Drillers' Offense Disappears In Loss To Naturals

Newson6.com

TULSA, Oklahoma – The Tulsa Drillers could not muster any offense in a 3-1 loss to the Northwest Arkansas Naturals Thursday.

All of NW Arkansas' runs came thanks to one swing, a three-run home run by Paulo Orlando in just the fifth at-bat of the game. The Naturals (56-51) only recorded five more hits for the rest of the night, but it didn't matter.

The Drillers did not get on the board until the seventh inning, when Brian Rike launched a solo homer of his own. That score kept Tulsa in striking distance, but it could not put together consecutive hits in either of the final two innings.

The Naturals' pitching dominated the night, led by starter Jeremy Jeffress (1-1), who held Tulsa to four hits in five innings. Willy Lebron earned a three-inning save and only gave up two hits, one of which was Rike's home run.

Tulsa starter Alex White (0-1) was pulled after pitching only one rough inning in his first outing with the team, resulting in an inflated 27.00 ERA. His three relievers combined to allow five hits in eight innings, but received no run support.

Thursday's game marked the end of a three-game series between the two teams, with the Drillers losing the last two by a total score of 8-5. The Drillers will remain at home for a four-game series against the Springfield Cardinals starting at 7:05 p.m. Friday.