SPRINGDALE -- Miguel Almonte put up another string of zeroes and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals battered Springfield pitching for 12 hits in a 10-2 win Saturday night in Arvest Ballpark in front of 7,019 fans.
Almonte extended his scoreless inning streak to 16 consecutive innings. The right-hander has not allowed an earned run since May 1. He allowed just two hits and struck out two to raise his record to 4-1.
Springfield^000^001^100^—^2^6^2
Northwest Arkansas^111^100^06x^—^10^12^0
Springfield^AB^R^H^RBI^BB^SO^LOB^AVG
Tilson, CF^5^0^1^0^0^1^3^.287
Martini, LF^5^1^1^0^0^2^3^.298
Wilson, J, 2B^2^0^0^0^2^0^1^.225
Garcia, A, DH^3^0^0^0^1^0^3^.198
Hazelbaker, RF^4^0^1^0^0^2^3^.266
Diaz, A, SS^4^0^1^1^0^1^2^.243
Washington, 1B^4^0^1^0^0^1^3^.226
Mejia, A, 3B^2^1^1^0^1^0^1^.259
Rosario, A, C^3^0^0^0^0^1^2^.205
Totals^32^2^6^1^4^8^21^
TB: Hazelbaker; Mejia, A; Diaz, A; Martini; Tilson; Washington. RBI: Diaz, A (8). 2-out RBI: Diaz, A. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Martini 2; Washington; Garcia, A; Mejia, A. SAC: Rosario, A. Team RISP: 1-for-8. Team LOB: 9. SB: Hazelbaker (7). FIELDING E: Washington (2), Wilson, J (5). Outfield assists: Martini (Mondesi at 3rd base).
NW Arkansas^AB^R^H^RBI^BB^SO^LOB^AVG
Franco, 2B^4^1^2^2^0^0^2^.342
Mondesi, SS^5^1^0^0^0^1^4^.154
Bonifacio, J, LF^4^0^2^2^1^1^0^.239
Fuenmayor, 1B^5^1^2^1^0^0^2^.366
Dozier, 3B^4^1^1^1^0^2^3^.231
Bianucci, DH^4^0^1^0^0^0^3^.328
1-Chapman, PR-DH^0^1^0^0^0^0^0^.205
Liddi, RF^3^3^2^1^1^1^0^.259
Gibbs, C^4^1^2^1^0^2^1^.355
Gore, CF^2^1^0^0^1^2^1^.288
Totals^35^10^12^8^3^9^16^
2B: Franco (10), Bianucci (9). 3B: Liddi (4). HR: Fuenmayor (9), Dozier (2). TB: Dozier 4; Fuenmayor 5; Bianucci 2; Bonifacio, J 2; Gibbs 2; Liddi 4; Franco 3. RBI: Bonifacio, J 2 (22), Franco 2 (16), Fuenmayor (28), Dozier (13), Liddi (17), Gibbs (7). 2-out RBI: Franco. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Bianucci 2; Mondesi. SAC: Gore. SF: Franco. Team RISP: 5-for-16. Team LOB: 6. SB: Mondesi (2), Liddi (4), Bonifacio, J (2). FIELDING E: Mondesi.
PITCHING
Springfield^IP^H^R^ER^BB^SO^HR^ERA
Lee, T (L, 2-3)^4.0^7^4^4^1^4^1^6.93
Thomas^3.0^0^0^0^1^5^0^2.45
Swagerty^0.1^4^5^3^1^0^1^11.25
Baker, C^0.2^1^1^0^0^0^0^4.82
NW Arkansas^IP^H^R^ER^BB^SO^HR^ERA
Almonte (W, 4-1)^5.0^2^0^0^1^2^0^2.73
Finnegan^1.2^3^2^1^3^1^0^3.27
Selman (S, 1)^2.1^1^0^0^0^5^0^3.52
Umpires: HP: Clay Park. 1B: Clayton Hamm. 3B: Ron Teague.
T: 2:58. Att: 7,019.
"He had all his pitches working," Naturals manager Vance Wilson said. "It's funny when you're trying to develop a kid and there are certain pitch sequences you want. But he really is good. His fastball is electric. The kid has really come a long way."
Almonte was dominant on the mound, but also had plenty of support as red-hot Balbino Fuenmayor continued to swing the hottest bat in the Texas League. Fuenmayor hit his league-leading ninth home run of the season in the third inning, a blast that cleared the party pavilion in left field.
The Naturals (23-12) scored single runs in each of the first four innings. Raul Mondesi, who was playing his third game since coming off the disabled list on Friday, showed off his dazzling speed in the first inning after he reached on a fielder's choice. The 19-year-old shortstop stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch before scoring on Jorge Bonifacio's RBI single.
"He's a game-changer," Wilson said of Mondesi. "There's a lot of things we can teach, but you can't teach speed. It puts pressure on the defense and typically defenses make mistakes when they try to rush. So to have that up there following Angel Franco, and you have (Terrance) Gore at the bottom of the order, there are times we have 9, 1, 2 with incredible speed."
While Almonte was lights-out, Naturals' left-handed reliever Sam Selman was also impressive over the final 2 1/3 innings, now allowing a hit with five strikeouts on 34 pitches. Selman struck out all three Cardinals in the ninth inning to end the game.
Short Hops
w Hunter Dozier also homered for the Naturals, a solo blast to highlight the six-run eighth inning that blew the game open after Springfield had closed to within 4-2.
w Cardinals relief pitcher Chris Thomas was solid after replacing starter Thomas Lee, throwing three no-hit innings with five strikeouts for Springfield (11-24).
w Naturals reliever Brandon Finnegan struggled in 1 2/3 innings with three walks. The former TCU star had a 4-0 lead when he entered in the sixth and left with the score 4-2 and runners on first and second. Sam Selman came on and needed just two pitches to get out of the jam with the lead intact.
Extra Bases: The Naturals bashed five extra base hits, including an RBI triple into the right field corner by Alex Liddi in the eighth inning. It was Liddi's fourth triple of the season. ... Naturals first baseman Balbino Fuenmayor singled in the first to extend his hitting streak to 13 games.
On Deck: The two teams will square off at 2:05 p.m. today in the finale of the four-game series. This is the fourth game of a lengthy homestand that will see the Naturals play 14 of their next 15 games in Arvest Ballpark. RHP Arturo Reyes (0-1) will take the mound for the Cardinals. No starter has been announced for the Naturals.
Today's Promotion: Kids Eat Free Family Sunday. Kids age 12 and under eat free at all Sunday home games. They will receive a food voucher as they enter the ballpark, and following the game, kids can go down on the field and run the bases.
On The Air: 1030-AM KFAY
On The Web: www.naturals.com
Sports on 05/17/2015