Drillers Victorious in Season Opener
SPRINGDALE, AR – The Tulsa Drillers opened the 2024 season on a winning note Friday night with a 6-4 road victory over Northwest Arkansas at Springdale’s Arvest Ballpark. The Drillers got a strong start on the mound from former Oklahoma State Cowboys lefthander Justin Wrobleski, and then survived a tense
SPRINGDALE, AR – The Tulsa Drillers opened the 2024 season on a winning note Friday night with a 6-4 road victory over Northwest Arkansas at Springdale’s Arvest Ballpark. The Drillers got a strong start on the mound from former Oklahoma State Cowboys lefthander Justin Wrobleski, and then survived a tense ninth inning to record the victory.
Wrobleski, who is rated as the 16th best prospect in the LA Dodgers farm system by MLB.com, was outstanding in his Double-A debut. He gave up just one run on three hits in five innings of work. Just as impressively, he issued just one walk while striking out six.
Tulsa never trailed in the game and led 6-1 entering the ninth inning, but things got interesting quickly. Tulsa reliever Sauryn Lao retired the first batter of the inning, but the Naturals produced four straight hits, including consecutive run-scoring doubles, that quickly trimmed the lead to just two runs.
With one out and Diego Hernandez at second base, Rodolfo Duran flied out to right field for the second out of the inning. Inexplicably, Hernandez tagged up on the fly and tried to advance on the out, but Lolo Sanchez threw a strike to third base to retire Hernandez and end the game.
INSIDE THE GAME
*After the Drillers went down in order in the top of the first inning, Diego Cartaya singled with one out in the second for the first hit of the season. One batter later, Brendon Davis delivered a sacrifice fly to plate Jose Ramos with the season’s first run.
*Cartaya enjoyed a productive night at the plate, going 2-3 with two walks, and one run batted in.
*Reliever Jack Dreyer retired all six batters he faced, four of them on strikeouts.
*Cartaya was the only batter with more than one hit, but Austin Gauthier, Dalton Rushing, Yeiner Fernandez, Ramos and Sanchez had one hit each.
*Tulsa drew nine walks in the game, and three of the base runners eventually scored. Damon Keith and Cartaya drew two walks each.
*Rushing, the number 1 rated prospect in the Dodgers system, collected his one hit in the eighth inning with an RBI triple that plated Gauthier.
*Kansas City Royals infielder Michael Massey started at second base for the Naturals on a MLB injury-rehabilitation assignment. Massey finished 0-4 with four strikeouts.
*It is the second straight year that the Drillers have been victorious in their season opener. Last year, they defeated San Antonio 7-0 behind a strong outing from pitcher Emmet Sheehan, who finished the year in the majors pitching for the Dodgers. They are now 5-5 in their last ten openers.
UP NEXT:
The Drillers will continue their season-opening, three-game series with the Naturals on Saturday night at Arvest Ballpark. First pitch for game two will take place at 6:05 p.m. and the starting pitchers are scheduled to be:
TUL – RHP Ben Casparius
NWA – RHP Mason Barnett