Travs Take Two From Frisco Monday

Frisco, Texas - The Arkansas Travelers earned a pair of victories on Monday sweeping a doubleheader from the Frisco RoughRiders. Outfielder Zach Borenstein led an 8-1 victory in the opener with three base hits, three runs scored and four stolen bases. Outfielder Andy Workman drove in three runs in a 3-1 win in the nightcap to help the Travs improve to 4-1.

 

GAME ONE

 

Borenstein and the Travs proved to be an extremely aggressive group on the base paths in the opener. The left fielder who stole all of five bases during his 2013 California League MVP season, swiped four bases while the Travs stole seven overall on eight attempts. Borenstein used the steal to get into scoring position after hitting a single to begin the second inning. Jerad Eickoff walked Michael Snyder and Jett Bandy to load the bases with no outs, but settled down to retire Drew Heid on a shallow fly before he struck out Eric Stamets. Eickoff then got ahead of Shawn O'Malley 0-2, but lost him for a bases-loaded walk.

 

RoughRiders second baseman Rougned Odor tied the game in the top of the third with a solo home run off Kramer Sneed, which was followed by consecutive singles by Jake Smolinski and Jordan Brown. Sneed though retired Trever Adams on a routine fly ball to end the inning beginning a string of eight batters retired in order.

 

Meanwhile Frisco reliever Phil Klein walked Kyle Hudson to start the fifth, which Hudson followed with steals of second and third bases. A two-out single by Borenstein gave the Travs a 2-1 lead and was followed by a single by Snyder that put runners at first and third. With Bandy batting, Snyder attempted a delayed steal of second base, and when Tomas Telis's throw bounced away Borenstein stole home for a 3-1 lead.

 

The Travs put the opener away in the seventh with a five-run rally, keyed by back-to-back doubles from Alex Yarbrough and Kaleb Cowart. Borenstein's third single drove in Cowart for a 5-1 lead. Bandy and O'Malley hit sacrifice flies while Stamets drove in his first run of the season with a single.

 

Sneed (W, 1-0) set down 10 of the last 11 Frisco batters he faced during a strong six-inning debut. He allowed just three hits and one run on three walks while adding one strikeout.

 

Dane De La Rosa closed out the first game with a perfect inning.

 

GAME TWO

 

Frisco got ahead of the Travs in the first inning after a bout of wildness from Yeiper Castillo, who allowed a single by Odor and consecutive walks to load the bases with one out. When Castillo's third strike to Drew Robinson got past catcher Anderson De La Rosa, Odor scored for a 1-0 'Riders lead.

 

Castillo (W, 1-0) though did not allowed another run and finished five innings scattering four hits and three walks.

 

De La Rosa and Heid hit singles to begin the second inning off Frisco's Kyle Lotzkar (L, 0-1), who battled back to strike out Jimmy Swift and Stamets. But he threw a wild pitch to Swift which gave De La Rosa third base. Heid stole second base during Stamets's at-bat. Both scored when Andy Workman produced a high two-out chopper in front of second base and beat Odor's throw for a 2-1 Travs lead.

 

Heid led off the fourth inning with a single off Lotzkar's glove and moved up on a groundout. Workman's second two-out single drove in Heid for a 3-1 Travs lead.

 

Castillo retired nine of ten batters before he walked Adams with one out in the fourth. De La Rosa cut Adams down attempting to steal second base, but Castillo allowed a single to Chris Grayson and promptly picked him off to end the inning.

 

Left hander Carmine Giardina relieved Castillo to begin the sixth inning and issued a leadoff walk to Odor. Giardina gave way after one out to R.J. Alvarez, and he found quick trouble hitting Smolinski with his first pitch. Drew Robinson followed with a single to load the bases and put the tying run in scoring position. With the lead threatened the Travs middle infield combination went to work. Adams with a grounder behind second base which Yarbrough pounced on and flipped to second where Stamets made a bare handed grab, wheeled around and fired a strike to first for an inning-ending double play.

 

Michael Morin (Save, 2) came on for the seventh and allowed Grayson's leadoff single plus an infield hit by Guilder Rodriguez with one out. With the top of the order facing Morin he got Luis Sardinas to fly out and Odor to ground into a fielder's choice to end the game.  

 

The Travs close out their season-opening road trip on Tuesday with a morning game against the Frisco RoughRiders at 11:00 p.m. Mark Sappington (0-0, 18.00) takes the hill for the Travelers against Texas Rangers lefty Matt Harrison, who is rehabbing with the RoughRiders.