San Antonio, TX — It took the San Antonio Missions until the seventh inning to record their first hit of the afternoon, but patience proved to be a virtue. After trailing 4-1, the Missions came all the way back to upend the Tulsa Drillers by a score of 8-6, evening up this six-game series.
The Drillers took an early lead off Missions starter Sam Whiting on a run-scoring double play in the second inning. However, the Missions tied the game right away in the third without a hit. An error, hit-by-pitch and walk loaded the bases for Anthony Vilar, who then drove in a run when he was hit by a pitch.
Drillers starter Orlando Ortiz-Myer went on to mostly dominate on the mound. At one point, Ortiz-Myer set down 12 straight Missions, and he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning.
As Ortiz-Myer did his job on the mound, Tulsa’s offense gave him a lead to work with. Taylor Young singled in a run in the third inning, and consecutive doubles in the sixth inning by Yeiner Fernandez and Noah Miller extended Tulsa’s advantage to 4-1.
The Drillers still had the bases loaded with no one out, and the game looked to be on the verge of a blowout in the sixth. That’s when Jose Geraldo, after already allowing two runs out of the bullpen, racked up three consecutive strikeouts to escape the jam.
In the next inning, after a Cole Cummings walk with one out, Robert Perez Jr. finally gave the Missions their first hit of the game. His double placed two runners in scoring position and knocked Ortiz-Myer out of the game. Ronan Kopp entered, but he couldn’t prevent those runs from coming home. Joshua Mears grounded out but drove in one, and Connor Hollis’s single made it 4-3 Tulsa in the seventh.
Another rally began in the eighth when Vilar doubled ahead of Robbie Tenerowicz getting plunked by a pitch. Marcos Castañon then unloaded a three-run homer to left, suddenly catapulting the Missions ahead 6-4.
The lead didn’t last long. Carter Loewen, in for his second inning of work, struggled when the Drillers started playing small ball. A Bubba Alleyne single and Chris Newell sacrifice fly tied it up almost instantly, but Ryan Och then ensured it was a tie headed to the ninth rather than a deficit.
Juan Morillo took the bump in the ninth for Tulsa, and the Missions mounted one last scoring effort. Ray-Patrick Didder earned a crucial walk before Vilar smacked a double to the wall, putting two in scoring position. Romeo Sanabria grounded a ball to the drawn-in Noah Miller at shortstop, and the normally sure-handed fielder uncorked an errant throw that allowed two runs to cross the plate and landed the Missions ahead 8-6.
Och remained on the mound, where he shut the door on the Drillers in the ninth. He gave up a walk that was quickly erased by a game-ending double play, ultimately snapping the Missions five-game losing streak.
Post-Game Notes
- Final Score: 8-6
- With the win, San Antonio improves to 25-33, 56-70 on the season
- Sam Whiting (Missions starter): 3 IP, 4 H, 2 R (1 ER), BB, 4 K
- Orlando Ortiz-Mayr (Drillers starter): 6.1 IP, H, 3 R (2 ER), 3 BB, 5 K
Prospect Recap
- Henry Baez (#7 Padres prospect): Scheduled to pitch Friday, September 6th
- Bradgley Rodriguez (#11 Padres prospect): DNP
- Romeo Sanabria (#24 Padres prospect): 0-4, RBI, BB, K
- Ryan Bergert (#26 Padres prospect): Scheduled to pitch Saturday, September 7th
- Austin Krob (#28 Padres prospect): Scheduled to pitch Thursday, September 5th
- David Morgan (#30 Padres prospect): DNP
- Jackson Ferris (#5 Dodgers prospect): Scheduled to pitch Friday, September 6th
- Jared Karros (#22 Dodgers prospect): DNP
- Noah Miller (#25 Dodgers prospect): 3-4, RBI, R
The San Antonio Missions will continue their six-game series with the Tulsa Drillers on Thursday, September 5th. Left-hander Austin Krob (4-10, 4.46) is scheduled to pitch for the Missions. Right-hander Chris Campos (1-3, 3.59) is scheduled to pitch for the Drillers. Thursday’s first pitch is slated for 7:00 p.m. from ONEOK Field.