TL1 Amarillo Sod Poodles

Reed Homers for a Third Consecutive Night, Sod Poodles Win Two Straight

Published on April 12, 2019 under Texas League (TL1)
Amarillo Sod Poodles News Release


AMARILLO, Texas - The Sod Poodles picked up their second straight victory of the season Friday night against the Hooks by a final score of 5-1. Buddy Reed's bat came alive yet again as he hit another home run combining for four total in the last three games. Amarillo starting pitcher T.J. Weir (1-0) was brilliant as he pitched five innings of four-hit baseball and struck out six Corpus Christi batters on the way to his first victory of the season.

Opposite of last night, Corpus Christi initiated the scoring in game two. In the top of the first, Hooks' centerfielder Stephen Wrenn extended the half with a two-out triple and was plated on the next pitch on Abraham Toro's base hit to centerfield to make it a 1-0 advantage.

In the third, Hooks starter Tyler Ivey, who was perfect through two, was ejected from the game in warm-ups for having a foreign substance in his glove. With Colin McKee in for Ivey, Webster Rivas kickstarted the frame by drawing a leadoff walk. After a stolen base by Rivas, Nate Easley followed with a one-out walk. Two wild pitches would stir a play at the plate and a successful tag out of Rivas for the second out. But with two outs and one on, the fiery bat of Reed remained hot as he homered for the fourth time in three nights to put the Soddies up 2-1.

In the fifth, the Sod Poodles extended their lead to 3-1 after second baseman Peter Van Gansen slugged his first round-tripper of the season to right field.

The Sod Poodles added on insurance runs in the sixth to jump out to a 5-1 advantage. After Brad Zunica flied out, Kyle Overstreet and Jorge Ona singled and walked respectively. Rivas added another hit in the frame to plate Overstreet. After Van Gansen grounded in a force play to advance Ona to third, a wild pitch delivered by Hooks reliever Kit Scheetz sent him home.

The Amarillo bullpen continued to keep the Hooks bats quite Friday night as they pitched four shutout innings and only allowed three hits and struck out four Corpus Christi batters. The stellar bullpen performance shut the door on the Hooks and gave Amarillo their second straight victory by the final score of 5-1.

Amarillo and Corpus Christi continue into game three of their four-game set tomorrow night at HODGETOWN. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Gates are scheduled to open at 6:00 p.m.

NOTES

Weir's First of 2019: Amarillo starting pitcher T.J. Weir showed up in big fashion for the Sod Poodles in his first start of the season. In five innings, Weir allowed just one run on four hits, allowing one walk and striking out six Hooks batters. It marked his first start since July 5 of last season against Northwest Arkansas.

Reed All About It: Buddy Reed hit his fifth home run of the season on Friday night, continuing his long ball streak. Reed has slugged five home runs in five nights and has totaled 12 RBI in the same span. On Thursday night, the centerfielder knocked the first inside-the-park home run at HODGETOWN. On the week, Reed has combined 8-for-20 with five home runs, 12 RBI, and seven runs.

Scoring Last: The Sod Poodles notched their first win of the season when scoring last in a game. Coming into Friday night's contest, Amarillo held a 0-3 record when an opponent scored first in a game.

Welcome to the Club: Peter Van Gansen knocked his first home run of the 2019 season on Friday night at HODGETOWN. The California native collected four total last season with San Antonio.

Amarillo Bombers: The Sod Poodles have hit 16 home runs this season in nine games and lead the Texas League Double-A overall (2nd - Harrisburg/Springfield 12). Brad Zunica and Buddy Reed have collected five home runs for Amarillo followed by Jorge Ona and Owen Miller, who each have two homers, and Edward Olivares and Peter Van Gansen with one long ball each for the Sod Poodles.

Multi-Attack: The Sod Poodles have hit at least one home run in all but one game so far this season. In each of the last six games, the Sod Poodles have collected at least two home runs. They have totaled 14 home runs in six nights.

Sod Poodles First Call Up: Pedro Avila became the first Amarillo Sod Poodles player to be called up to the Majors. The 22-year-old right-hander made his first Major League start against Arizona tonight, earning his first Major League win after tossing 5.1 innings, allowing just one earned run on four hits. Avila made one start for Amarillo while in Corpus Christi tossing six innings of two-hit ball.

He's Got A Cannon: Amarillo catcher Webster Rivas threw out two Hooks base runners Thursday night trying to advance via a steal. Rivas on the 2019 campaign has caught three base runners trying to steal in five attempts.

All Nine: On Thursday night all nine batters in the Amarillo lineup reached base successfully. This is the first time the Sod Poodles have accomplished this feat in franchise history.

Tomorrow's Preview: Game three of this four-game series will continue Saturday night with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. The visiting Corpus Christi Hooks will call upon right-hander Brandon Bielak and for the Sod Poodles righty Lake Bachar.

Check out the Amarillo Sod Poodles Statistics

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