Kicked By a Pointy Boot; 'Hounds Fall, 3-2

Amarillo Sod Poodles (Pointy Boots de Amarillo) 3, RockHounds (Matamoscas de Midessa) 2

Friday, July 16, 2021

Momentum Bank Ballpark

The RockHounds (Matamoscas de Midessa) took a shutout into the ninth inning Friday night; when all was said and done, all they took was a tough loss.

The Amarillo Sod Poodles (Pointy Boots de Amarillo) scored three runs in the top of the ninth for a 3-2 win in a Copa de le Diversión night matchup at Momentum Bank Ballpark.

Jancarlos Cintron led off the Amarillo ninth with a line drive single to left and Stone Garrett followed with a pop fly down the right field line. Despite a great effort from second baseman Yerdel Vargas, the ball dropped for a base hit, putting two men on base with no outs. Ryder Jones then ripped a double to deep left-center, scoring both Cintron and Garrett to tie the game at 2-2.

Jones advanced to third on a ground out, but Matt Milburn struck out Luis Basabe for the second out of the inning and jumped ahead of Mikey Reynolds with two quick strikes. Milburn’s 0-2, however, was in the dirt and Jones scored the go-ahead (and game-winning) run on the wild pitch.

The RockHounds scored twice in the third, loading the bases with no outs. Chase Calabuig and Yerdel Vargas started the rally with singles to center and left, respectively, and Mickey McDonald dropped down a sacrifice bunt that was “too good,” going instead for a single. Jhonny Santos drove an RBI single to left and Logan Davidson’s ground out made the score 2-0.

Amarillo’s Kenny Hernandez, making his first start at the Double-A level, got the next two outs to limit the RockHounds to a pair of runs, an “escape” that would prove to be critical in the Amarillo comeback. The left-hander walked two and struck out eight in his AA debut.

The Sod Poodles evened the current series at 2-2 and the overall season series at 8-8 (the first 12 meetings were at Amarillo).

Kibbles & Bits

RockHounds starter Bryce Conley was outstanding, tossing five scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and one walk while striking out five. In three July starts, Bryce has pitched 14.0 scoreless innings, allowing just eight hits and seven walks with 11 strikeouts.

The Insult to Injury Department is open for business - - JJ Schwarz went 0-for-4, putting an end to a 22-game on-base streak in which he was hitting nearly .400 (.382).

Next Game: Saturday, July 17

RockHounds vs. Amarillo Sod Poodles

Fifth of a six-game series and of a 12-game homestand

First Pitch at 7:00

Postgame Fireworks!

Probable Starters

AMA Matt Tabor (RH, 2-3, 4.09)

RH Ty Damron (LH, 1-2, 6.14)

The RockHounds host the Amarillo Saturday (fireworks) and Family Day / Ice Cream Sunday.

The Corpus Christi Hooks come to town next week for a six-game series (July 20-25) at Momentum Bank Ballpark.