Drillers Lose but Remain in First-Place Tie
Tulsa, OK – The Tulsa Drillers opened the final series of the first half of the season Tuesday night at ONEOK Field. The Drillers entered the opening game of a six-game set with Northwest Arkansas in a first-place tie with the Arkansas Travelers atop the North Division standings of the
Tulsa, OK – The Tulsa Drillers opened the final series of the first half of the season Tuesday night at ONEOK Field. The Drillers entered the opening game of a six-game set with Northwest Arkansas in a first-place tie with the Arkansas Travelers atop the North Division standings of the Texas League.
At the end of the night, the two teams were still in a first-place tie. The Drillers fell behind early and dropped a 6-2 decision to the Naturals, and the Travelers were beaten by Wichita.
Tulsa and Arkansas now have identical 40-24 records with five games remaining in the half.
The Drillers never led in Tuesday’s opener as former Kansas City Royals outfielder Jorge Bonifacio opened the scoring early when he hit a two-run homer in the top of the first inning. It was the 15th home run of the season for Bonifacio.
Brandon Lewis got one of the runs back for the Drillers in the bottom of the third. A solo shot from Lewis was his sixth home run of the year and cut Tulsa’s deficit to 2-1.
The home run trend continued in the top half of the fourth. Peyton Wilson singled, and Bonifacio walked in front of a three-run homer from Luca Tresh that upped the Naturals’ lead to 5-1.
Tulsa’s best chance at a comeback came in the sixth. Walks to Imanol Vargas and Diego Cartaya had put runners at first and second with two outs. Eddys Leonard’s fly ball fell safely in shallow centerfield for a base hit, plating Vargas. Lewis came to the plate representing the tying run, but Northwest Arkansas reliever Dante Biasi induced a fly ball to right field that ended the threat.
Northwest Arkansas closed the scoring with a final run in the top of the ninth.
The Drillers were held to just one hit over the final three innings, a ninth-inning single by Leonard, and suffered their first loss in seven games with the Naturals this season.
With Arkansas losing in Wichita, it was a missed opportunity for the Drillers. Since the Travelers have a winning record against the Drillers in the half, they own the tiebreaker and will claim the first-half title if the two teams finish with identical records.
HIGHLIGHTS AND HAPPENINGS:
*Drillers manager Scott Hennessey announced Tuesday afternoon that he was suffering from a treatable form of squamous cell carcinoma cancer. At the conclusion of this series, Hennessey will take a temporary, medical leave of absence to begin treatments.
*Ben Casparius made his second start on the mound for the Drillers and suffered the loss that dropped his Double-A record to 0-2. Casparius departed with two outs in the fifth inning and was charged with five runs on five hits and three walks. The right-hander struck out five.
*Relievers Antonio Knowles and Trevor Bettencourt each recorded four outs without giving up a hit. Bettencourt, in his first appearance since returning from Triple A, struck out three of the four batters he faced.
*The home run from Lewis was his first since May 27.
*The Drillers announced a roster switch prior to the game. Catcher Carson Taylor was activated, and to make room for him, catcher Hamlet Marte was placed on the Development List.
UP NEXT:
The Drillers and Naturals will continue their series on Wednesday night at ONEOK Field. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. and the starting pitchers are scheduled to be:
NWA – TBA
TUL- RHP River Ryan (1-3, 3.00 ERA)