Hair homers again, Riders down Hooks 13-7
FRISCO, Texas (May 17, 2022) – Offense paced the Frisco RoughRiders to their second-straight win, topping the Corpus Christi Hooks on Tuesday at Riders Field, 13-7. Rangers catcher Mitch Garver rehabbed Tuesday afternoon with the Riders, walking twice and scoring in his first game on the field since May 8th.
FRISCO, Texas (May 17, 2022) – Offense paced the Frisco RoughRiders to their second-straight win, topping the Corpus Christi Hooks on Tuesday at Riders Field, 13-7. Rangers catcher Mitch Garver rehabbed Tuesday afternoon with the Riders, walking twice and scoring in his first game on the field since May 8th.
Frisco third baseman Trey Hair homered in his second-straight game, giving him four home runs in his last two games for the Riders. Ezequiel Duran and Dustin Harris both went deep in the Tuesday win.
Hair entered Tuesday fresh off a Sunday performance of a three-home run game, becoming the first Riders batter to accomplish that feat since Chris McGuiness, who did it on June 22nd, 2012.
Offensively, the Riders finished 11-for-34 (.324) and scored six of their 13 runs scored from the bottom four hitters of the lineup. Hair and Harris pulled the weight of six RBIs between the two of them in Tuesday’s game.
Despite the win, Corpus Christi scored their first run in the top of the second inning with a two-out RBI double. The Riders plated two off of the Hair home run in the home half of the second to make it a 2-1 Riders lead.
Hooks second baseman Enmanual Valdez hit his sixth home run of the year to lead off the third inning to tie the game on Riders starter Zak Kent, who finished with a season-high seven strikeouts on Tuesday.
The RoughRiders started to break the 2-2 tie in the bottom of the third with a leadoff walk to Garver. Following two quick outs, J.P. Martinez doubled in Garver to give Frisco the lead back at 3-2. Josh Stowers scored Martinez and reached on a fielding error and immediately stole second base. Frisco swept Hooks starter Jaime Melendez (0-2) off the mound prior to the end of the third inning and finalized his line with six runs on six hits.
David Garcia kept the two-out production coming with a single to score Stowers from second, extending the lead to 5-2 Riders. The busy home half ended with an RBI single from Jonathan Ornelas to score the fourth run of the inning.
Duran and Martinez both walked in the fifth to set up a Stowers RBI single down the right-field line, plating Duran and putting Martinez and Stowers at first and third. Frisco executed a double-steal with Stowers taking second and Martinez stealing home for the first time this season to give Frisco an 8-2 lead.
The Hooks made Tuesday’s game interesting with four runs in the top of the sixth inning, capped by a two-run double from Justin Dirden to trim the Riders lead to 8-6.
Grant Anderson (3-1) relieved Tyler Thomas in the sixth and would hold the Hooks to one run in his final 1.2 innings. Chase Lee provided the final five outs on the mound for Frisco behind three strikeouts. This season, Lee hasn’t allowed an earned run in his 15 innings with 19 strikeouts and bolsters a 0.79 WHIP.
The Riders produced more runs in the home half of the seventh, beginning with a Martinez walk. Frisco cushioned their lead to 9-6 when Hair doubled Martinez in for his third RBI of the game in the seventh and was followed by a Ornelas walk. Harris brought everyone in with his fourth home run of the season and giving Frisco their second four-run inning of the game.
After Corpus Christi scored their final run of the game in the top of the eighth, Frisco got the same from a solo shot from Duran, his third in his last two games.
The six-game series between Frisco and Corpus Christi continues Wednesday, May 17th with a 6:35 p.m. first pitch. The Riders send LHP Avery Weems (1-3, 7.52 ERA) to the mound for his fifth start and will be opposed by Hooks RHP Misael Tamarez (1-1, 2.91 ERA) Wednesday night.
Wednesdays are for Texas Baseball Legends at Riders Field, and the RoughRiders welcome former Texas Rangers outfielder Craig Gentry to the ballpark! For tickets and more information about the Frisco RoughRiders, visit RidersBaseball.com or call 972.731.9200.
About the RoughRiders
The Frisco RoughRiders are the Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. The team was founded in 2003 and has finished first among all Double-A franchises in attendance for 15 consecutive seasons (2005-2019). 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, InTouch Grille, 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 170 former RoughRiders players have gone on to play Major League Baseball. For more information on the Frisco RoughRiders, please visit RidersBaseball.com or contact [email protected].