NATURALS WIN SERIES BEHIND RIVERA'S BIG DAY

SPRINGDALE, Ark - Northwest Arkansas (33-37/2-0) won their ninth series of the season as the Naturals defeated the Amarillo Sod Poodles (34-36/0-2) in the rubber match of this 3-game series on Wednesday afternoon by a 10-5 final. Designated-hitter Emmanuel Rivera came through with a big day at the plate, especially late in the victory, as he homered and drove in five.
Trailing 5-4 in the seventh, the Naturals were looking for a big hit after Gabriel Cancel led off the frame with a single and advanced to second on a base hit by Khalil Lee . The big hit would ultimately come off the bat of Rivera as he drove a 1-0 pitch from Amarillo's Kyle Lloyd (L, 2-4) for a game-winning three-run home run to put the Naturals up by a 7-5 mark after seven.

Rivera's big day was not complete though until he put the game on ice with a two-run single in the eighth to give Northwest Arkansas their final 10-5 advantage. The star of the game finished the day with four hits in five at bats, a homer and five RBIs.
The game was a back-and-forth affair through the early innings. The Sod Poodles pushed across a run in the top of the first against Naturals' starter Brady Singer as Luis Torrens delivered a two-out single to plate Ivan Castillo for the early 1-0 lead.
Northwest Arkansas would respond with two runs in the home half of the second to take their first lead of the game. With Meibrys Viloria on third and Travis Jones on second, Kort Peterson would bring them both home with a single up the middle.
Amarillo would even the game in the third with another two-out, run-scoring single by Torrens that scored Edward Olivares .
Northwest Arkansas would add a run in the fifth on Cancel's 13^th home run of the season and then another in the sixth as Peterson singled and eventually scored on a wild pitch by Lloyd. The 4-2 advantage wouldn't last long as the Sod Poodles would retake the lead in the seventh on back-to-back doubles by Owen Miller and Torrens to set the stage for the late-game surge.
The Naturals collected 17 hits as a team with Rivera, Cancel, Peterson, Lee and Hunter Dozier all with multi-hit games. Dozier, playing in another rehab game for Northwest Arkansas, went 2-for-5 and now has five hits and four RBIs in three games played.
The aforementioned Brady Singer made his third start of the year for the Naturals and his second at Arvest Ballpark. The Royals' top-ranked prospect did not factor into the decision after giving up two runs on six hits on 91 pitches through 4.0 innings of work. Reliever Yunior Marte (W, 2-3) earned the victory today by continuing his fantastic 2019 campaign with 2.2 scoreless.
Northwest Arkansas will continue their 7-game homestand tomorrow night - Thursday, June 20^th - by welcoming the Frisco RoughRiders (Double-A Affiliate of the Texas Rangers) for a 4-game series. Join us for the series opener on a Thirsty Thursday at Arvest Ballpark with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. The Naturals will send Texas League All-Star right-hander Gerson Garabito (4-4. 4.06 ERA) to the bump where he'll face right-hander Richelson Peña (0-3, 8.10 ERA) of the RoughRiders. Catch all of the live play-by-play action with the Voice of the Naturals Benjamin Kelly on KQSM - 92.1 The Ticket at 6:45 p.m. for the Indigo Sky Casino Pregame Show leading up to first pitch against the Double-A Texas Rangers from Arvest Ballpark.
The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Texas League Affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. The Naturals play at state-of-the-art Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, Ark. For more information, including statistics, ticket options, and more, please visit NWANaturals.com, and follow us on Twitter @NWANaturals and Facebook.com/Naturals.
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