Soddies by Morning: Ray Shines, but Drake Dominates as the Sod Poodles Can't Fend Off Frisco.
Series: 4/15: FRI - 4 AMA - 3 / 4/16 FRI - 9 AMA - 4 Today: 6:35 PM / 4/18: 7:05 / 4/19: 7:05 / 4/20: 4:05
Dylan Ray turned in his best performance of the season and delivered the second straight Amarillo outing allowing a single run, after Cabrera's outing on Tuesday, unfortunately it didn't end in a victory. Ray spun together an improved outing, only allowing a single earned run, an Abimelec Ortiz solo shot leading off the 4th inning after the Amarillo right hander fell behind 2-0. The Roughriders worked Amarillo's starter to the tune of 86 pitches in his 4 innings and throwing 53 strikes (61%). Ray walked 3 Roughriders including Sebastian Walcott who was held to 0/3 including an error (one that probably should have just been ruled a hit), until he ripped a 2-Run single in the 8th to give the Roughriders a 5-2 Lead and taking the wind out of Amarillo. The Sod Poodles struggled to crack the run collumn early for a very particular reason.
Like Dylan Ray, Kohl Drake needed to bounce back from a bad outing the week before. Against Northwest Arkansas, the 6'5" left hander gave up 4 earned runs, including a 3-Run blast to Jac Cagialone. Kohl Drake dominated on Wednesday night. Drake went 5 innings, giving up only a single, while striking out 6 and only walking 1. Gray set the tone early after striking out Kristian Robinson, Drake overwhelmed the Texas League Player of the Week Tommy Troy for the first of two times that Drake would punch out Troy. The Frisco left hander eventually set down the first seven Sod Poodles that he faced before Jack Hurley smacked a double to show Drake was human. Up until that hit the Wylie High School graduate had thrown 17 of his 21 pitches for strikes (80%). Drake would only allow baserunner the rest of the start when in the 4th inning Gavin Conticello walked. The Sod Poodles were not upset to see the Roughriders pull him relativley early, after firing 47 strikes in only 63 pitches (74.6%) in 5 scoreless innings.
After robbing Sebastian Walcott of extra bases earlier Kristian Robinson smoked a triple giving Amarillo their first hit since Hurley's double. Conticello drove in Robinson with a single off of reliever Daniel Missaki, giving Conticello his first two hit game on the season and back-to-back nights with an RBI. Andy Weber would bring in Conticello with a single of his own to tie the game before Missaki finally escaped.
The biggest thorn in the side of Sod Poodle pitching this year has been the walks. With 6.82 walks per 9 innings, Amarillo leads the Texas League in that catagory by over a walk (Arkansas - 5.68). The Soddies added another 9 walks to their total, including 6 after tying the game in the 6th inning, and 4 (3 straight) in the 7th alone handing Frisco back the lead. After that Frisco put an exclamation point on the night putting the two first batters on and following that up with 3 straight singles, a sac fly, and one more single by Ortiz to stretch the lead to 9-2. Frisco would touch up Landon Sims and Logan Clayton for 6 runs and they walked 6 batters in their combined 2 innings of work. Amarillo would tack on two more off of Skylar Hales, when Hurley and Conticello picked up their second hits and Tommy Troy extended his hitting streak to 7 in his final at-bat. The Sod Poodles dropped to 2-9 on the season while Frisco still reigns supreme in the Texas League South sitting at 8-3 so far. Don't forget to tune in today at 6:35 for game three of the six game series.
Probable Pitchers
Right Handed Pitcher Josh Stephan
Like the two starters from last night, Josh Stephan is hoping have a rebound of his own against a Sod Poodles team that has struggled against starting pitching this season. The Ranger's #22 Prospect and Grand Prairie High School Graduate got rocked in his last outing against Northwest Arkansas, giving up 8 earned runs on 10 hits, while only walking one batter in a 4 innings. Stephan brings a fastball that 4-seam, 2 seam, a cutter, a great slider, and a changeup to the table that struggled last year with a 4.94 ERA, and allowed right handed hitters to hit .305 for the season, after a great 2023.
Left Handed Pitcher Avery Short
Short will hit the mound for Amarillo after his last start was a big improvement from the first. The left hander gave up 3 homers on the road in San Antonio in just .2 of an inning to open the season but bounced back at Hodgetown, giving up only one earned run through 4 innings against a Springfield lineup that had given Amarillo pitching series issues over the series. Not only that but after a first inning that saw Springfield strike first, Short tossed a hitless 3 innings, and 11/17 first pitch strikes, before being relieved in the 5th. Short like the rest of the Amarillo staff has struggled with walks giving up 4 in that Springfield start. The left hander will throw a low-90's fastball, with a good slider, curveball and a change-up. If Short can in his words "limit the walks" he is bound to have a solid outing.
