Early Runs Not Enough For Drillers in Loss

The Tulsa Drillers came out of the gate fast, scoring a pair of early runs against the Corpus Christi Hooks on Saturday night. But the first inning runs were all the Drillers were able to put together, as they were defeated 7-2 in the middle game of the three-game set.
The Drillers quickly got the scoring started in the top of the first. Drew Jackson led the game off with a walk, and D.J. Peters quickly moved him to third after smacking a double. With Connor Joe batting, Hooks starter Framber Valdez threw a wild pitch that brought home the first Drillers run. Joe then hit a pop-up that found the grass in shallow center for an RBI and gave the Drillers a 2-0 lead.
Logan Bawcom started the game on the mound for the Drillers, and for the most part held the Hooks at bay. Corpus Christi was able to score in the first from a sacrifice fly, and in the third a run scored after Ryan Birk beat out a grounder that Joe attempted to turn for a double play. The third Hooks run came home on an RBI single by Randy César in the fifth inning.
In each of the seventh and eighth innings, the Drillers were able to get the first two runners aboard with no outs in the inning. In both innings, hard ground balls to the third baseman resulted in double plays and the Drillers were unable to score.
After Corpus Christi added a run in the seventh, the Hooks put the game away an inning later. Chad Girodo came in from the bullpen and struck Birk out on three pitches. The game then escaped the Drillers after a triple, walk and a home run by Alex De Goti made the score 7-2. Tulsa was unable to rally in the ninth, and Corpus Christi sealed the victory. 
WHAT YOU MISSED
In the bottom of the fifth, Yusniel Díaz made back-to-back spectacular over-the-shoulder catches. Off the bat, both balls looked as if they were destined to be doubles, but Diaz tracked them down and prevented a run from scoring on both plays.
Peters had the only extra base hit of the evening, while Jackson, Joe, Cael Brockmeyer, Errol Robinson and Keibert Ruiz provided singles.
Ruiz threw out two Hooks runners attempting to steal.
Caleb Ferguson was called up to Triple-A Oklahoma City in a roster move earlier on Saturday. It is a well-deserved call up after the lefty was 3-0 with a 1.38 ERA in eight starts with the Drillers.
UP NEXT
The Drillers will go for the series win in the final game of the road trip in the rubbergame on Sunday evening. First pitch at Whataburger Park in Corpus Christi is scheduled for 6:05 PM, with the probable starters being:
TUL        Mitchell White (0-1, 8.74 ERA)
CC           TBD