Amarillo Clinches Postseason Berth with 7-6 Victory over Missions

AMARILLO (September 8, 2026) — The Amarillo Sod Poodles held on for a 7-6 victory over the San Antonio Missions at Hodgetown on Tuesday night. With the victory, they clinched the Texas League South second-half title.

San Antonio jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Tirso Ornelas doubled home Kai Roberts, providing his 33rd double of the season. Romeo Sanabria then drove in Ornelas with an RBI single.

Amarillo responded with a run of their own in the first, as Cristofer Torin hit a solo blast to center field.

The Sod Poodles took a 4-2 lead in the fourth. Avery Owusu-Asiedu ripped a two-run homer to center, putting Amarillo ahead 3-2. Angel Ortiz later scored on an RBI groundout by Druw Jones, making it 4-2.

Ben McLaughlin’s two-run homer in the sixth extended the Amarillo advantage to 6-2.

San Antonio didn’t go away quietly, scoring a run in each of the last four frames.

Brendan Durfee knocked in Justin Decrisio with an RBI single in the sixth, cutting the deficit to 6-3.

A Torin sacrifice fly later in the sixth made it 7-3 Amarillo, but the Missions were not done.

Sanabria’s RBI groundout scored Alex McCoy in the seventh. Luis Verdugo’s ninth long ball of the season in the eighth cut the Sod Poodles lead to two.

In the ninth, Tirso Ornelas made it a one-run contest with a towering home run to center. However, Carlos Rey struck out Sanabria and Albert Fabian to preserve the victory for the Sod Poodles.

The Missions are now 1-10 in one-run contests against Amarillo this season, while being 23-7 otherwise in those situations.

Up Next:

The Missions continue their six-game series against the Amarillo Sod Poodles tomorrow at 6:35 p.m. Catch all the action on Country Legends KKYX, 680 AM, 104.9 FM and kkyx.com.