Frisco, TX – The Frisco RoughRiders claimed a hard-fought 5-4 win in 10 innings on Thursday, walking off on a throwing error in the bottom of the 10th before 7,719 fans at Dr Pepper Ballpark on Thursday night.
The RoughRiders (4-3, 28-49) swung in front in the bottom of the first with a two-run shot by rehabbing Texas Rangers C Carlos Perez, taking the 2-0 lead.
The Cardinals (1-6, 34-43), though, evened it in the top of the third. With runners at first and second and two away, C Andrew Knizner lined a two-run double inside the right field line, plating both runners to square the score at 2-2.
Springfield DH Chris Chinea then powered the Cardinals in front in the top of the fourth with a two-out solo home run, his ninth blast of the season, lifting the Cards into the 3-2 advantage.
RHP Connor Jones kept the narrow lead intact through his first six innings, but the big-leaguer Perez struck again the in seventh with a game-tying, two-out RBI double, evening it at 3-3.
The RoughRiders added another two-out run in the eighth inning against RHP Ramon Santos when DH Luis La O brought in CF Michael O’Neill with an RBI single, tilting the lead back in Frisco’s direction, 4-3.
The Cardinals refused to go down without a fight, staging a comeback in the top of the ninth. Chinea led off with a walk before yielding to pinch-running OF Blake Drake on the bases. A sac bunt from SS Tommy Edman moved Drake to second, before a groundout advanced him to third. With the Cardinals down to their final out, CF Lane Thomas lined a game-tying RBI single to right field, scoring Drake to bring Springfield back even, 4-4, and keep the game alive.
LHP Jacob Evans worked through a scoreless bottom of the ninth, but the RoughRiders dealt the final blow in the bottom of the 10th against RHP Yeison Medina (L, 0-3). With the automatic runner, 1B Preston Beck, starting the inning at second base, O’Neill laid down a sacrifice bunt. 3B Evan Mendoza fielded the bunt but overthrew first base, allowing Beck to score from second on the play and sending Frisco to the 5-4 walk-off win in 10 frames.
