Lopez walks it off for Cardinals in home opener

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The Springfield Cardinals (1-7) opened their 2019 home schedule with a 12-11 walk-off win over the Northwest Arkansas Naturals (4-4) at Hammons Field on Thursday night in front of 5,743 fans.

DECISIONS:
W: LHP Jacob Patterson (1-1)
L: RHP Yunior Marte (0-2)

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED:
-2B Irving Lopez crushed a walk-off two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth for the 12-11 final.

-Jose Godoy drew Springfield within 11-10 when his fly out to center in the ninth inning led to Scott Hurst scoring.

-Northwest Arkansas scored a pair of runs in the top of the ninth, marking the second time in the game the Naturals battled back and took the lead from three or more runs down.

NOTABLES:
-CF Dylan Carlson extended his hitting streak to six games with a 2-for-4 night.

-SS Kramer Robertson's two-run homer in the fifth marked the third straight game with a long-ball for the shortstop and put the Cardinals ahead 6-5. Robertson finished Wednesday's game 2-for-3 with four runs and is 6-for-10 with six runs and seven RBIs in his last three games.

-2B Irving Lopez has now homered in back-to-back games following his walk-off shot.

- Six different Cardinals posted multi-hit nights, including Lopez (2-for-4), Conner Capel (3-for-4), Elehuris Montero (2-for-5), Robertson and José Godoy (2-for-5).

COMING UP FRIDAY AT HAMMONS!
- Friday Night Fireworks featuring 80s Music
- Great Southern Bank Magnet Schedule Giveaway (3,500 fans)