Drillers Fall to Missions in 12 Innings
Tulsa OK – The Tulsa Drillers have shown great fortitude with their backs against the wall, earning seven comeback wins in the early part of the 2026 season. On Thursday night, the Drillers rallied from behind twice to tie the score after taking an early lead over the San Antonio
Tulsa OK – The Tulsa Drillers have shown great fortitude with their backs against the wall, earning seven comeback wins in the early part of the 2026 season. On Thursday night, the Drillers rallied from behind twice to tie the score after taking an early lead over the San Antonio Missions, the Drillers successfully rallied twice, including a big two-run homer in the bottom of the 11th inning. Unfortunately, a third rally did not take place, as Tulsa fell 5-4 to the Missions in 12 innings at ONEOK Field.
The win for San Antonio snapped its seven-game losing streak.
Pitching was in control of Thursday’s matchup through the first three innings. Starting pitchers Fernando Sanchez and Patrick Copen combined to allow just three hits to opposing batters.
That changed in the bottom of the fourth when Drillers shortstop Elijah Hainline blasted an opposite-field home run that gave Tulsa a 1-0 lead.
Copen was smooth sailing through the first five innings, holding San Antonio scoreless with six strikeouts.
He ran into trouble with two outs in the sixth when he put two runners on base, hitting Leandro Cedeno with a pitch and walking Tirso Ornelas. Copen appeared to escape the inning without any damage when Ryan Jackson hit a groundball to third baseman Jake Gelof, but Gelof’s throw to first was high. The throwing error allowed both baserunners to score and give the Missions a 2-1 lead. The inning ended one pitch later when catcher Griffin Lockwood-Powell threw out Jackson trying to steal second base.
The Drillers answered and tied the game in the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Lockwood-Powell and Chris Newell earned consecutive singles. Following a pop-up, Sean McLain tied the game at 2-2 with an RBI single.
The game remained tied thanks to lefty reliever Christian Suarez holding San Antonio scoreless in the eighth and ninth innings.
After holding the Missions scoreless in the tenth inning, reliever Lucas Wepf returned to the mound for the 11th. The inning began with a strikeout and a groundout, but Cedeno hit a 98 MPH fastball from Wepf 401 feet to left field for a homer that put San Antonio up 4-2.
Tulsa again rallied when Lockwood-Powell delivered a game-tying two-run homer.
In the 12th, the Missions used a sacrifice bunt to put the placed runner at third base, and Luis Verdugo hit a sacrifice fly to score Ornelas for a one-run lead.
The Drillers were unable to answer a third time in the bottom half of the 12th as two strikeouts and a groundout ended the game.
GAME NOTES
*Despite the loss, the Drillers secured their best record in April since going 18-6 during the 2012 season.
*The 12-inning game was the longest for the Drillers this season.
*The home run for Hainline was his third of the season.
*Lockwood-Powell’s 11th inning blast was his fourth of 2026.
*Kelvin Ramirez was charged with the loss allowing the placed runner to score via an unearned run in the 12th.
*Both runs charged to Copen were unearned, which lowered his ERA to 0.96 following his six-inning performance. The ERA is the lowest in the Texas League and his 37 strikeouts also lead the league.
*McLain’s seventh inning single was his eighth consecutive game with a hit.
*The Drillers wore special Route 66 jerseys that highlighted the Mother Road on a map.
UP NEXT
The Drillers will look to bounce back on Friday night at ONEOK Field in game four of the six-game series against the Missions. First pitch in downtown Tulsa is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. and the starting pitchers are expected to be:
SA - LHP Jagger Haynes (0-1, 6.19 ERA)
TUL – RHP Payton Martin (0-2, 11.25 ERA)