Gast Outduels 'Riders, Springfield Takes Game 1
On a night where the opposing bats were hot, the Cardinals scored a run in the third, two in the fourth, and one in fifth, en route to the visitor's fourth victory of the season.
Following a 25 pitch second inning by Miguel De Los Santos (0-2), the Cardinals put a pair of runners aboard to start the third. Jose Garcia led off with a single, and would advance 90 feet from home on a base hit to center by Kolten Wong. One batter later, Garcia scored on a ground ball to the right side of the infield by Oscar Taveras.
The 'Riders would have a chance to answer in the home half of the third. With two outs, Leury Garcia roped a triple down the right field line over the head of Raniel Rosario. But Cards lefty John Gast escaped, striking out Jurickson Profar for the second time in the game.
Springfield's third inning momentum carried over to the fourth. Niko Vasquez walked, Audry Perez singled, bringing up right fielder Rainel Rosario. A strikeout victim in the second, the Cards right fielder blooped a ball to shallow centerfield. Engel Beltre made an attempt at a diving catch, but it caromed off his glove and into left. With 'Riders sprinting after the ball, Vasquez and Perez both came around to make it 3-0.
The Cards added a run in the fifth on a home run by DH Tommy Pham off De Los Santos. Frisco's lone run came in the sixth, on a triple by Mike Olt which scored Garcia. The second baseman paced the Frisco offense, finishing the night 2-3 at the plate.
Frisco and Springfield meet in game two of the three game series Friday night at Dr Pepper Ballpark. RHP Barret Loux (1-0, 0.00) earns the start for the RoughRiders; he is opposed by the Cardinals' Trevor Rosenthal (0-1, 2.25). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05, and can be heard on KKGM 1630 AM, or on ridersbaseball.com. Pre-game coverage starts at 6:30.