SPRINGDALE — Northwest Arkansas could not figure out Midland starter Drew Granier in Game 1 of a seven-inning doubleheader Tuesday night at Arvest Ballpark.
The right-hander tossed six shutout innings while giving up only one hit and striking out four batters, as the RockHounds beat the Naturals 1-0.
Midland 1, Northwest Arkansas 0
Midland^010^000^0^—^1^3^1
Northwest Arkansas^000^000^0^—^0^1^0
Granier, Frankoff (7) and Taylor; Adam, Triggs (5), Alexander (7) and Morin. W – Granier, 1-1. L – Adam, 0-2. Sv – Frankoff (3). HRs - none.
At A Glance
Texas League Standings
North Division
Team^W-L^GB
Arkansas^6-6^—
Tulsa^5-7^1
Springfield^5-7^1
Northwest Arkansas^2-9^4.5
Tuesday’s Scores
Midland 1, Northwest Arkansas 0
Midland at Northwest Arkansas (n)
Tulsa 2, San Antonio 0
Frisco 3, Arkansas 0
Springfield 2, Corpus Christi 1
Today’s Games
Northwest Arkansas at Tulsa
It was the Naturals' eighth consecutive loss, matching their longest streak since the franchise moved to Northwest Arkansas in 2008. They previously lost eight straight games in July of 2012.
Northwest Arkansas' best chance to score came in the fifth inning. Angel Franco reached on an error to lead off the inning. Two batters later, Justin Trapp singled and advanced on a throw to give the Naturals runners on second and third with one out.
They didn't do anything with it, however, as Lane Adams and Whit Merrifield struck out to end the inning.
"The biggest thing was our situational hitting," Naturals manager Vance Wilson said. "We had a chance to tie that game. Offensively, you have to pick each other up."
Midland scored its only run of the game in the second inning on a sacrifice fly by Billy Burns.
While the RockHounds collected only three hits during the game, Northwest Arkansas pitchers walked five batters and hit another with a pitch.
The final score of Tuesday's late game was unavailable at press time. The teams were scoreless heading into extra innings.
Short Hops:
• Chelsor Cuthbert's six-game hitting streak was snapped in game one of the doubleheader. He was 0-for-2 with a strikeout and a walk.
• Jason Adam, Northwest Arkansas' starting pitcher, needed 34 pitches to get out of the first inning, but the RockHounds left the bases loaded without scoring a run.
• Justin Trapp's bloop-single in the fifth inning was the Naturals' only hit of the game.
Extra Bases: Despite giving up one earned run in four innings, Adam's ERA dropped from 18.00 to 9.00. ... For the first time this season, the Naturals did not commit an error. ... The Naturals left five runners on base, including three in scoring position.
Royals Pipeline: CF Brett Eibner went 1-for-4 with a run scored in Triple-A Omaha's 6-0 win over Round Rock on Tuesday. He is now batting .349 in 11 games with the Storm Chasers this season. His nine runs scored are second on the team.
On Deck: The Naturals travel to Tulsa for a four-game series against the Drillers today. First pitch of today's game is set for 7:05 p.m.
On The Air: KQSM-FM 92.1
On The Web: www.nwanaturals.com
Sports on 04/16/2014