TEXAS LEAGUE

Travs unload with 6-run second

Chuck Taylor hoped his ninth-inning triple Wednesday night would snap the Arkansas Travelers out of their five-game hitting slump.

It did.

Four Travs had two or more hits Thursday night, and Taylor and center fielder Ian Miller each hit home runs in a 6-1 victory over the Tulsa Drillers at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock.

Miller was playing in the field for the first time since he pulled a hamstring chasing a fly ball May 24, and his two-run, 348-foot home run to right field was part of a second inning in which the Travs scored all their runs.

There were eight hits in the second and the Travs scored five runs while there were two outs. The first of those five was an RBI double by first baseman Justin Seager.

"I fed off that," said Miller, who hit his fourth home run of the season following Seager's double. "Just seeing him pick us up -- put us on the board -- it was hard not to follow that up with a big hit."

Two batters later, Taylor hit a two-run, 394-foot home run to right field. Taylor (.362) and Miller (.344) are currently the top two hitters in the Texas League.

The Travs had lost four of their last five games, a span in which the team scored 7 runs and were 27 for 145 (.186), including 4 for 31 (.129) with runners in scoring position.

"We were ready to hit tonight," said shortstop Joey Wong, who went 3 for 4 with three singles in front of an announced crowd of 8,566. "We've been struggling lately... but we're staying with our approach, and it came out tonight."

Wong said the team had struggled against high-caliber pitchers during their slump with those five opposing starters combining for a 3.45 ERA. Three of them are are in their organization's top 30 prospects list, according to MLB.com.

The Travs knocked Tulsa right-hander Josh Sborz (1-4, 5.80 ERA), the Los Angeles Dodgers' No. 15 prospect, out of the game after 1 2/3 innings and 6 earned runs.

"He didn't have his best stuff," Wong said. "He's got good stuff, but he was missing out of the zone pretty wide, and when he came in the zone, it was pretty in the middle of the plate. So that gives you a good chance to get some knocks, and I think we took advantage of that tonight."

Travs right-hander Dylan Unsworth (4-5, 4.42 ERA) had a season-high 9 strikeouts in 6 innings, allowing 1 hit and a walk.

It was Unsworth's third victory in four starts and his first appearance of the season in which he didn't allow a run.

"I thought Unsworth threw the ball well," Travs Manager Daren Brown said. "He gave us six innings, and the bullpen did a nice job finishing it up."

Left-hander Zac Curtis closed the game in 1 1/3 innings, and the Drillers scored their only run off him on a Jacob Scavuzzo sacrifice fly in the ninth.

Curtis (0-1, 2.49 ERA), who is on the Seattle Mariners' 40-man roster, had last pitched in a one-inning save against the Frisco RoughRiders on June 4.

A victory against Tulsa tonight would prevent the Travs from losing their second consecutive series.

Today’s game

TRAVELERS VS. DRILLERS

WHEN 7:10 p.m. WHERE Dickey-Stephens Park RADIO KARN-AM, 920, in central Arkansas WEBSITE travs.com PITCHERS Travelers: RHP Brett Ash (3-4, 6.69 ERA); Drillers: RHP Isaac Anderson (0-6, 8.35 ERA) TICKETS $13 box, $9 reserved ($6 kids), $7 general admission ($5 kids). Gates open one hour before start of game. PROMOTIONS Otey Bobble Head giveaway to first 1,000; Girl Scout Night, $13: ticket, hot dog, drink, special edition patch, camping in the outfield, meet Travs players, popcorn and movie, breakfast in the morning.

THE WEEK AHEAD

TODAY vs. Tulsa, 7:10 p.m. SATURDAY at NW Arkansas, 6:35 p.m. SUNDAY at NW Arkansas, 2:05 p.m. MONDAY at NW Arkansas, 7:05 p.m. TUESDAY at NW Arkansas, 12:05 p.m. WEDNESDAY at Springfield, 5:10 p.m. (DH) THURSDAY at Springfield, 7:10 p.m.

Texas League standings

North Division

W L Pct. GB

Springfield (STL) 31 25 .554 --

NW Arkansas (KC) 28 28 .500 3

Tulsa (LAD) 28 29 .491 3½

Arkansas (SEA) 25 32 .439 6½

South Division

W L Pct. GB

San Antonio (SDG) 33 25 .569 --

Midland (OAK) 29 29 .500 4

Cor. Christi (HOU) 29 29 .500 4

Frisco (TEX) 26 32 .448 7

WEDNESDAY'S GAMES

Springfield 5, NW Arkansas 2

Frisco 4, Corpus Christi 3

San Antonio 8, Midland 6

Tulsa 7, Arkansas 4

TODAY'S GAMES

All times Central

Frisco at Corpus Christi, 7:05 p.m.

Midland at San Antonio, 7:05 p.m.

Springfield at NW Arkansas, 7:05 p.m.

Tulsa at Arkansas, 7:10 p.m.

Sports on 06/09/2017

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