Owen Dominates in First Shutout of Season
SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI-- Hunter Owen fanned 12 over seven shutout innings while holding the opposition to just one hit in the Northwest Arkansas Naturals' (17-27, 46-65) 3-0 shutout of the Springfield Cardinals (27-17, 58-53) on Saturday Night at Route 66 Stadium in Springfield, MO. The two teams finish their six-game series
SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI-- Hunter Owen fanned 12 over seven shutout innings while holding the opposition to just one hit in the Northwest Arkansas Naturals' (17-27, 46-65) 3-0 shutout of the Springfield Cardinals (27-17, 58-53) on Saturday Night at Route 66 Stadium in Springfield, MO. The two teams finish their six-game series Sunday evening at 6:05 PM CT.
Owen immediately started dominating out of the gate, striking out the side in the opening frame while nearly throwing an immaculate inning. He struck out of the first two hitters of the night with six straight strikes before going 0-2 to Cardinals three-hitter, Jesus Baez, before throwing his first ball of the night. Owen bounced back to strike out Baez on the next pitch, K'ing the side on 10 pitches.
NWA got the runs they needed in the second and third frames. Spencer Nivens led off the second with a double and scored when Sam Kulasingam singled to left-center. A passed ball moved Kulasingam to second before he stole third, crossing home plate on Connor Scott's single to right. In the third, Maikel Garcia singled to lead off the inning and went to second when Luke Pelzer grounded out to first. Garcia swiped third and Carson Roccaforte reached on a fielding error to plate Garcia and make it a 3-0 game.
Owen continued dicing up the Cards lineup, and was perfect through 4.2 innings until he issued his first walk of the night in the fifth. He took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before Jack Gurevitch collected the only hit off the southpaw, a leadoff single. Owen's 12 strikeouts were the second-most in club history and the first time an NWA pitcher reached the mark since Steven Zobac accomplished the feat on August 7, 2024 in Amarillo, TX.
Frank Mozzicato allowed a hit in a scoreless inning of work, earning a hold. Zachary Cawyer followed up with two strikeouts in the ninth while issuing one walk in a scoreless frame.
The 3-0 win was NWA's first shutout of the season. The two teams conclude their series on Sunday with a 6:05 PM CT first pitch before the Naturals continue their 12-game road trip in San Antonio, Texas, on Tuesday.