SPRINGDALE -- Jack Lopez enjoyed his return to Arvest Ballpark on Monday.
Lopez hit two home runs and had three RBI to lead the Northwest Arkansas Naturals to a 6-5 victory over the Arkansas Travelers before a crowd of 2,847.
Lopez took over at shortstop for Northwest Arkansas after Raul Mondesi was suspended 50 games last Tuesday for use of a banned substance
The Naturals went ahead 6-5 in the eighth inning on a bases-loaded walk to Logan Moon, the third walk of the inning.
Reliever Kevin McCarthy got the final two outs for Northwest Arkansas, which began an eight-game homestand after losing three of four on the road at Springfield. Left-hander Eric Skoglund provided a quality start by pitching 6 2/3 innings for the Naturals, allowing 5 runs, 4 earned, and 9 hits on 100 pitches.
"For the most part, I was very proud of the guys battling back," Northwest Arkansas Manager Vance Wilson said. "Skog struggled early with his pitches, but he did a nice job getting us to the seventh inning."
Arkansas grabbed a 4-0 lead in the second inning with the help of five singles and two Naturals errors on one play. Frank Schwindel homered to left field before Lopez cut the Arkansas lead to 5-4 with a two-run home run in the fifth.
Lopez then tied the game 5-5 in the seventh with his second consecutive home run and third of the season. Schwindel had a single and hit a two-run home run after Arkansas had taken a 4-0 lead.
"He's got some power," Wilson said of Lopez, who took over at shortstop after Raul Mondesi was suspended 50 games for use of a banned substance. "We changed his stance a little bit, which has really helped."
Catcher Anthony Bemboom had a double and single to lead Arkansas, which outhit the Naturals 11-7.
Northwest Arkansas committed two errors on the same play in the second inning, when Arkansas scored four runs. Eric Aguilera hit an RBI single to center field, where Bubba Starling made a fielding error to allow a second runner to score. The relay throw by shortstop Jack Lopez to the plate was high and allowed Aguilera to move to second base.
Sports on 05/17/2016