Verdugo’s Ninth-Inning Homer Leads Missions to 8-6 Victory
CORPUS CHRISTI (JUNE 19, 2026) — The San Antonio Missions rallied with two runs in the ninth to stun the Corpus Christi Hooks 8-6 on Friday night at Whataburger Field, earning their third win of the series. Ian Koenig turned in another excellent outing on the mound, allowing just two
CORPUS CHRISTI (JUNE 19, 2026) — The San Antonio Missions rallied with two runs in the ninth to stun the Corpus Christi Hooks 8-6 on Friday night at Whataburger Field, earning their third win of the series.
Ian Koenig turned in another excellent outing on the mound, allowing just two runs on four hits in 6+ innings. The right-hander punched out seven batters and issued just two free passes.
The Missions took the lead in the fourth, scoring in each of the next four frames. Luis Verdugo ripped a solo home run to left off Cole Hertzler, giving San Antonio a 1-0 advantage.
In the fifth, they extended their lead to 3-0. Brendan Durfee hit a solo home run for his second Double-A long ball, before Romeo Sanabria drove in Francisco Acuña with an RBI single. Sanabria has reached base safely seven times in the last two games.
After Verdugo and Albert Fabian reached with two walks in the sixth, a dropped popup hit by Ryan Jackson allowed the Missions to build their lead to 5-0.
Corpus Christi got on the board in the sixth, with RBI hits from Jax Biggers and Joseph Sullivan. However, Sullivan was thrown out at third trying for a triple, thanks to an excellent relay throw from Acuña.
In the seventh, Fabian notched a sacrifice fly that allowed Sanabria to score and make it 6-2.
Things unraveled, however, in the eighth. The Hooks brought five straight on base to begin the inning. A Sadrac Franco wild pitch scored one, before a Sullivan RBI single made it 6-4 Missions. A two-run single by Drew Brutcher then evened the contest at 6.
However, Verdugo had other plans for how this game would end. After Braedon Karpathios reached on a one-out single, Verdugo launched his second home run of the night to left. The Missions' third baseman finished 2-for-3 with two long balls, three RBIs and two walks.
Francis Peña entered in the ninth and retired Corpus Christi in 1-2-3 fashion, as San Antonio held on for its 30th win of the season 8-6.
Up Next:
The Missions continue their series Saturday with the Corpus Christi Hooks at Whataburger Field. First pitch on Saturday is at 7:05 p.m. Catch all the action on Country Legends KKYX, 680 AM, 104.9 FM and kkyx.com.