Travs Fall to Naturals, Now Tied for First

North Little Rock, AR-A sloppy top of the sixth inning doomed the Arkansas Travelers (32-32) to a 7-4 loss at the hands of the Northwest Arkansas Naturals (32-32) on Tuesday night at Dickey-Stephens Park. The Travs and Naturals are now tied for first place in the division with Springfield one game back and Tulsa two games off the pace. There are six games remaining in the first half of the season. The day started with the Travs finding out at 4:30 that their three-hole hitter, Eric Filia, was traded by the Mariners to the Red Sox, necessitating a lineup change. Dario Pizzano who replaced Filia in the lineup opened the scoring with a two-run double.
Moments That Mattered
* Donnie Dewees singled home the Naturals first run of the game with two out in the fifth, took second on the throw and went to third on an error. He would then score on a passed ball.
* After three hits opened the sixth inning, a pair of walks forced in the tying run. Then with two out and the bases loaded a routine ground ball to Chris Mariscal was mishandled creating a late throw to first base and allowing the go-ahead run to score. Another walk followed forcing in another run. Then another error, this time on a ground ball to Joey Curletta plated the fifth run of the inning.
Notable Travs Performances
* CF Braden Bishop: 2-4, run
* LF Chuck Taylor: 2-3, BB, run
* DH Dario Pizzano: 1-4, 2B, run, 2 RBI
Up Next
The Travs open a 12-game roadtrip with the first of four games in Springfield on Wednesday night. RH Nathan Bannister (4-4, 5.85) gets the start opposite RH Anthony Shew (2-2, 6.45) with first pitch at 6:30. The game will be broadcast on the Sports Animal 920, the First Pitch App, TuneIn radio and milb.tv.