TEXAS LEAGUE : Naturals rally to extend home streak
Posted on Wednesday, July 23, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Sports/232119/
SPRINGDALE — Northwest Arkansas spotted Tulsa seven runs over the first two innings Tuesday, but needed barely more than an inning to wipe out that deficit and then rallied again late to win their ninth consecutive home game 11-8 in front of 4, 660 fans at Arvest Ballpark. It was Northwest Arkansas’ largest comeback in franchise history.
Cory Aldridge and Ovandy Suero had two RBI apiece for the Naturals (18-13 ). They drove in all three runs in the eighth inning, answering a game-tying home run in the top of the inning by Tulsa left fielder Matt Miller.
Every member of the Naturals’ starting lineup had at least one hit, as they snapped an eight-game losing streak against the Drillers (16-15 ).
“We have great hitters,” said Aldridge, whose two-out double in the eighth scored Irving Falu and Ed Lucas to snap an 8-8 tie. “We’ve got a lot of young guys, and some guys are inexperienced, but they come with a lot of confidence. In baseball, that’s one of the biggest things you can have, confidence.”
Naturals starter Blake Johnson got into trouble early, giving up a leadoff single to Eric Young followed by a pair of walks. Johnson gave up three runs on 34 first-inning pitches.
His 35 th of the night was drilled by Tulsa catcher Neil Wilson for a towering home run to left, giving Tulsa a 4-0 lead in the second. First baseman Jeff Kindel made it a seven-run game later in the inning when he hit a three-run, opposite-field home run, Kindel’s ninth of the season.
But Northwest Arkansas wasted little time in wiping out that seven-run hole. Lucas got the Naturals on the board in the bottom of the second when he scored on a single by Aldridge. Brian McFall followed with a bloop single, and Tulsa right fielder Justin Nelson committed a throwing error, allowing the runners to move to second and third.
Both Aldridge and McFall came home on a single by Suero, making it 7-3, and Adam Donachie and Jose Duarte followed with back-to-back home runs to cap a six-run inning.
By the time the Naturals made an out in the third inning, they had already pulled even. A triple by Lucas scored Kaaihue and tied the game at 7. Suero’s sacrifice fly later in the third scored Lucas and gave the Naturals the lead.
“They did a good job of battling back and swinging the bats,” Tulsa Manager Stu Cole said. “We’ve just got to keep going; you can’t rely on a lead early in a ballgame. When you’ve got them on the ropes, you’ve got to put them away.”
Naturals second baseman Marc Maddox made a diving stop and threw out Kindel while seated to end the fourth, keeping the Naturals up a run. The score stayed 8-7 until the eighth, when Miller hit a twoout home run against reliever Jarod Plummer, the only run Plummer (3-1 ) gave up in three innings of work.
The three-run bottom of the eighth made a winner of Plummer (3-1 ), though, and Tim Hamulack pitched a perfect ninth for his third save. Johnson settled down after his rough beginning, ultimately allowing 7 runs, 6 earned, on 7 hits and 3 walks over 5 innings. “We didn’t have much pitching after the (13-inning victory Monday ). Our bullpen was low, so we had to get a minimum of four (innings ) out of Blake,” Naturals Manager Brian Poldberg said. “For him to give us five was good.” Tulsa starter Chaz Roe
last-2 ed 4 / 3 innings, giving up 8 runs on 9 hits and 5 walks. Adam Bright (3-6 ) gave up a run in two-thirds of an inning, and Casey Weathers was tagged for the other two runs in the eighth.