Riders win, playoff berth to come down to final day
FRISCO, Texas (September 18, 2021) – The Frisco RoughRiders stayed alive in the playoff hunt with a 5-3 come-from-behind win over the Amarillo Sod Poodles on Saturday night from HODGETOWN. Amarillo (58-61) struck early in the first inning when Buddy Kennedy smacked a two-run home run to center, putting the
FRISCO, Texas (September 18, 2021) – The Frisco RoughRiders stayed alive in the playoff hunt with a 5-3 come-from-behind win over the Amarillo Sod Poodles on Saturday night from HODGETOWN.
Amarillo (58-61) struck early in the first inning when Buddy Kennedy smacked a two-run home run to center, putting the Sod Poodles out in front 2-0.
Geraldo Perdomo then added on with a solo homer of his own in the third and Amarillo lengthened their lead to 3-0.
Frisco (64-54) started their comeback effort in the fifth on Blaine Crim's solo blast, his ninth of the year in Frisco and his 29th overall this season, and Josh Stowers tacked on with an RBI single to make it 3-2 Amarillo.
In the eighth inning, the RoughRiders took the lead. Jax Biggers scored on a wild pitch to tie the game and Josh Smith reached on an error, scoring Matt Whatley, for the go-ahead run.
Biggers then doubled home an insurance run in the ninth to increase the advantage to 5-3.
Tyler Thomas (3-2) earned the win for the RoughRiders with his 1.2 innings out of the bullpen and Daniel Robert captured his first save of the year with two shutout innings to finish the game.
Matt Brill (2-4) took the loss for Amarillo out of the bullpen.
In the playoff picture, both Arkansas and Northwest Arkansas took home wins on Saturday evening, meaning the RoughRiders are still in the second playoff spot by 0.5 games with one game remaining in the regular season. Frisco controls their own destiny toward their first postseason birth since 2014.
The RoughRiders and Sod Poodles meet for the season finale on Sunday, September 18th at 1:05 p.m. RHP Zak Kent (0-4, 5.18) starts for the RoughRiders against RHP Brandon Pfaadt (1-1, 4.28)
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 in each of the last 15 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 160 former RoughRiders players have gone on to play Major League Baseball, including current Rangers players Jose Trevino, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Taylor Hearn. For more information on the Frisco RoughRiders, please visit RidersBaseball.com or contact [email protected]