Mendez turns in longest RoughRiders start

He was long gone from the mound by the time his game was decided, but Yohander Méndez established a rhythm that carried his team through Tuesday.
Texas' No. 2 prospect went seven innings in his longest start of 2017, allowing one unearned run on one hit with seven strikeouts and Double-A Frisco scored three times in the top of the 12th inning to pull out a 5-2 victory at San Antonio.

"I think he came out and established his fastball early, was pounding the zone with it for the most part," Frisco pitching coach Brian Shouse said. "I felt like he was throwing it with really good conviction and that set the tone and made all of his secondary pitches better. He just came ready to go tonight, it seemed like."
Baseball's No. 52 overall prospect yielded the only hit on his Tuesday line to the first batter he faced. San Diego's No. 7 prospectLuis Urías singled to center field to lead off the first inning. A double play off the bat of Nick Schulz ended the first and Mendez faced the minimum through his first three frames.

"I think his last couple outings, he's trusted the fastball a little bit more, hasn't necessarily had the command that he's wanted, but he's trusting it and making the big pitches with it right now and getting some outs," Shouse said. "I think it's just continuing each outing. Tonight it was even better."
Urias walked to lead off the fourth and Schulz followed with a walk two batters later. After Franmil Reyes flied out to right to put runners at the corners, Urias scored when Mendez crossed up signals with his catcher, leading to a run-scoring passed ball charged to Frisco backstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa. The miscue also put Schulz in scoring position as the potential tying run, but Mendez got out of the inning with a strikeout of Eric Aguilera.
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"He had a chance to get out of it also with no damage," Shouse said. "It shows you that he kept his composure and still made the pitches that he needed to. Unfortunately, I think he was just a little mixed up there with what he thought he saw the pitch was supposed to be, but he executed pitches when he had to. Even in a little situation like that, he still executed the pitches and did a great job with it all."
Boosted by escaping the jam, Mendez cruised through his final three innings. The left-hander retired the final 10 Missions he faced, four via strikeouts.
"He's confident in the pitches that he can make," Shouse said. "He can get his outs. He knows he can go deeper into games. He can be efficient with his pitches. I think his last three outings, including tonight, it was 5 2/3, then six, then seven. He continues to build the confidence, continues to make better pitches, continues to get guys out quicker. That's what it's about as a starter, getting quick outs, throwing strikes and giving the team a chance."
In addition to being his longest outing of the year, Tuesday's no-decision marked the first performance in which Mendez didn't allow an earned run, and it gave the 22-year-old a bounceback performance with command. Mendez walked only two, a turnaround from five walks on April 20 against Corpus Christi. Now the task will be to keep the momentum going.

"Continue to repeat it," Shouse said. "Continue putting those starts together. Don't have a little setback. Continue to trust the fastball. Continue to throw the fastball with conviction, being able to go glove side with the fastball more consistently. I think the confidence will continue to grow from there."
Frisco's Adam Loewen, David Ledbetter and Ryne Slack combined to allow one run over five innings of relief, holding the line until RoughRiders broke through on Luis Mendez's three-run double to center in the 12th.
"We've got a pretty good bullpen here," Shouse said. "It's a pretty tight-knit group down there. They have each other's backs and cheer for each other. It's a special bond down there with those guys. They've done a good job so far this year. Hopefully, they'll continue to do that."