Naturals’ 4-3 victory over the Arkansas Travelers
Last updated Tuesday, August 26, 2008 11:09 PM CDT in Sports
By Jeff Reed North Little Rock Times
NORTH LITTLE ROCK — Northwest Arkansas Naturals manager Brian Poldberg didn’t expect an easy trip to Dickey-Stephens Park.
And that is what he got Tuesday night in the Naturals’ 4-3 victory over the Arkansas Travelers, which gave them a one-game lead in the Texas League North Division’s second-half standings after Tulsa defeated Springfield 4-2.
“I think I aged another 10 years,” Poldberg said.
Juan Richardson’s two-run home run in the 10th was the difference. The high fly ball landed just inside the right-field foul pole.
“I thought it had a chance,” said Poldberg. “But the balls down the line here seem to tail.”
It did tail, but it stayed fair and the Naturals had their lead.
But it got exciting in the bottom half of the inning.
Ryan Leahy had a single of Irving Falu’s glove that promoted Poldberg to bring in Tim Hamulack to relieve Chris Hayes. Brian Stavisky followed with a single to left.
Slugger Corey Smith grounded back to Hamulack, who looked to third, then fired to second for a force out, but the relay to first was too late for a double play. After Mark Trumbo struck out, Ben Johnson singled to right to score Leahy and send the tying run to third. Adam Morrissey, however, popped out to Richardson to end the game.
“Both teams really match up well,” Poldberg said. “And they have gotten better since they have had some guys sent up come back down.”
It was an unexpected pitchers’ duel. Northwest Arkansas’ Rowdy Hardy and Arkansas’ David Austen were a combined 7-13 and ERAs around 5.00.
But it was scoreless through four innings and was a 2-2 game after six.
The Travelers took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fifth when Jordan Czarniecki’s one-out bloop single to right field scored Adam Morrissey, who started the inning with a double off the center-field wall.
In the sixth, the Naturals took the lead on Cory Aldridge’s two-run first-pitch home run to right after Juan Richardson had reached on a four-pitch walk. Aldridge had ripped a pair of home runs on Monday in the 14-1 thumping of Tulsa.
In the bottom of the sixth, Corey Smith — now one home run behind ex-Natural Kila Ka’aihue for the Texas League homer lead — crushed his 25th of the season to the deepest part of the park in left-center.
Hardy has not had much luck against the Travelers, winning just once in seven starts. His luck was not good in that the sixth-inning home run cost him a victory, but he did turn in five solid innings.
Austen left with two out in the eighth and a runner on first.
In the ninth, Mario Lisson led off with a double, was sacrificed to third by Brian McFall. But he was nailed at the plate on Ovandy Suero’s grounder to second. The inning ended on Jose Duarte’s check-swing strike out.
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