MLN Newswire - www.mlntherawfeed.com-When a team gets a combination of good hitting and good pitching, it usually wins, and that was the case for the Tulsa Drillers Friday night in Springfield. The Drillers got seven strong innings from starting pitcher Esmil Rogers and got at least one hit from every position player in the lineup to record a 5-1 win over the Cardinals.Rogers allowed only three hits and one disputed earned run in his outing, continuing a recent trend. He has now allowed only three earned runs in his last four starts, for a 1.05 ERA over 25 2/3 innings. In Friday’s outing, Rogers walked only one batter and struck out eight while improving his record to 3-1.

The Drillers opened the game’s scoring in the top of the second inning as Darin Holcomb singled and scored on a base hit from Daniel Mayora.

They doubled their margin in the fourth as a double by Mike McKenry scored Ryan Harvey who had singled.

The lead increased to 4-0 with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth. Rogers led off and reached on an error by shortstop Pete Kozma. Cole Garner followed with a double that left runners at second and third with no outs. Chris Nelson plated Rogers with a base hit, and Jeff Kindel brought Garner home with a sacrifice fly.
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Springfield’s lone run came in the bottom of the sixth as Kozma singled and scored on a double by Mark Hamilton. Newcomer Brad Corley mishandled Hamilton’s double in right field, and he was charged with an error on the play. Despite the error, the official scorer charged Rogers with an earned run on the play.

The Drillers closed the scoring with a strange run in the top of the eighth. With one out, McKenry hit a hooking liner that appeared to clear the fence down the left field line for a homer. The ball was originally called a foul ball by third base umpire Jeff Gosney, but he was convinced by Tulsa manager Stu Cole to confer with home plate umpire Brian Sinclair on the call. After a brief conversation among the umpires, the ruling was reversed to a home run for McKenry. That decision brought Springfield manager Ron Warner out of the first base dugout, and he was ejected from the game a short time later.

Ryan Speier, on an injury-rehabilitation assignment from the Colorado Rockies, made his second appearance for the Drillers and worked a scoreless eighth inning in relief of Rogers.

Tommy Baumgardner completed the game with a scoreless ninth inning.

The win improved the Drillers record to 22-18 and moved them to within one game of the first-place Cardinals in the North Division standings.

The two teams will continue their four-game series at 6:10PM Saturday night at Hammons Field. Andy Graham will make the start for the Drillers against Tyler Herron of the Cardinals.

NOTES: Corley made his Tulsa debut, singling in his only at-bat in the seventh inning. The outfielder was acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates organization and had spent most of this season with Double A Altoona. . . . Rogers became the second Tulsa pitcher to suffer the wrath of a decision by an official scorer in Springfield. Earlier this season, Jhoulys Chacin had six unearned runs changed to earned following a post-game scoring change that awarded a Springfield player with a hit.

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