TL Tulsa Drillers

Walk-Off Victory Clinches Propeller Series for the Drillers

Published on July 9, 2023 under Texas League (TL)
Tulsa Drillers News Release


TULSA, OK- The Tulsa Drillers are heading into professional baseball's four day break for the Major League All-Star Game, and they are going to need it after Sunday's game at ONEOK Field. The Drillers failed to hold a six-run lead and needed ten innings to outlast Wichita 9-8 in a game that took over three hours to complete.

The winning hit was supplied by Ismael Alcantara who singled leading off the bottom of the tenth to score placed runner Hamlet Marte.

The hit not only won the game, but it also clinched the Coors Light Propeller Series for the Drillers with acting manager Juan Apodaca being presented with the unique Propeller Trophy following the victory. The trophy is presented to the winner of the season series between the Drillers and Wind Surge. Tulsa now has a 13-5 record versus Wichita with just 6 games remaining between the two teams this season.

The first half of Sunday's game gave no indication that extra innings would be required as the Drillers jumped to the big early lead thanks to a five-run second inning. Yusniel Diaz started things with a solo home run.

Two straight walks followed the homer and set up consecutive run-scoring singles from Brandon Lewis and Hamlet Marte. Austin Gauthier and Jose Ramos capped the big inning with two more RBI singles.

Tulsa starting pitcher River Ryan kept the Wind Surge scoreless through the first three innings, and reliever Ben Casparius did the same in the fourth.

Wichita's first run came in the top of the fifth when David Banuelos opened the inning with a base hit off Casparius and later scored on a sacrifice fly.

The Drillers got the run right back in the bottom of the fifth as Diaz doubled and scored on another hit from Lewis.

The Wichita comeback began with Seth Gray's two-run homer in the sixth that cut Tulsa's lead to 6-3.

The Wind Surge made it a one-run game in the seventh as Brooks Lee cleared the centerfield fence with a solo home run. The next batter, Yoyner Fajardo, nearly duplicated Lee but had to settle for a triple when his drive hit the top of the fence. Fajardo still scored thanks to a wild pitch, trimming the Drillers' lead to 6-5.

Tulsa appeared to restore order in the bottom of the seventh when Lewis delivered another big hit with a two-run double that upped the lead back to three runs.

Wichita finally tied the score in the top of the eighth. Reliever Ben Harris opened the inning with consecutive walks, and he was replaced by Ryan Sublette who uncorked a wild pitch to move both runners into scoring position. A base hit scored one before a two-out double from Lee plated two more to tie the game at 8-8.

Reliever Trevor Bettencourt held the Wind Surge scoreless in the top of the tenth, setting up Alcantara's winner in the bottom of the inning.

TEXAS LEAGUE STANDINGS* TEXAS LEAGUE SCOREBOARD

HIGHLIGHTS AND HAPPENINGS:

*The two teams combined for 29 hits in the game with Tulsa accounting for 15 of them.

*Lewis and Diaz led the offensive effort with three hits each. Lewis drove in four runs while Diaz scored three.

*The Drillers matched a season high with three errors in the game.

*Bettencourt picked up the win to improve his record to a perfect 4-0.

*The walk-off win improved Tulsa's record in extra innings to 9-3.

*Because the Drillers scored at least seven runs in the game, fans can purchase a large, one-topping pizza from Mazzio's for just $7 on Monday. The special offer is good throughout the day and is only available online at Mazzios.com when you use the code DRILLERS at checkout.

UP NEXT:

The Drillers, and all of Minor League Baseball, will take a four-day break for the Major League All-Star Game that will be played on Tuesday in Seattle. The Drillers will return to action on Friday, July 14 when they will open a three-game road series in Midland. It will be the beginning of a nine-game road trip that will also include six games at Northwest Arkansas. Tulsa's next home game will be on Tuesday, July 25 against Springfield.

Check out the Tulsa Drillers Statistics

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Texas League Stories from July 9, 2023


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