Drillers Complete Comeback for 9-7 Win Over Hooks
Tulsa, OK – The Tulsa Drillers were unable to carry the momentum from a walk-off win on Tuesday night into Wednesday’s meeting with Corpus Christi. The Drillers fell behind early and were limited to just one run in a 6-1 loss to the Hooks at ONEOK Field. With the defeat,
Tulsa, OK – The Tulsa Drillers were unable to carry the momentum from a walk-off win on Tuesday night into Wednesday’s meeting with Corpus Christi. The Drillers fell behind early and were limited to just one run in a 6-1 loss to the Hooks at ONEOK Field.
With the defeat, the Drillers fell two games behind first-place Springfield in the Texas League’s North Division second-half standings. More importantly, their lead on second place, which likely comes with a playoff berth, was trimmed to two games.
After winning Tuesday’s series opener against the Hooks thanks to a two-run homer in the tenth inning from Griffin Lockwood-Powell, Wednesday’s game began positively with starting pitcher Patrick Copen retiring the first five Corpus Christi batters in order.
But, the third and final out in the top of the second would not come easily as a pair of two-out singles put runners at the corners. From there, the Hooks executed a double steal with Luis Baez jogging home for the game’s first run.
Copen ran into more trouble in the top of the fourth. With runners again at first and third, Jeron Williams stole second base, and when catcher Yeiner Fernandez’s throw was wild, Trevor Austin came home from third to make it 2-0.
Two more singles and two more stolen bases in the fourth upped the lead to three runs before Copen’s fourth walk ended his stint. Jorge Benitez was brought on from the bullpen, and he got a pop out before a run-scoring single from Lucas Spence capped the three-run inning and increased the lead for the Hooks to 4-0.
They added two more runs in the eighth inning.
The Drillers lone run came in the bottom of the ninth inning when John Rhodes singled home Fernandez, who had also singled.
Corpus Christi stole nine bases in the game, tying the ONEOK Field record for most steals in a game for a Tulsa opponent. It is the third time this season that a team has matched the record nine stolen bases against the Drillers.
INSIDE THE GAME
*The win was Tulsa's 28th comeback win of the season.
*Brandon Neeck tossed a scoreless inning and two-thirds and was credited with his fourth win this season. He now has a 4-6 record.
*Starting pitcher Roque Gutierrez had a tough night in his ninth start for the Drillers. He completed 4.1 innings and was charged with five runs on six hits, but only four runs were earned. Gutierrez also struck out six.
*Christian Suarez recorded the final two outs in the eighth to bring his scoreless streak to 14 games and 23.0 straight innings.
*Newell's home run was his 18th of the season and his 6th in August. The blast tied him for the third most home runs and third for the most runs driven in the Texas League with 70.
*Nevin filled the box score as he finished with three hits, two RBI and two runs scored.
*Kole Myers joined Nevin, also earning three hits in the game.
*The Drillers activated infielder Sean McLain from the Injured List prior to the game. Thursday was McLain's first game since August 12.
UP NEXT
The Drillers will continue their series with the Hooks on Friday night. First pitch is slated for 7:00 p.m. at ONEOK Field, and the starting pitchers are scheduled to be:
Corpus Christi – RHP Nic Swanson (2-4, 6.41 ERA)
Tulsa – LHP Jackson Ferris (8-6, 4.05 ERA)