Casparius, Drillers Defeat Naturals
Springdale, AR – The Tulsa Drillers opened a six-game series with Northwest Arkansas on Tuesday night at Springdale’s Arvest Ballpark, and it was an eventful night for a couple of Drillers players. In a 7-4 victory, Tulsa starting pitcher Ben Casparius was outstanding and picked up his first-ever Double-A win.
Springdale, AR – The Tulsa Drillers opened a six-game series with Northwest Arkansas on Tuesday night at Springdale’s Arvest Ballpark, and it was an eventful night for a couple of Drillers players. In a 7-4 victory, Tulsa starting pitcher Ben Casparius was outstanding and picked up his first-ever Double-A win.
But, Casparius was not the only one to have a memorable night. Tulsa third baseman Luis Diaz stole four bases in the game, including three of them on one trip around the bases that concluded with a steal of home.
The heroics from the duo helped lead the Drillers to their fifth win in seven games of their extended road trip.
They wasted little time in getting the lead against the Naturals. Austin Gauthier led off the game and reached base safely on an error. Gauthier advanced to third on a base hit by Yusniel Diaz and scored on a single from Kody Hoese.
The Drillers nearly hit for the cycle in the top of the fourth, only missing a double, and scored three more runs. Hoese started the inning with a leadoff triple. Luis Diaz singled him home before Josh Stowers capped the big inning with his sixth home run of the season to make it 4-0.
The legs of Luis Diaz accounted for the fifth run. With one out in the sixth, Diaz drew a walk. With two outs and Stowers at the plate, Diaz stole second base, then third. Following a walk to Stowers, Diaz caught pitcher Jake Brentz napping and broke for home, sliding in safely just in front of Brentz’s throw to the plate to complete an impressive run around the bases.
Casparius held the Naturals without a run through the first five innings. In the sixth, Javier Vaz led off with a single and advanced all the way to third after catcher Diego Cartaya threw wildly into centerfield when he thought Vaz was breaking for second. Vaz ended Caspaurius’ shutout bid, scoring an unearned run on two-double by Peyton Wilson.
Cartaya made up for his defensive miscue in the top of the seventh with his 18th home run of season. The two-run blast gave the Drillers a 7-1 lead.
The Naturals made things uncomfortable for Tulsa in the bottom of the ninth. Three straight hits to open the inning and a throwing error by centerfielder Ismael Alcantara produced two runs. A passed ball by catcher Cartaya allowed a third run to score.
With one out and a runner at first, Kevin Gowdy was summoned from the Tulsa bullpen. Gowdy put a stop to the attempted rally, getting two quick outs to close out the win and pick up his second straight save and the third in his past five outings.
Casparius departed with two outs in the sixth, allowing six hits, but zero walks. He struck out seven hitters in gaining his first Double-A victory.
HIGHLIGHTS & HAPPENINGS
*The Drillers stole a total of six bases in the game, establishing a new season high.
*Luis Diaz became the first Drillers player to steal four bases in a game since Juan Piniella did it against El Paso in the 2001 season.
*The Drillers announced a pair of roster moves prior to Tuesday’s game. Second baseman Jorbit Vivas was transferred to Oklahoma City by the Los Angeles Dodgers, and catcher Hamlet Marte was placed on the Temporarily Inactive List.
*With his fourth-inning single, Yusniel Diaz has reached base safely in 19 straight games. He has hit safely in 18 of his past 19.
*The win by Casaparius was just the 16th season by a Tulsa starting pitcher.
*Brentz was on a major league rehab assignment from the Kansas City Royals. The lefthander is recovering from Tommy John surgery.
*The Drillers scored at least seven runs in the game, meaning fans can purchase large, one-topping pizzas from Mazzio's on Wednesday for just $7 each. The special offer is good throughout the day on Wednesday, but it is only available online at Mazzios.com and when you use the promotion code DRILLERS at checkout.
UP NEXT:
The Drillers and Naturals will play the second game of their six-game series on Wednesday night at Arvest Ballpark. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. and the starting pitchers are slated to be:
Tulsa – RHP Kendall Williams (1-1, 1.84 ERA)
NW Arkansas – LHP Tyson Guerrero (1-1, 1.86 ERA)