Sod Poodles Drop Opener to Missions

AMARILLO, Texas (April 5, 2024) –The Sod Poodles dropped the opening game of the 2024 season to the San Antonio Missions on Friday night 12-5. A Caleb Roberts homer and three-hit night from Wilderd Patiño were the notable offensive efforts while Yu-Min Lin fanned five over his three innings of work for Amarillo.

After the Missions scored the opening run of the game, Roberts picked up where he left off to end 2023. A solo, opposite-field home run knotted things up for the Sod Poodles in the bottom of the second inning. Lin stranded a runner in scoring position in his third and final inning of the opener to keep things all square. Nine straight San Antonio runs over the next two innings ballooned their lead to 10-1 after the fifth.

Deyvison De Los Santos doubled in the home half of the sixth to give Amarillo their third run of the night. What was originally ruled a three-run homer turned into just the first of two RBI for the no. 14-rated prospect in his return to Amarillo.

Mitchell Stumpo spun 1.1 hitless innings in relief for the Soddies. The right-hander capped his first appearance of the season with a pair of punchouts to end the top of the eighth. With the first two batters reaching in the bottom of the frame, De Los Santos grounded into a productive out, scoring Patiño in the process for the fifth and final Amarillo run of the game.

The Sod Poodles and Missions will take the field on Saturday for the second of an abbreviated three-game series to kickstart the 2024 season. RHP Luke Albright will take the mound for the Soddies against LHP Robby Snelling. First pitch on Saturday night is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at HODGETOWN.

NOTES:

YU GOT IT: D-backs' no. 4-rated prospect Yu-Min Lin got the start on Opening Night, becoming the fifth Opening Day starter for Amarillo in franchise history. The southpaw ended his 2023 season with back-to-back quality starts for the Sod Poodles and started 2024 with 3.0 IP allowing just three hits and one earned. Over his last three Double-A starts, Lin has gone 16.0 IP while surrendering 10 hits, three runs, and has 16 strikeouts. The 20-year-old is the highest-rated prospect on the Sod Poodles roster to start the year.

PATHREEÑO: In his Double-A Debut, Sod Poodles outfielder Wilderd Patiño collected three of Amarillo's six hits for the night. It was the 19th three-hit game of his professional career. It was also just the second time a Sod Poodles player has collected a three-hit night on Opening Night, joining Eduardo Diaz (2022) when the outfielder posted three hits against Midland.

COOL, CALM, & CALEB: Caleb Roberts hit the first home run of the season for the Soddies. A 2023 Texas League All-Star in 2023, Roberts now has 21 home runs for his Sod Poodles career (incl. Postseason). His 18 regular-season homers rank T-8th all-time by a Sod Poodles player. The left-hander power bat homered three times against the Missions during the 2023 Texas League Playoffs, giving him four home runs in his last four games against San Antonio. For his Sod Poodles career, Roberts is hitting .282 in 107 career regular-season games with 25 doubles, nine triples (Most All-Time), and 72 RBI.

STUMPED: RHP Mitchell Stumpo struck out a pair of Missions hitters over 1.1 hitless innings on Opening Night. Stumpo had 12 scoreless outings of his 30 games with the Sod Poodles a season ago and has allowed one or fewer runs in 36 of his 49 total appearances with Amarillo since the 2021 season.

OPENING NIGHT WOES: The 12-5 loss to the Missions on Friday night dropped Amarillo to 1-4 in Opening Day games. The lone win on Opening Night in franchise history came during the 2021 season when the Sod Poodles beat the Tulsa Drillers 4-3. In home openers, the Sod Poodles are also 1-4, with the only win coming also during the 2021 season when Amarillo beat Midland 10-0 in a rain-shortened seven-inning game. The Sod Poodles have been outscored 32-37 in their five home openers since 2019 and the seven-inning defeat to the Missions was the largest margin of deficit to start the home schedule.