TRAVELERS DEFEAT NATURALS IN THE SERIES OPENER

Royals OF Alex Gordon made his first rehab start and went 1-for-3 with a double

By Naturals PR Department

June 19, 2016

SPRINGDALE, Ark. - Kansas City Royals outfielder Alex Gordon made his first start for the Naturals in a Major League rehab assignment and went 1-for-3 with a double but the Arkansas Travelers (31-38) defeated the Northwest Arkansas Naturals (29-40) by the score of 8-4 on Sunday afternoon in front of a crowd of 3,983 at Arvest Ballpark.

Gordon, a four-time Rawlings Gold Glove winner and three-time Major League All-Star, appeared in his first game since suffering a right scaphoid fracture on May 22 in a collision with Mike Moustakas. The 10-year Major League veteran started in left field and batted second for the Naturals going 1-for-3 with a double off the wall in left center in the first.

The visitors from North Little Rock got on the board early with a run in the first as Eric Aguilera came through with a two-out, RBI single to score Caleb Adams whom led off the game with a single. The game would remain 1-0 in favor of the Travelers until the fourth when they would add another run on a solo homer by Jabari Henry for a 2-0 advantage.

The Naturals were able to close the gap in the fifth inning as Carlos Diaz doubled and came around to score on a RBI single by Jack Lopez. The run snapped a streak of 25.1 scoreless innings for the Northwest Arkansas offense dating back to Thursday night's game against the Springfield Cardinals. The Travs however would immediately respond against the Naturals bullpen with a run in the sixth and two more runs in the seventh for a 5-1 advantage.

Northwest Arkansas made a late rally by plating three runs in the bottom of the eighth courtesy of a couple run scoring doubles. Corey Toups delivered the first RBI double, scoring Terrance Gore, while Ryan O'Hearn hit a two-run double to right to pull the Naturals within one at 5-4 at the time. That would be all the closer the Naturals would get as the Double-A Angels broke open the tight game in the ninth. With the bases loaded, Bo Way hooked a three-run triple down the line in right to set the final at 8-4. Way led the Arkansas offense by going 3-for-4 with a triple and five RBI in the contest.

Northwest Arkansas will continue the final stretch of an 8-game homestand with Game 2 of this 4-game series against the Double-A Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim tomorrow night - Monday, June 20 - with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. for Ozarks Electric Cooperative Monday Night Lights featuring $1 Hot Dogs by Tyson Foods and Indigo Sky Casino Baseball Bingo. North Little Rock will send RHP Alex Blackford (2-3, 3.41 ERA) to the hill while the Naturals will counter with RHP Kris Medlen. You can catch the live play-by-play action with the Voice of the Naturals Benjamin Kelly on your home for Naturals baseball on KQSM 92.1-FM The Ticket at 6:45 p.m. for the Indigo Sky Casino Pregame Show.

Follow the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on Twitter @NWANaturals all throughout the year by using the hashtag #NaturalPastime and #CrowntoCrown for all of our up-to-date information on the Season Nine of Naturals Baseball.

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Texas League Affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. The Naturals play at state-of-the-art Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, Ark. For more information, including statistics, ticket options, and more, please visit NWANaturals.com, and follow us on Twitter @NWANaturals and Facebook.com/Naturals.

-Naturals-