SPACE COWBOYS WALK IT OFF ON A BASES-LOADED HIT-BY-PITCH

 

SUGAR LAND, TX – With a tie game headed into the ninth, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (90-53, 41-27) won Sunday afternoon’s contest in walk-off fashion against the Reno Aces (74-69, 39-29), taking it 5-4 at Constellation Field in the last home game of the regular season. Sugar Land becomes the first team in Minor League Baseball to 90 wins this season and just the fifth team in the Pacific Coast League since 2001 to reach at least 90 wins. 

 

RHP Wander Suero (W, 7-1) pitched a scoreless top of the ninth to send the game to the bottom half of the frame. On the brink of extra innings, LHP Kyle Backhus (L, 2-3) entered the game for Reno and issued back-to-back walks to Hamilton and Tommy Sacco Jr. César Salazar bunted sinker right in front of him, forcing Backhus to make an offline throw to reach safely. With the bases juiced and Brice Matthews at the plate, Backhus hit Matthews with the first pitch of the at-bat to send the Space Cowboys to a walk-off win, their tenth of the season.

 

The Space Cowboys got on the board early in the first inning when Cooper Hummel knocked a base hit to centerfield and Zach Dezenzo reached on a walk to put two on with one out. On the seventh pitch of the at-bat against opener RHP Erich Uelmen, Trey Cabbage grounded a single through the right side to score Hummel. One pitch later, Jesús Bastidas lined another base hit to center, driving Dezenzo in for a two-run lead over the Aces. With runners on the corners, Jacob Melton grounded out, allowing Cabbage to race home for another run. Quincy Hamilton capped off the inning with an RBI double, sending Bastidas to score from second and giving the Space Cowboys a 4-0 lead over Reno.

 

After three scoreless innings from LHP Colton Gordon, the lefty gave up the first Reno hit and run of the day on a solo home run from Jordan Lawlar. Gordon finished his day after 74 pitches in 5.0 innings while giving up one run on three hits, walking a batter and striking out two.

 

In the top of the sixth, RHP Ray Gaither relieved Gordon and got the first two outs with ease before issuing a walk to Kyle Garlick. The next pitch, Ronaldo Hernández mashed a two-run home run to left-center, brining Reno within one of the Space Cowboys.

 

On the first pitch RHP Rafael Montero (BS, 1) threw in the seventh, Andy Weber smacked a solo bomb to right field, tying the game up at four. Montero got the next two outs before walking the next three batters to load the bases. The reliever was in a tight battle with Garlick, but eventually got the slugger swinging on the eighth pitch of the at-bat to end the frame.

 

Blaze Alexander worked a one-out walk against RHP Luis Contreras in the top of the eighth and the Aces shortstop made his way to third on a stolen base and a deep flyout, but Contreras was able to strikeout A.J. Vukovich to end the inning.