San Antonio Survives Late Scare to Secure Fourth Straight Win

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San Antonio Survives Late Scare to Secure Fourth Straight Win

July 12, 2025 - Texas League (TL)
San Antonio Missions News Release


WICHITA, Kan. - Ethan Routzahn entered the game with two outs in the ninth to face Kala'i Rosario, who represented the go-ahead run for Wichita. Routzahn fanned Rosario on the ninth pitch of the at bat, securing a 4-2 win for the San Antonio Missions (9-8, 48-38) over the Wichita Wind Surge (9-8, 46-40).

Henry Baez tossed six more scoreless innings to lower his Texas League-leading ERA to 2.08. Kevin Kopps took the win out of the bullpen, and Routzahn saved the day by striking out the only batter he faced. San Antonio's three runs in the eighth inning, highlighted by a Devin Ortiz RBI single and Kai Murphy sacrifice fly, held up.

With runners at the corners and one out in the fourth, Murphy grounded a ball sharply to Jose Salas at second. Instead of trying to turn two, Salas threw home to try and stop Romeo Sanabria from scoring. The throw went just wide enough to make the tag from catcher Nate Baez late, so the Missions took a 1-0 lead on the unique fielder's choice.

Wichita didn't enter the hit column against Henry Baez until Gabby Gonzalez doubled in the fourth. Building off the double, the Wind Surge threatened to respond immediately as they loaded the bases with one out in the fourth. Rubel Cespedes attacked the first pitch from Henry Baez and bounced it to first, where Sanabria snagged it and snapped a quick throw home for a force out. Nate Baez then flew out, so Henry Baez quashed the threat.

The next Wind Surge opportunity against Henry Baez came in the sixth, when they covered the corners with two outs. The righty pumped some of his fastest pitches of the evening and got Cespedes to pop up weakly to third, holding San Antonio's 1-0 advantage. For Henry Baez, his six scoreless frames marked his 10th outing out of 18 to end without him allowing a run.

No one cheered more for Henry Baez's exit than Wichita. As soon as Kopps entered from the bullpen for San Antonio, the Wind Surge tied things up at 1-1 on a Walker Jenkins sacrifice fly. Kopps limited the damage to just one, however, giving the Missions a chance to strike back.

Strick back, they did. Moisčs Gņmez singled off reliever John Stankiewicz, who ended up leaving with one out in the eighth. Cole Percival took his place, but Percival didn't fool the Missions. Sanabria singled, and aggressive base running resulted in Gņmez moving to third while Sanabria slid into second.

Because the go-ahead run stood 90 feet away, Wichita brought their infield in. This allowed Ortiz to sneak a groundball between third and short that handed the Missions a 2-1 lead. Murphy tacked on another RBI with a sacrifice fly before a Salas error at second base let one more score. A stunned Equity Bank Park crowd looked up at a 4-1 San Antonio lead.

Stephen Jones followed Kopps with a clean eighth, so San Antonio stayed ahead 4-1 into the final frame. Percival went 1-2-3 in the top half of the ninth, bringing Jones right back to the mound.

The Florida native set down the first two he faced in the ninth, but a two-out walk stirred up some trouble. Jenkins doubled in that walk before Gonzalez singled, bringing the go-ahead run to the plate for Wichita. The Missions brought on Routzahn, who pitched yesterday. Routzahn won a nine-pitch battle with Rosario, striking him out to quiet the ballpark and seal San Antonio's fourth straight win.

UP NEXT:

The Missions conclude their six-game series with the Wichita Wind Surge on Sunday with first pitch at 6:05 p.m. Righty Victor Lizarraga (2-6, 6.22) goes for the Missions while righty John Klein (6-4, 3.25) starts for the Wind Surge. Catch all the action on Country Legends KKYX, 680 AM, 104.9 FM and kkyx.com. Tickets are available at samissions.com or by calling 210-675-7275.

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