Naturals want to continue home success

Home has been very good to the Northwest Arkansas Naturals lately.

The Naturals have an 8-4 record at Arvest Ballpark since the second half of Texas League play started, and they hope to continue that success when they begin a four-game home series today against Springfield.

At A Glance

Northwest Arkansas Naturals Homestand

At Arvest Ballpark, Springdale

On The Air: KQSM-FM 92.1

Series Schedule

Today: vs. Springfield, 7:05 p.m.

Friday: vs. Springfield, 7:05 p.m.

Saturday: vs. Springfield, 6:05 p.m.

Sunday: vs. Springfield, 6:05 p.m.

This Week’s Promotions

Today: The first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive a baseball courtesy of Foghorn’s. It’s also Buck Night on Thirsty Thursday, which provides fans with select items for $1 at the concession stands and 16-ounce drafts for $2 at specific locations.

Friday: It’s Pink in the Park, and the Naturals will wear special pink uniforms that will be auctioned off during the game, with proceeds going to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. There is also the postgame fireworks display, featuring a country music theme.

Saturday: It’s Big Country Bash, with a postgame concert featuring singer David Nail. There will also be a happy hour held from 4:35-5:35 p.m. in the bullpen concession stand located down the right-field line.

Sunday: The first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive a special Naturals cap as they enter Arvest Ballpark. All kids 12 and under eat free and will receive a voucher as they enter the gates, and they will have the opportunity to run the bases after the game.

Ticket Packages

• Super Premium A: $12

• Premium: $10

• Reserved: $8

• Grass Berm: $7

• Super Premium Family: $12

• Premium Family: $10

Online

www.nwanaturals.com

"What we have done well this season is we had good pitching and played good defense," Naturals manager Vance Wilson said before Wednesday's game at Tulsa. "Where we struggled was on offense because we had some guys go up to Triple-A and the younger players struggled. Now they are starting to come through for us, and we're much improved.

"In our division, everybody beats up on each other so much. If we can continue that trend at home, we could play well enough to get into the playoffs. Right now, it's a matter of just winning each series."

Springfield was also the opponent the last time Northwest Arkansas (43-52 overall, 14-11 second half) played at home, and the Naturals won three out of four games during that series. Pitchers Eric Skoglund and Jake Junis each threw strong seven-inning performances in their starts, then Northwest Arkansas battled back from a three-run deficit to claim the series with a 10-4 victory.

It actually took a former Naturals pitcher to keep Springfield from being swept. J.C. Sulbaran, who pitched for Northwest Arkansas at times from 2012-15 and will be the Cardinals' starter tonight, blanked the Naturals over 6 2/3 innings and teamed with two relievers for a two-hit shutout Saturday.

"J.C. is the competitor," Wilson said. "I thought we were a little complacent at the plate and missed some pitches, and that's not taking anything from his performance. He throws so many pitches and mixes his pitches so well that you have to find your pitch to hit. We had some, but we missed some for sure."

Ashton Goudeau (2-9, 5.43) will start the series on the mound for Northwest Arkansas, which entered Wednesday's game at Tulsa trailing the first-place Drillers by one-half game in the North Division's second-half standings.

TEXAS LEAGUE

— Associated Press

DRILLERS 5, NATURALS 4

TULSA, Okla. — Lars Anderson hit a bases-clearing double in the eighth inning, leading the Tulsa Drillers to a 5-4 win over the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on Wednesday.

Gus Schlosser got Frank Schwindel to ground out with runners on first and second to end the game for his third save of the season.

The double by Anderson scored Willie Calhoun, Cody Bellinger, and Jacob Scavuzzo to give the Drillers a 5-3 lead. In the top of the ninth, NW Arkansas cut into the lead on an error that scored Carlos Garcia.

Daniel Corcino (1-0) got the win in relief while Matt Strahm (3-8) took the loss in the Texas League game.

Sports on 07/21/2016

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