victory at Dickey-Stephens Park.
The result gave the Drillers five wins in the six game series that began with the Travelers in first place in the North Division of the Double-A Central.
John Rooney, who has primarily been a member of the Tulsa bullpen, made just his second start of the season and set the tone for the game. Rooney allowed just two hits in 4.2 scoreless innings while striking out nine.
He departed with a 1-0 lead after the Drillers opened the game's scoring in the top of the third without getting a hit in the inning. Jaren Kendall was hit by a pitch, stole second, moved to third on a ground out and scored on a wild pitch.
Jake Scheiner produced the only run of the game for the Travelers when he led off the sixth against reliever Guillermo Zuniga with his sixth home run of the year, tying the score at 1-1.
Zabala answered in the top of the seventh with his two-out homer to put the Drillers in front to stay.
Mark Washington, who was activated from the Injured List just prior to the game, worked a scoreless seventh with two strikeouts, and Zach Willeman did the same in the eighth.
Aaron Ochsenbein pitched around a leadoff walk in the bottom of the ninth to preserve the victory and pick up his first save of the season.
Washington, Willeman and Ochsenbein held the Travelers without a hit over the final three innings.
The win keeps Tulsa in a first-place tie with Wichita atop the North Division standings of the Double-A Central.
THE HIGHLIGHTS
*Zabala's home run was just the third of his professional career.
*The Drillers totaled seven hits in the game with Carlos Rincon and Jacob Amaya accounting for over half of them with two hits each.
*Zuniga was credited with the victory despite giving up the only run. It was his third win of the season, tying for tops on the team.
*The five Drillers pitchers combined for 16 strikeouts. In the six-game series, Tulsa hurlers recorded a total of 88 strikeouts, an average of 14.7 per game. The Drillers staff leads all Double-A teams with 285 strikeouts in just 24 games this year.
UP NEXT
The Drillers travel to Springdale, Arkansas and will begin a six-game series with the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on Tuesday.
Tulsa at Northwest Arkansas, Tuesday, June 1, 7:05 PM at Arvest Ballpark. Tulsa RHP Ryan Pepiot (0-0, 1.17 ERA) versus TBA.
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