Hernandez Career Night, Beam Quality Start Lead Nats to 7-5 Win Wednesday
WICHITA, KANSAS -- Omar Hernandez set a career-high in hits (4) and stolen bases (3) while Drew Beam threw his fifth quality start of the year in the Northwest Arkansas Naurals (4-10, 33-48) over the Wichita Wind Surge (3-11, 28-53) at Equity Bank Park in Wichita, KS. The two teams
WICHITA, KANSAS -- Omar Hernandez set a career-high in hits (4) and stolen bases (3) while Drew Beam threw his fifth quality start of the year in the Northwest Arkansas Naurals (4-10, 33-48) over the Wichita Wind Surge (3-11, 28-53) at Equity Bank Park in Wichita, KS. The two teams continue their series Thursday at 7:05 PM CT.
Wichita got to Beam (5-7) in the third before the Naturals tied the game in the third. Sam Kulasingam grounded out to first with Carson Roccaforte at third, scoring to tie the game. NWA took the lead in the fourth when Hernandez connected on his first hit of the game, an RBI single to drive in Colton Becker to make it 2-1.
Jack Pineda, who was 2-for-3, blasted his seventh homer of the year in the fifth to extend the lead. Hernandez singled again in the sixth and NWA extended their lead to 4-2 with another run in the seventh.
Wichita got within a run in the bottom of the frame on an other homer, but Beam set down the next three hitters to finalize his line. The righty tossed 7.0 innings while holding the Surge to three runs on five hits with seven strikeouts, one shy of his career-high he set in his last outing.
Hernandez collected hit number-three in the eighth, eventually coming around to score as part of a three-run frame that gave NWA a 7-3 edge.
Zachary Cawyer came out of the bullpen and tossed a scoreless eighth, with Hernandez being the lone Natural to reach in the top of the ninth, his fourth hit of the night. The performance set a new career-high in hits while the catcher also swiped three bases, also his best as a pro.
Cawyer returned for the ninth where Wichita scored two unearned runs but the Naturals held on to even the series at one-game a piece with the 7-5 victory.
The Naturals and Wind Surge continue their series at Equity Bank Park with a 7:05 PM CT first pitch on Thursday. Fans can catch all the action with the Naturals radio broadcast and the "Voice of the Naturals, Shawn Murnin, available on the MiLB App and www.nwanaturals.com.