Travs Lead Wire-To-Wire for Third Straight Win
July 14, 2014 - Texas League (TL1)
Arkansas Travelers News Release
LITTLE ROCK - The Arkansas Travelers carried the lead through the entire game on Sunday night for a 6-4 victory over the Springfield Cardinals at Dickey-Stephens Park. Brian Hernandez and Mike Bianucci each collected two base hits, while Drew Heid knocked in a pair to help the Travs to their third straight win.
Five Travs pitchers stranded 13 Springfield runners and held the Cardinals to one hit in 13 at-bats with runners in scoring position.
Arkansas jumped on Mike Mayers in the first inning for three runs, although he was victimized by a two-run error by centerfielder Rafael Ortega. Maikol Gonzalez hit a leadoff double and Matt Long walked with one out. Hernandez gave the Travs the lead with a single to center field scoring Gonzalez. With two outs, Ortega ran down a drive by Bandy to deep left-center, but dropped the ball allowing two runs to score for a 3-0 Travs lead.
Kaleb Cowart hit a single to begin the Travs' second inning which Mayers followed with a walk to Adam Melker. On a double steal, Springfield catcher threw high to third base with the ball glancing off Matt Williams' glove for an error allowing Cowart to score giving Arkansas a 4-0 lead.
Orangel Arenas left three runners in scoring position over the first two innings, but the Cards opened the third with back-to-back singles by Mike O'Neill and Stanley. After a walk to load the bases, Ortega hit a sacrifice fly to score O'Neill. Arenas left the other two runners when Breyvic Valera lined out to center.
Arenas allowed consecutive singles again in the fourth inning with no outs. Starlin Rodriguez singled to left field and Williams bunted to the left of the mound. Arenas's throw was close to the runner and knocked away from first base for an error on Williams's single setting up runners at the corners. Alex Mejia drove in Rodriguez with a sacrifice fly, which O'Neill followed with a ground-rule double along the left-field line. With the tying run in scoring position, Long made a leaping catch in center before Arenas struck out Curt Smith to preserve a 4-3 lead for the Travs.
With Ronnie Shaban pitching for Springfield in the fifth inning Hernandez hit a one-out single, which Bianucci followed with a double into the left field corner. After a pitching change, the Cards brought left-handed Iden Nazario to pitch to Drew Heid. He responded with a single up the middle knocking in both runners for a 6-3 lead.
Kevin Johnson replaced Arenas for the fifth inning and pitched around a single and an error with two outs. However he allowed an unearned run in the sixth inning. O'Neill walked with one out, and Stanley hit a single to right field. Adam Melker threw the ball back to the infield, but nobody made a move for it and the ball rolled all the way into the third-base dugout for an error on Melker that scored O'Neill. Johnson put the tying run on base with a walk to Jonathon Rodriguez, but Carmine Giardina got out of the inning by catching Ortega looking on a third strike.
Danny Reynolds held the Cards at bay for two innings pitching around two singles. R.J. Alvarez was summoned from the bullpen for his first save chance in the ninth. Back-to-back singles by Valera and Starlin Rodriguez put the tying runs on base again. However Alex Yarbrough fielded a one-hop smash off the bat of Williams and flipped to Gonzalez at shortstop to begin a game-ending double play getting Alvarez his first save. Johnson (2-3) earned the win in relief.
Time of game was 3:42 and the paid attendance was 8,082.
The second game of the series is set for 7:10 p.m. on Monday night with Drew Rucinski (7-4, 2.35) on the mound for the Travs. Springfield counters with Jonathan Cornelius (8-6, 3.82).
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