Missions Locke(d) Down

CORPUS CHRISTI -- Drew Locke's 394-foot grand slam home run broke a scoreless deadlock in the seventh as Corpus Christi defeated San Antonio 6-1 Tuesday before 5,076 at Whataburger Field.

Corpus Christi is 33-30 and has won six straight for the first time since 2007. Victorious in 10 of their last 13, the Hooks stand 22-13 at home. The Missions are 24-39.

Keyvius Sampson (2-7), who carried a no-hitter into the seventh, was the hero turned victim. He retired 17 consecutive Hooks between a first-inning walk to Austin Wates and seventh-inning pass to Jordan Kreke. Both bases-on-balls were four-pitch walks. 

Jose Martinez broke up the no-no with a sharp grounder between shortstop Jeudy Valdez and third baseman Edinson Rincon. Sampson walked Jon Singleton on five pitches before Locke popped his second bomb since signing with the Astros Saturday.

Sampson finished with six Ks. He threw 89 pitches (48 strikes).

The Missions were noisier, but kept off the board by Brett Oberholtzer (5-3) for seven. San Antonio stranded two in the first, had a Rincon lead-off double erased by a double play in the second and fizzled again in the fifth, Rincon left at third after reaching on a two-base error with no outs. Oberholtzer fanned T.J. Steele and Sampson to quell the threat.

Two innings later, Steele fanned again, Rincon and Valdez aboard with two-out singles.

San Antonio finally broke through on Dean Anna's triple and an Oberholtzer wild pitch, but left three more aboard in the eighth when Jason Stoffel whiffed Rincon. 

Oberholtzer (118/85) struck out eight over 7 2/3 and yielded six hits. Stoffel's eighth-inning RBI double off Jeremy McBryde was a career first and accounted for the fifth run. Stoffel then tallied on Martinez' double to left.

Locke made a diving catch in center field to rob Valdez of extra bases and save a run following Rincon's second-inning lead-off double.

Martinez owns an 11-game hitting streak and Rincon has a nine-gamer.

San Diego fireballer Andrew Cashner (0-0), in the process of transitioning from reliever to starter, goes for the Missions in Wednesday's series finale. The Hooks counter with Jake Buchanan (3-4). Gates open at 5:30, first pitch 7:05. it's Whataburger Family Day, so buy a ticket at the box office and get a kids ticket free.