SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Travis Jones hit a two-run homer in the second inning, and Arnaldo Hernandez pitched seven scoreless innings as the Northwest Arkansas Naturals beat the Springfield Cardinals 4-1 on Friday.
The home run by Jones scored Emmanuel Rivera to give the Naturals a 2-0 lead.
After NW Arkansas added two runs in the fifth, the Cardinals cut into the deficit in the ninth inning when Brian O’Keefe hit an RBI single, bringing home Justin Williams.
Hernandez (1-0) picked up the win after he struck out six and walked four while allowing three hits.
Harold Arauz (0-3) went four innings, allowing two runs and six hits in the Texas League game. He also struck out three and walked three.
TULSA 7, ARKANSAS 4
NORTH LITTLE ROCK — Zach Reks homered and tripled, driving home four runs and scoring a couple as the Tulsa Drillers beat the Arkansas Travelers in the first game of a doubleheader.
Cody Thomas homered and singled with two runs for Tulsa.
Tulsa went up 6-0 in the second after Jared Walker scored on a wild pitch and Reks hit a three-run home run.
The Drillers tacked on another run in the sixth when Thomas hit a solo home run.
Shea Spitzbarth (2-0) got the win with two innings of scoreless, two-hit relief while Arkansas starter Justin Dunn (2-2) took the loss in the Texas League game. Despite the loss, Arkansas is 8-4 against Tulsa this season.
CORPUS CHRISTI 9,
AMARILLO 2
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Ronnie Dawson, Abraham Toro and Lorenzo Quintana each had three hits, as the Corpus Christi Hooks beat the Amarillo Sod Poodles.
Dawson singled three times, scoring a couple of runs while also driving home two. Toro homered, doubled and singled, driving in four runs.
Down 1-0, the Hooks took the lead for good in the first inning when Toro doubled to bring home Dawson and Chas McCormick.
The Hooks punctuated the blowout with four runs in the fourth and three in the fifth. In the fourth, Toro hit a two-run home run, while Osvaldo Duarte hit a solo home run in the fifth.
Corpus Christi right-hander Jose Hernandez-Urquidy (2-2) picked up the win after allowing one run on just two hits over five innings. Opposing starter T.J. Weir (2-2) took the loss in the Texas League game after a rough outing in which he allowed six runs and eight hits over four innings.
FRISCO 8, MIDLAND 5
MIDLAND, Texas — Alex Kowalczyk hit a two-run single in the eighth inning, leading the Frisco RoughRiders to a win over the Midland RockHounds.
The single by Kowalczyk came in the midst of a five-run inning and gave the RoughRiders a 6-5 lead. Later in the inning, Michael De Leon hit a two-run double.
Walker Weickel (3-0) got the win in relief while Trey McNutt (2-2) took the loss in the Texas League game.
For the RockHounds, Mikey White doubled and singled twice, driving home two runs.
Frisco improved to 9-4 against Midland this season.