Amarillo Drops the Opening Game of the 2023 Season in Frisco

Frisco, Texas – The Amarillo Sod Poodles (0-1) dropped the opening game of the 2023 campaign to the defending Texas League Champions, the Frisco RoughRiders on Thursday night. The Sod Poodles clawed their way back from an early deficit before a six-run bottom of the fifth inning capped the scoring in a 12-4 Opening Night loss.

D-backs no. 26-rated prospect Bryce Jarvis got the ball in game 1-of-138 on the 2023 season and retired the side in order in the bottom of the first. Two groundouts were followed by the former 18th overall pick picking up career strikeout no. 200 to end the opening frame.

Frisco plated four in the bottom of the second thanks in part to a pair of two-out hits and some untimely miscues from the Soddies. Ryan Bliss tallied the first hit of the Sod Poodles season with a one-out single in the top of the third. Newly appointed D-backs' no. 1-rated prospect and MLB no. 9-rated prospect homered in the second at-bat of his season to cut the Riders' lead in half. Jarvis sat the Riders down in order in the bottom of the third as the Sod Poodles bats went back to work.

THE LONG BALL OF THE LAW HAS SPOKEN.

First HR of 2023 for the @Dbacks newly appointed #1 prospect cuts the deficit in half. pic.twitter.com/EXQ4lYbTUi

— Amarillo Sod Poodles (@sodpoodles) April 7, 2023

A leadoff walk proved to be important as Adrian Del Castillo homered in his Double-A debut to tie the game in the fourth. Frisco answered back right away, scoring two runs in the bottom of the inning off a pair of hits.

Right-hander Jeff Bain was the first reliever out of the Sod Poodles bullpen and proceeded to pick up two quick outs. A single and subsequent error kept Frisco at the plate before a hit batter loaded the bases. Trevor Hauver promptly unloaded the bases with his lone hit of the night coming in grand fashion. The grand slam propelled the Riders in front by six and they added another two runs to put a lid on the night's scoring. All six runs in the inning would be unearned for Bain.

Deyvison De Los Santos doubled in the sixth while Bliss and Del Castillo each recorded multi-hit games in the season opener. The Sod Poodles bullpen trio of Bain, Austin Pope, and Blake Workman combined for four innings without an earned run allowed. Workman fanned five of the six batters he faced in his first Double-A action since May of 2022.

Amarillo and Frisco will continue their three-game series tomorrow, April 7 with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 PM from Riders Field. Right-hander Luke Albright will toe the rubber for Amarillo in his Double-A debut.

Notes:

Lone Star Law and Order: D-backs top-rated prospect Jordan Lawlar got his season started with a bang. The Dallas-area native homered in his second at-bat of the year, a two-run shot to left field off RHP Jack Leiter in the top of the third inning. Since being promoted to Amarillo at the end of the 2022 season, Lawlar has swatted five home runs in 21 games in Double-A.

Yo, Adrian: Sod Poodles catcher Adrian Del Castillo also homered on Thursday night. The 67th overall pick in the 2021 MLB draft hit a game-tying two-run home run in his second at-bat of the game. It was his ninth professional home run. Del Castillo made his Double-A debut after playing 86 games in 2022 between Low-A Visalia and High-A Hillsboro. The former Miami Hurricane finished the game 2-for-4 with two RBI.

YO ADRIAN...WE'LL TAKE A JACK.

Adrian Del Castillo homers in his Double-A debut to tie us up at 4. pic.twitter.com/d6llPqvZv0

— Amarillo Sod Poodles (@sodpoodles) April 7, 2023

Aint It Bliss: Another player making his Double-A and Amarillo debut was infielder Ryan Bliss. A second-round pick in 2021, Bliss spent the entirety of 2022 with Hillsboro, hitting .214 (91-for-426) in 110 games. Bliss collected a pair of hits on Opening Night, one of two Soddies to notch 2+ hits in the opener. His single ahead of Lawlar's homer in the third inning was the first Amarillo hit in 2023.

What A Relief: Right-handers Jeff Bain, Austin Pope, and Blake Workman combined to toss 4.0 IP without an earned run allowed in relief of Bryce Jarvis. Bain entered 2023 as the Sod Poodles all-time leader in wins with 11 after appearing in a combined 57 games in Amarillo threads since 2021. He surrendered five hits and saw six un-earned runs come across the plate after getting the first two batters he faced to ground out in the fifth inning. Pope got three outs after facing just four batters and Workman made quick work of the six batters he faced. The five punchouts were the most in a game for Workman since April 22, 2022, when he also fanned five of six San Antonio Missions he faced. A former 22nd-round draft pick, Workman spent most of last year with Triple-A Reno and has now recorded 5+ strikeouts seven times in his career - all in relief.