Stephan stellar, Riders beat Sod Poodles 3-1

AMARILLO, Texas (May 29, 2025) - Josh Stephan pitched six shutout innings to help the Frisco RoughRiders defeat the Amarillo Sod Poodles 3-1 on Thursday night from HODGETOWN.

Box Score

Stephan (4-1) earned the victory, fanning four while walking none to secure his second quality start of the season.

Frisco (28-19) struck first in the top of the second when Tucker Mitchell rolled an RBI groundout to pull the Riders ahead 1-0. Cam Cauley then drilled an RBI double in top of the third, extending the lead to 2-0.

In the top of the eighth, Luis Mieses pounded his seventh home run of the year to push Frisco's lead to 3-0. Next half inning, Amarillo (21-27) broke through when Jack Hurley cranked a lead-off homer, trimming the deficit to 3-1.

RoughRiders reliever Janser Lara allowed Hurley's homer, but recovered to notch a six-out save. The Sod Poodles put runners on second and third in the bottom of the ninth before Lara induced a flyout to seal the win.

Amarillo starter Avery Short (3-4) took the loss despite spinning a quality start, yielding two runs across six frames.

Notes to Know:

-Mieses is now tied with Abimelec Ortiz for the team lead in homers (7). In seven career games at HODGETOWN, Mieses is batting .440 (11-for-28) with four homers, four doubles and seven RBI.

-Josh Stephan is 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA over his last three starts, the third-best mark in the Texas League during that span.

-The RoughRiders lead Minor League Baseball with 18 saves. With Lara's save tonight, Frisco is the only team in MiLB to have 11 different pitchers record a save.

-Frisco is now 17-6 when its starter pitches five-plus innings.

The Riders and Sod Poodles meet again at 7:05 p.m. on Friday, May 30th from HODGETOWN in Amarillo, Texas. Frisco nods to RHP Ben Anderson (2-3, 4.54) against Amarillo LHP Spencer Giesting (3-1, 3.38). Tune into the H-E-B Riders Baseball Network by going to RidersBaseball.com/Broadcast.

About the RoughRiders

The Frisco RoughRiders are the Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers and the 2022 Texas League champions. In 2023, the team celebrated its 20th anniversary and has consistently finished in the top five among all Double-A franchises in attendance yearly. In August 2014, the RoughRiders were purchased by an ownership group led by Chuck Greenberg. Since then, the new ownership group, together with the City of Frisco, has spearheaded numerous major franchise enhancements, investing over $8 million in a wide array of facility upgrades and improvements, including a state-of-the-art HD video board, sound system, Bull Moose Saloon, Bullpen Bar, Riders Outpost Team Store and the world's largest water feature in a sports facility, the massive Lazy River. These enhancements earned the Riders and the City of Frisco Ballpark Digest's prestigious "Best Ballpark Renovation" award for two consecutive years (2015 and 2016). More than 210 former RoughRiders players have gone on to play Major League Baseball including current Rangers Josh Jung, Evan Carter and Wyatt Langford. For more information on the Frisco RoughRiders, please visit RidersBaseball.com or contact [email protected].